THERESA McTERRY

Theresa McTerry is the third monologue in Johanna Murray Smith’s ‘Bombshells. We see Theresa on her wedding day and initially she seems to be elated with her impending nuptials. The monologue opens with ‘Delirious! I am so fucking happy! I’m so happy I could scream.’ However as the monologue goes on we see that Theresa is more enamoured with the ideal of marriage and the wedding (and in particular the dress) than the reality of married life, particularly to ‘Ted the pot-plant.’


The issues of Identity and Belongs are central to the monologue. The idea of identity as being transient or impermanent is raised in the monologue. Just as we go through life with changes in our identity; baby to child to teenager to adult, amongst many others, a significant change also occurs in one’s sense of self when entering into marriage. It is at this point that Theresa finds herself. ‘She stands on the cusp between the world of dreams and the world of fulfilment, of girl to woman, of me-ness to us-ness.’ In other words, Theresa feels that she is moving from an individual identity to a shared collective identity with Ted as a married couple. While identity can be strengthened and to a certain extent defined by the relationships that we have with others, it can also lead to sacrifices being made and this is what seems to scare Theresa. Despite this, Theresa also feels that she is gaining a greater sense of identity and belonging through her union with Ted evidenced by ‘I’m going to be somebody. Anybody. A wife’ and ‘love lifts us up where we belong.’ The innate human desire for companionship and intimacy is also seen in this monologue, ‘I want to be held, nurtured, nestled, owned.’

Expectations of society also play a significant role in this monologue. Theresa feels the expectation for women to be child-bearers as she says ‘No more pounding tick of the biological clock.’ She feels that by marrying Ted she will gain a greater sense of belonging within the wider world. Her comparison to several famous women in reference to their wedding shows that she feels that their existence is justified by their marriage and she also seeks acceptance from society by fulfilling her expected role. However, Theresa’s self curse ‘WHAT THE FUCK HAVE I DONE’ suggests that the decision to marry for superficial reasons is ultimately not self-fulfilling.