The Impact of a Disapility

Throughout my reading of "The Boys Next Door", I found myself being confused at times of what was going on throughout the scene. However, as I kept reading, the randomness started to make more sense. In fact, I realized that this hint of "randomness" is what makes this play turn into a reality for a person really living with a disability.

A character that I have been taking note of throughout my reading is Jack, a man without any disabilities who actually watches over the four men from time to time. Throughout a few of his monologues, he explains to the audience, as he breaks the fourth wall, how he is becoming tired and worn from these men. With that said, it really made me think how I would react if I had to take care of people who had disabilities, such as Norman and Arnold.

Something that helped me understand these characters a lot was our field trip to the Alliance for Independence. We were able to tour the entire facility as well as meet some of the teachers and clients that go there. In this center, the clients actually get to chose what they want to learn and stick with that, instead of having to learn everything that does not even interest them. I watched closely our tour guides, who were both females, and I noticed their interaction with the clients. It was very touching to see how much the clients respected them and liked them and it reminded me of the play. It found a contrast between Jack, and these ladies, how Jack was getting tired of the four men and these two ladies seemed more compassionate towards the clients. I knew the generosity was sincere because none of the clients actually pay to go there, in fact, the representatives actually pay close to seventy dollars per person, basically stating that they pay the clients to go there.

Through this realization of the contrast between Jack and the ladies, I could not help but ask myself, would I be like Jack and become annoyed with people who have disabilities, or would my compassion only grow from them the longer I knew them like the tour ladies? With these thoughts in mind, I look forward to continue reading "The Boys Next Door".