ON THE FACE OF IT
Main Character
Derry: a young boy, burnt face, negative approach about life.
Lamb: An old man with tin leg, full of confidence, positive approach about life.
Brief Summary
This play deals with the problem of the disabled people and describes that encou words may change our tensed feelings. It does not matter what we look like but it matters how we can boost a disabled man. In the story Derry suffers from inferiority complex. Mr. Lamb motivates him to think positively about life, people and things. Play starts with a pleasant day and Mr. Lamb is in his garden. He is an old man, who has a tin leg. He leads a lonely life.
He is always ready to accept any visitor who comes in his garden. One day Derry, a young boy around fourteen,wanted to enter into Mr. Lamb's garden to have apple. He has a burnt face with acid so he looks very ugly. He does not want to face the world with his ugly and disfigured face. He has become deflant and introvert. Dergy climbs over the wall and cautiously walks through the long grass. Suddenly he finds mr. Lamb béfore him. Lamb Warns him to walk carefully. To see Lamb, Derry panicks and wants to go. Lamb says him not to go from there because he does not mind anybody's coming into his garden. He keeps the gate always open. He advises to enter through the gate rather than by climbing over the garden woll. Lamb tells that all who come to his garden, are welcomed. Derry is surprised to see Lamb is not afraid of him. Derry points out that the people are afraid of him because of his ugly and disfigured face. Derry adds that he is afraid of himself when he sees his face in the mirror.
Lamb tries to divert the views of Derry from his burnt face to the fruits in the garden, but Derry keeps on talking about his ugly face, Lomb says that inner beauty of a person matters not his outer beauty. Derry does not agree with it. He tells lamb that it is important to be handsome from outside also. He says that even his mother kisses him on the other side of his face. Mr. Lomb says things look different from outside, but everything is same from inside like trees, herbs everything look different but they all grow in same manner. This makes Derry understand that a flowers, trees, man is not what he looks like but what he really is. Derry tells that people stare at his face and they are afraid of him. Derry tells Lamb that women talk of his ugly face. Mr. Lamb tells him that the best thing is to keep his ears shut and need not pay attention to such talks. Mr. Lamb talks about the bees in his garden. Some people like their buzzing while others hate. But Lamb calls it a sweet music. It is only the difference of attitude.
Mr. Lamb mentioned that keeping alone s not a fine thing. He tells a story about a man who was always afraid of being run over or getting infected or meeting with some accident. So he locked himself in a room. There a picture fell on his head and killed him.
Derry says that his family is worried about his future. Lamb encourages him that he has got two arms, legs, eyes, ears, a tongue and a brain. He can achieve whatever he likes. He can be better than others. He tells Derry that he has got a full body. He can do anything like other people or may do better than others. Lamb says that he sits in the sun and reads the books. He likes the open windows, Lamb tells, everybody who comes in his garden is his friend. People say him Lamey-Lamb but he does not mind. Derry says that there are some people whom he hates. But Lamb remarks that hatred is more harmful than any bottle of acid, Acid only burns our face or so but hatred can burn us from inside.
Derry says he will come again after informing his mother. Lamb doubts if he would come back. Derry assures him to return but Lamb says to himself that people never come back though they say that they will come back. Derry goes back to his house and tells everything to his mother. Derry says that he wants to go to Lamb garden. His mother stops him from going to the old man's house. She tells that she has heard strange stories about the old man. In of his mother's strong resistance, Derry runs away to Lamb.
In the meantime Mr. Lamb climbs on the ladder for the apples. The ladder falls back and Mr. Lamb dies. Derry opens the gate and says that he has come back. Suddenly he notices Mr. Lamb on the grass. He runs through the long grass and says, "I came back Lamey-Lamb. I did come back. Derry starts weeping and realizes that he has lost his only friend in this world.
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