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Really Really Script Analysis

I. Given Circumstances

A. Environment:

1. Geographical Location:

America; some college town; possibly New England since Haley lives in

Waterbury, a town in Connecticut; at Grace and Leigh’s apartment,

Davis’s house, and a laundromat

2. Date:

Modern day; halfway through the spring semester, just before midterms,

so around March; over the course of a few days

3. Economic Factors:

The guys all come from more affluent backgrounds; Davis’s dad is a CFO

and his mom is a philanthropist; Jimmy’s dad is on the school board;

Cooper’s owns some company; it’s also likely that Grace is pretty well off;

Haley and Leigh both grew up poor; Leigh is better off now with Jimmy’s

support; Haley lives in a motel

4. Political Factors:

The show premiered in 2012, at the start of Obama’s second term; it is pre

Trump; a lot of political discourse when Obama was in office was about

identity, similar to what it’s become with Biden; when conservatives are

bored and don’t have a president they like to complain about Dr. Suess or

something; no political affiliations are stated in the show, but there’s no

way anyone is a leftist except Haley and possibly her sister; Grace is

probably the most conservative; the guys have wealthy parents that would

not have raised them with too many liberal values

5. Social/Religious Factors:

Jimmy and Grace are explicitly Christian; Jimmy has a Christian therapist

and seems like he goes to church camp; Grace actively goes to church; it’s

unclear whether the other characters are religious, but if Haley and Leigh

were raised Christian, it would seem they do not actively practice or

believe; the show was written either just before or at the very start of the

rise of movements like Me Too and Time’s Up where sexual assault began

to become talked about more frequently and more publicly

B. Previous Action:

Before the play begins, Davis and the other guys throw their annual

Tunnel-of-Love party. Leigh, Grace, Davis, Cooper, and Johnson are all in

attendance. Jimmy is away on vacation with his family. Johnson leaves early.

Grace leaves but waits outside while Leigh is in Davis’s room. Cooper listens to

Leigh and Davis through the wall while Davis forces himself onto Leigh. Grace

and Johnson are in a relationship. Leigh and Jimmy are together, too. Leigh has

always had a crush on Davis. Jimmy believes that Leigh is pregnant with his

child. Grace and Leigh live together. Cooper and Davis live together. Cooper is

being given special treatment from the school thanks to Jimmy’s dad. Midterms

are approaching.

C. Polar Attitudes of Characters:

1. Cooper vs Johnson:

Johnson’s whole deal is that he’s on top of his game and is planning on

acing his midterms; Cooper is very nonchalant about his college

experience; they’re the two extremes on worrying about college that Davis

finds himself between

2. Cooper vs Davis:

Cooper plans on staying at college for as long as he needs; Davis believes

he needs to graduate on time to keep his life on track; Cooper does not

think Davis knows what he wants and urges him to take control; Cooper

stays when shit hits the fan

3. Johnson vs Davis:

Johnson is actually on track to have the successful college career that

Davis is aiming for; Johnson has supported Davis’s academics throughout

their friendship; Johnson saves his own ass in the end

4. Leigh vs Grace;

Grace is this put together club president that wants to take care of Leigh;

Leigh has relied on Grace a lot but now has enough support from her

boyfriend; Grace needs full control over Leigh

5. Leigh vs Haley:

Leigh and Haley grew up together; they both learned to fend for

themselves; Leigh has been able to find money through Jimmy and has

support; Haley is still trying to support herself; Leigh is either not as

dishonest as Haley yet or is even better at it

6. Leigh vs Jimmy:

They both need each other, but for entirely different purposes; Leigh needs

Jimmy’s money; he’s perfectly willing to give her whatever she wants as

long as he’s in charge; she helps him feel like he’s in control

7. Leigh vs Davis:

Leigh is taking control of the things she wants whatever way she can; she

wants Jimmy’s money, so she keeps him in her life however she can;

Davis is unable to find that same kind of control until he goes out and

forces himself in control over Leigh

8. Davis vs Jimmy:

Davis and Jimmy are both pursuing a comfortable family life; they both

struggle with being in control; Jimmy is able to find that safety in Leigh;

Davis has to physically overpower Leigh to get that same kind of control

D. Dialogue:

1. Choice of Words:

A lot of simple, casual language; even to the point where slang is largely

used; it’s modern college students talking to one another

2. Choice of Sentence Structures:

Sentences are mostly short like back and forth conversation; a lot of

dashes and ellipses; thoughts are formed quickly and in spite of the

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