The Vagina Monologues

The Vagina Monologues received criticism for its attachment to the vagina as a representation of femininity and identification as a woman. What are the strengths of focusing on the vagina in the play? How does this decision detract from its power as a tool of activism?

The history of the comfort women is fraught with conflict and a dearth of information, with most research into the historical event only occurring as late as the 1990s. To add to the collective effort to understand and memorialize these women, research what you can find about the women still living or those who’ve since died. Write either a historical piece on the history you find or your own collective biography of women whose histories have been silenced, ignored, or forgotten.

The format of this play—the monologue—requires the narrators to generalize about some experiences. There are benefits and deficits to this strategy. Make an argument for two pros and two cons of this format using support from both the text and outside criticism of the play.

Art and activism have a strong relationship in the history of feminism in the United States. Research other examples of art and activism to liberate women from violence and patriarchal oppression and pick one artist or movement of interest. How effective were these movements or pieces of art in igniting change?

The genre of The Vagina Monologues is difficult to categorize. It’s a fictional play, but it recounts lived experiences. Some sections have a narrative format and read like essays or book chapters, while others are written in verse or heavily stylized prose. How does the ambiguous quality of the text lend itself to speaking for a multiplicity of experiences? Does it hinder this ability at all?

Why do you think V chose to perform these monologues aloud, as a spoken performance, instead of simply publishing them in a book?

How does age operate in the play? How does it influence the participants’ responses?

The “Spotlight Monologues” were added later to the original monologues in V’s play. How do they communicate with the original testimonies and narrators? What do they add to the experiences in the play? What do they add to the larger narrative about violence against women?