From: Night of 20th / Yehoshua Sobol
(the kvutza is arguing about whether to leave the next morning to confront the Arab farmers at the foot of the mountain, or to stay in the camp, on the top.)
Naftali: we won't let you stay here. We will take you by force. We will take you with us like a package wherever we go. And if you object, we will force you to drink a bottle of ethanol, we will put you in a straitjacket and we will take you with us down there, or wherever the devil throws us. We will take you with us everywhere like a curse. We can't leave you. We can't.
(Shifra gets up and starts unbuttoning her blouse.)
Naftali: what are you doing?
Shifra: undressing.
Naftali: no. (Approaches her and grabs her hand) don't do it.
Shifra: why?
Naftali: if you get undressed, we will all have to get undressed.
Shifra: right. We all have to get undressed.
Naftali: I can't. I live in an alien body…
Shifra: don't be afraid, Naftali. We all love you.
Naftali: everyone… because I'm a clown. I am treated like a nice joke. (Gradually takes off his clothes) my entire existence among you is based on me hiding myself. And then sometimes you think: what is it about Naftali that we don't understand? And Naftali nurtures himself from these left- overs of attention, sucks his existence from this… not really an important existence, but still… Naftali lives his life from this. And he says to himself, that maybe it isn't much, but it's something. At least he is alive. Sometimes, thanks to this bit of mystery, it even seems that this Naftali has a big secret… because what is Naftali? Nothing. A deception… pretending to be a person. Naftali is a creature that needs to scream and boil with anger to feel that he is angry, that needs to moan and cry to feel that he is sad, and needs to laugh and sing to feel that he is happy. Naftali is a type of creature that might have to die in order to feel that he had lived. I've thought for a while now that there is something wrong with me. Because I compare myself to all of you, and I see that you are all people with important thoughts and a lot of emotion, and I… for this I also wanted to come to Eretz Israel so much. I said to myself: Naftali, if you do such an important deed, you will start being a real person. With thoughts and history and a moral feeling… but here I am in Israel, and it didn't happen to me: I stayed the same Naftali.
…and all the time I am alert and pay attention to myself, not to miss this magical moment, when Naftali, this lukewarm substance, that has no shape, will become a hero. That his life could be told to the next generations, and make their hearts race. That they will say: oh. What people once lived…
For now, if you want, we can take our clothes off.
(the kvutza is arguing about whether to leave the next morning to confront the Arab farmers at the foot of the mountain, or to stay in the camp, on the top.)
Naftali: we won't let you stay here. We will take you by force. We will take you with us like a package wherever we go. And if you object, we will force you to drink a bottle of ethanol, we will put you in a straitjacket and we will take you with us down there, or wherever the devil throws us. We will take you with us everywhere like a curse. We can't leave you. We can't.
(Shifra gets up and starts unbuttoning her blouse.)
Naftali: what are you doing?
Shifra: undressing.
Naftali: no. (Approaches her and grabs her hand) don't do it.
Shifra: why?
Naftali: if you get undressed, we will all have to get undressed.
Shifra: right. We all have to get undressed.
Naftali: I can't. I live in an alien body…
Shifra: don't be afraid, Naftali. We all love you.
Naftali: everyone… because I'm a clown. I am treated like a nice joke. (Gradually takes off his clothes) my entire existence among you is based on me hiding myself. And then sometimes you think: what is it about Naftali that we don't understand? And Naftali nurtures himself from these left- overs of attention, sucks his existence from this… not really an important existence, but still… Naftali lives his life from this. And he says to himself, that maybe it isn't much, but it's something. At least he is alive. Sometimes, thanks to this bit of mystery, it even seems that this Naftali has a big secret… because what is Naftali? Nothing. A deception… pretending to be a person. Naftali is a creature that needs to scream and boil with anger to feel that he is angry, that needs to moan and cry to feel that he is sad, and needs to laugh and sing to feel that he is happy. Naftali is a type of creature that might have to die in order to feel that he had lived. I've thought for a while now that there is something wrong with me. Because I compare myself to all of you, and I see that you are all people with important thoughts and a lot of emotion, and I… for this I also wanted to come to Eretz Israel so much. I said to myself: Naftali, if you do such an important deed, you will start being a real person. With thoughts and history and a moral feeling… but here I am in Israel, and it didn't happen to me: I stayed the same Naftali.
…and all the time I am alert and pay attention to myself, not to miss this magical moment, when Naftali, this lukewarm substance, that has no shape, will become a hero. That his life could be told to the next generations, and make their hearts race. That they will say: oh. What people once lived…
For now, if you want, we can take our clothes off.
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