OUT OF THE ZONE

by Dick Sawdon Smith

The scene is a living room in a West German town about 1996. There are two armchairs near the front but on the far wall is a large painting of a German SS Officer.

There is the sound of a door bell ringing. A man is his fifties (Herr Muller) enters from the left and goes over to a door on right and opens it.

Herr Muller Come on in.

A young woman in her mid twenties enters and is followed by a young man of similar age. They are both wearing outdoor coats.

Peter Father, this is Jenny. Jenny this is my father.

Jenny and Her Muller shake hands.

Herr Muller It’s lovely to see you Jenny, we are always happy to meet Peter’s friends. Peter – take Jenny’s coat.

Peter Yes of course, let me have it Jenny.

Peter takes off his own coat while Jenny removes hers. He takes hers from her and takes both coats off left.

Herr Muller Come and sit down Jenny.

He guides her to an easy chair in the middle of the room and sits down opposite her.

Herr Muller Tell me Jenny, where are you from?

Jenny From Leipzig

Herr Muller Ah Leipzig. Peter told us you were brought up in the zone.

Jenny No Herr Muller, there is no zone.

Herr Muller No, of course not, not now.

Jenny There never was a zone; Leipzig was in the German Democratic Republic.

Herr Muller Yes of course. I’m sorry. That’s just what we got used to calling it, a sort of shorthand. Had you always lived in Leipzig?

Jenny Yes – that is until I went to take my degree at Humboldt University in Berlin.

Herr Muller Was that after the wall came down?

Jenny Oh Yes, I wouldn’t have been allowed to go there otherwise.

Herr Muller It must have been so hard for you before then.

Jenny Hard, Herr Muller, in what way

Peter re-enters the room and leans on his father’s chair

Herr Muller I don’t know really, it’s just that we had the feeling that life was rather – what shall we say – basic in the z.. in the east.

Jenny Oh yes it was very basic, we lived on bread and water, lived in tents and rode around on donkeys.

Peter Jenny, that’s very unfair on father, he never suggested that.

Jenny No but a lot of people in the west think that.

Peter Jenny, you’ve told me many times how much better things are since the re-unification.

Jenny Better for me of course, but not for everyone. Not for my father.

Herr Muller What does your father do Jenny?

Jenny He does nothing Herr Muller. He’s one of the unemployed. He had a good job in a factory. After the re-unification they closed the factory, inefficient, not viable they said. Now he’s lost his job and everything he was brought up to believe in has been swept away.

Peter You have to admit for the young people at least, life is a lot better, no more having to join the Young Pioneers. You told me how you hated all that parading, flag saluting and having to make the weekly pledge.

Jenny That’s true of course but you know when we went on the Jugendweith they gave us a book called ‘the meaning of our lives’. I always remember the five questions it asked. ‘Who am I? What can I do? What do I want? To whom can I be useful? Who needs me? What does that sound like to you Herr Muller?

Herr Muller Sounds very –um- commendable.

Jenny My West German friends tell me to forget all that. The key questions today are ‘Who am I? What do I want? Who could be useful to me? Who do I need?

Herr Muller Well you may have something there; we have probably got a little too self centred.

He eases himself out of the chair and stands up.

Herr Muller I haven’t told Peter’s mother you are here. She’s cooking us all a nice lunch. I’d better go and see how she’s getting on.

Herr Muller walks off left. Peter walks over to the chair that Jenny is sitting in and she stands up to face him. He stretches out both hands to her which she takes.

Peter You are really giving my father a hard time. It’s not like you.

Jenny I’m sorry but it’s difficult you know. Just because I’m from the east doesn’t mean that I’m from some sub-culture. We are all still Germans. Just because some of us were born on the wrong side of the wall doesn’t mean that people can pat us on the head and say ‘there there’ as if we are recalcitrant children.

Peter I’m sure that not what Father is doing, he is just interested you know. We never knew what went on in the east, so all sorts of rumours were spread about the hardship of life and the activities of the Stasi secret police. It must have been the same for you.

Jenny then sees the painting on the wall. She lets go of Peter’s hands and walks over to stand in front of it and then turns to Peter.

Jenny Peter – Now I am shocked. How can you have a painting of a Nazi hanging on your wall?

She goes over and turns the painting round. Peter goes over to the wall and turns the painting back, saying

Peter You can’t do that, that my grandfather.

Herr Muller walks back into the room and sees Peter rearranging the painting.

Jenny By the look of his uniform he must have been a high ranking Nazi.

She turns to Herr Muller.

Herr Muller, how can you admit to having a fascist in your family let alone parade him on your living room wall for all to see.

Herr Muller You know Jenny it’s not something we’ve ever talked about, he’s just – just part of family history.

Jenny But how did the whole nation get taken in by all that fascist propaganda, why did anyone become a Nazi?

Herr Muller I can’t answer that Jenny; I wasn’t born until after the war, it’s difficult for us to understand as well.

Peter How do any of us become susceptible to propaganda? You’ve said yourself that you believed all those stories that the wicked imperialists were likely to start a nuclear war at any time.

Jenny Yes, but I was only a child.

Peter Your uncle wasn’t a child but he told me he was a border guard, ready to protect the frontier. He would have killed if he had to. He truly believed the truth of what he had been told, that it was an anti-fascist barrier. Look at him now, he a successful businessman asking himself how he could have believed all those lies.

Herr Muller What did your grandfather do in the last war Jenny?

Jenny I don’t know. My parents never told us. It’s not something we ever discussed.

Her Muller You see there was only one Germany in the last war so he may have well served in the armed forces to the glory of the Fatherland. He may even have been a fascist, taken in by all the propaganda. That could be why he was never mentioned in your family.

There is silence for a few moments, Jenny then heaves a large sigh.

Jenny You’re right of course, we can’t get away from it - we are all descendants of the Third Reich.

Frau Muller then burst into the room. She rushes up to Jenny and kisses her on both cheeks.

Frau Muller I’m so pleased to see you Jenny. I can’t imagine how you people survived all those terrible times in the zone. Thank God those dark days are over. I’ve cooked a very special meal for you today. Some special treats.

There is complete silence. Peter screws up his face in disbelief.

Frau Muller looks at each of them in turn, her mouth slightly open.

Frau Muller What! Have I said something wrong?

There is another short silence.

Jenny No of course not Frau Muller. I’m honoured that you have cooked a meal especially for me. Let’s go and eat it like the good Germans we all are.

Jenny puts her arm through Frau Muller’s and they lead the way off left, followed by the two men.

-- The End --