MAPACA

Mid-Atlantic Popular &
American Culture Association

Lynn Nottage uses her play Ruined to achieve her goal of giving a voice to the voiceless, focusing on problems and situations that she does not feel receive enough attention. This play tells the true stories of real women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo who have suffered extreme sexual and emotional abuse, some of them becoming “ruined” in the process, meaning that their sexual body parts have been damaged beyond healing. Ruined is a story of power, or rather, a distinct lack of power, as women are powerless in comparison to the men who come into the brothel. If a woman has become ruined, it will diminish her supposed value as a human being, but it will have no effect on the amount of power that she has because she had no power in the first place. All of the women find themselves in the situations they are in not because of any choice they made, but because they as women were powerless and remain as such. This essay focuses on the role of power and how it directly affects the women. Additionally, the supposed power held by Mama Nadi is examined, discussing whether or not she has any real power while running the brothel. Finally, the implications of the play as it relates to the real women portrayed by its characters is examined, as the characters such as Sophie and Salima are powerless to escape their horrible situations as are the real women that they represent.