Anfisa Richardson
Humanities 205
Mr. Allan
TAPE: by José Rivera 1993
In this short story/play “Tape” written by Jose Rivera, was amazing to me, it made me feel like I was
the one in the hot seat. In my opinion this piece was more on the simple side of death, but it does make you
think…mmm… This playwright takes place in a dark room with a pitcher of water, a glass, and reel-to-reel
tape. Felt like an interrogation room but swayed more towards purgatory. What is purgatory one would ask?
The way the attendant explains “it’s” job it seems like a very strict a no-nonsense type of area. To my
understanding I believe that this “person” is a man, and the “attendant” could very well be male or female. Due
to the fact that the “attendant” is a little softer than the “person” and I think the person is a man because the
ways the character talks. I find it odd that both of the “attendant” and the “person” cannot have dreams or
names; it shows no sense of freedom in the story. But seriously if you really think about the afterlife isn’t
purgatory just that? What we just read? It makes one wonder if this is what I have to look forward when I die.
This play carries a lot of sadness, for one, it was dark in the room and the “attendant stated that “I’m afraid of
those lights” (5) WHY? Would be my question. Is the “attendant” just that.. or is he/she the one that was this
“person’s” guardian angel, walking step for step with the human through his entire life, watching, seeing,
hearing every lie, facial expression and deed the “person” has made. So there for when it came down to the
“person” being on his playing level, “attendant” house, there was no need to watch or see the soul only to hear.
Also the “attendant” stated that “we don’t want to cause you any undue suffering. If it’s to dark in here, I’ll
make sure one of the other attendants replaces the light bulb”. (10) Seriously? This is purgatory! How much
more suffering can one go through already? Trying to wrap my brain around this script was tremendous for me,
it was like, I myself sitting in a court room being judged by an unseen judge and jury. Not knowing what’s
going to happen so for the “person” to ask for a meal was a bit comforting, almost human like.
After a bit of this and that in the conversation it struck me that when the “person” asked the
“attendant” for his/her name, “what’s your name anyway? Do you have a name?” the statement made was
“Not really. It’s not allowed” (45). Good Lord, not even names were allowed to these “attendants” per their
rules. Rules? Makes me wonder what the rules truly mean, are they there for the “attendants” purposes or are
they there for the “persons” purpose? Either way it was a bit disturbing. I myself would be pretty curious about
the whole system. Anyway this whole purgatory thing disturbs me, there are times that one would wonder if
this life that we live in is purgatory, or is it when we die, OR if this life is purgatory then when we die, are we
destined to watch our lives and our screw-ups on a reel-to-reel tape, it that what hell is? I for one would not
want that for myself, cause god knows, as humans we all make a crap ton of mistakes in our lives. But how is
one to fix his/her mistakes if we do not realize we have made mistakes, or not wanting to fix ones mistakes, so
back to the question or statement, are we forced to watch our lives unfold on a reel-to-reel tape so as that we do
not repeat our misdeeds in the next life granted. Some would say that there is such a thing as reincarnation. If
reincarnation does exist then maybe a lesson learned through a lifetime of reel-to-reel tape would be the way to
go so as not to repeat your mistakes in the new one. I found it quiet impressing that there was an on button, off,
play, pause even a rewind but no FORWARD, dang! You truly are forced to watch every lie or even other
things that one would do in a life time to watch. When the “attendant” stated “There are ten thousand boxes”
(80, 85) for the “person” to watch of his lies, that would be excruciating, to sit another lifetime and watch how
many people he has hurt with his lies? What’s next, another ten thousand boxed of him doing other misdeeds.
Are they all categorized individually? Oh my lord! I’m not sure I would be looking forward to that. Makes one
wonder like the “attendant” stated “Listening, word for word, to every lie you ever told while you were alive”.
“Every ugly lie to every person, every single time, every betrayal, every lying thought, (even thought??) every
time you lied to yourself, deep in your mind, we were listening, we were recording, and it’s all in these tapes ten
thousand boxes of them, in your own words. One lie after the next, over and over, until we’re finished. So the
amount of time varies. The amount of time you spend here all depends on how many lies you told. How many
boxes of tape we have to get through together”. This really solidifies the entire story; it makes you wonder if
that’s all there is when you die. So as the play comes to a close you hear a woman yelling at the “person”, and
so it begins into his journey of reliving his lies, also the last sentence in this play ends like so (Silence. As the
person waits for the lying response, the lights fade to black)
What does that mean, how would one truly read into this sentence. I for one am still perplexed by that.
Being my curious nature, I want to know that the meaning behind that is, but ultimately I believe that the author
left it to our own imagination.