Reality is a social construct

Reality is a Social Construct (2002)

Scene:   Outside Henry’s late 1990′s dorm room, in the hallway.  He is approached by his girlfriend, Jane.  The hall is empty.  Posters about safe sex, events, and other miscellany adorn the walls.  Both are in their late teens or early twenties.  Today is Henry’s birthday.

HENRY

I’ve gotta go now.  My computer’s been lonely lately.

JANE

Hah, go fuck your floppy drive.

HENRY

Must you always swear at me?  Henry sighs and turns slightly away from Jane and looks upward.

JANE

You do it too, so don’t talk to me like that.  I’ve been waiting for you, where have you been?

HENRY

I was out with my friends.

JANE

Who?

HENRY

My friends.  You know.

JANE

With a half-smile. Who?  Henry gets visibly annoyed.

HENRY

Shouts. My friends!  Quieter. The people I always hang out with.  It’s MY fucking birthday, at least I have some friends that know and appreciate that.

At this, a few students come from stage right and surround the two.  They chant.

GROUP

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Henry, happy birthday to you!

Jane scoffs.

JANE

It’s not your birthday.

HENRY

It is.

JANE

It’s not.

GROUP

Sings. …And many more!

JANE

Shut up!  It’s not his birthday, damn it!

HENRY

Meekly. It is.

JANE

My teacher said in class that reality is a social construct.  I am socially constructing my reality.  Therefore, it is not Henry’s birthday today.  Slowly and carefully enunciated. It is mine.

HENRY

You’re stupid.  That violates all the laws of physics and logic that I learned in class last quarter.  You can’t just imagine something and it happens because you want it to!  I mean, it’s not even my birthday today, it’s yours!  He looks startled, as if he had said something surprising.

Henry’s friends start to realize something is really wrong.  They shuffle their feet and look anxiously at the couple.  Jane stands there and looks at Henry with an odd expression on her face.

JANE

This is interesting.  Hey you!  Points to one of the group members. You are a sweet sunflower, stretching in the shining radiance of the sun.  He/she begins acting like such, a sunflower stretching in the beauty of the sun.  The others look upon this as a normal thing.

JANE

Smiles, totally serious. Henry, sweetie, you are also dead.  I just decided that.

HENRY

Yeah right, Jane.  You can just stand there and say that I’m dead, and I’ll be dead.  Scoffs.  Henry falls to the ground, dead.  The group stares at him lying on the ground.  They begin singing happy birthday again, only to Jane this time.

GROUP

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Jane, happy birthday to you!

JANE

Hmm.  You guys.  Points to the group. You guys are dead too.

The group  falls to the ground, dead.

Jane then turns to the audience and looks at them… thoughtfully.