The Waiting Room

We read The Waiting Room in class. It was about three

women from three different time periods trying to

achieve the image of beauty that was accepted in their

respective time periods. There was a woman from the

Victorian Era, whose abdomen was constricted by a

corset. Another had foot binding on feet from China in

the 1800’s; these two women were from the past.

Finally there was a woman living in modern New Jersey

that had multiple surgeries involving her beasts and body. I believe the lengths these women take to change themselves are unnecessary, solely on the belief that ones natural beauty is the best one. Any change one makes to themselves just takes away from this. These three women were waiting outside a doctor’s office awaiting their appointment.

Many messages were relayed through this text, many revolving around the concept of beauty. One idea that comes to mind when thinking about the struggle these women went through to achieve their ideal body shapes is that beauty is imperfection. In beauty requires one to change their god-given body than beauty is something that someone cannot achieve on their own, it is a mistake. Another idea that can be found through the pages of this play is the thought that nobody is perfect. These two messages are closely related but in some way opposites, yet they are both seen in this text. The women strive for beauty by changing themselves to become more perfect, but in the end they hurt themselves and end of far from perfect, and from their natural form.

The woman from modern times teaches many lessons to the women from the past and learns a few on her own. Lisa Loomer, the author, dictates how our modern society focuses much on looks and the methods and lengths taken to achieve the beauty that our community strives for. The two women do not initially understand the world we live in today, and I do not blame them, with our complex scientific methods of surgery and our ever changing perception of good-looks would be confusing to someone not used to our customs.

The three women have very different ideals and perceptions of the world they live in, and they all change throughout the story. Wanda, the current day New Jersey native, thinks that big boobs and a thin waist is perfect beauty and is constantly worrying about how she looks and changing herself. Throughout the story she changes in another way though, on the inside. She starts to realize how stupid everything she’s doing to herself is. In the end she states (while analyzing the lives of these three women in a fairy tale): “The really stupid [sister] thought her tits weren’t big enough. So they went to the magician and ‘make us perfect.’ I think this is a huge achievement from the standpoint of a woman that has multiple plastic surgeries and breast enlargements. She made many beneficial changes through the plot of this story; someone who was once extremely selfish and ignorant realizes the stupidity behind her actions.

The Chinese woman, Forgiveness From Heaven, once was introverted and had her feet bound, just to make his husband (who had 5 other wives) happy. She is constantly resisting the opinions of others that do not agree with her ideals. By defending her husband and their beliefs she is making herself more and more helpless, but she is finally able to break these bonds. In the last part of the play, Forgiveness is unwrapping her bound feet and smiling and dancing, she has given up on this foolish method. This action is one of strength and dignity as for the first time in her life; she makes a decision on her own.

The innocent Victorian woman, Victoria, has been subject to painful ways of becoming beautiful, such as a corset and 20 pound dress. She is stuck in her ways and believes that it is okay to restrict her stomach and live in an era where woman have no authority. She has to read in the secrecy of her room, and her strive for the research of scientific methods to cure her problems is unique for her time. By the end of the play she also sees the error in her ways and corrects herself a little, but maybe not as much as the other girls. Victoria is unique in the respect that she avoids discussion of her problems and refrains from sexual and foul-mouthed talk. The author uses this as a window into the way of life in this time period. Victoria says: “I’m quite sure I can convince the doctor that my problems are in my mind!” although her ideals change about what her problems are, as she shifts from the idea that what she’s doing is okay to that her problems are in her mind, she is still resistant to the ideas others are trying to bring upon her.

Throughout the story there runs another story that relates to the main one. It is of businessmen and doctors experimenting and selling different serums and products that supposedly cure cancer. There is a serum being tested in Jamaica, Carson’s serum, that is ready to be used is a cure, and a product being produced in America, INT-2. Although neither of these products are ever used by any of the main characters this added a certain element of suspense to the play. Lisa Loomer adds this part of the story maybe to enlighten its readers upon the severe disadvantage to have pharmaceutical companies participating in this competition for the first, or best, or cheapest cure. This competition is good in the respects that there are constant developments in the field of medicine, but takes away from the success of some products because other companies are trying to get rich. This is apparent in this story when Larry tries to make the Jamaican product illegal so his serum is the only product out there, and therefore he makes more money. Unfortunately, though, in this process lives are put at risk and a product that is supposed to work is put in the backburners of the field. I see this is as a problem in our medical field because saving lives becomes a business and people do it not for the rewards of live saving at its most efficient level, but rather a way to get rich.

The play is ended with Forgiveness removing the bindings off her feet and getting up and dances. This is a supreme illustration of the change these characters have made through the context of the play. This is a symbol of all of the struggle these three women have gone through in their question for beauty. I think that beauty is just an untrue perception of perfection, an ideal that is hurting the youth and America and people across the world, a symbol that is forever changing and being recreated, but always having an enormous effect on the people, companies, and even governments of the world.

xoxozac