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Marion Brewster-Wright
At the beginning of the play, Geoffrey Jackson is a confident, attractive, highly charismatic man in his thirties. But by the end of the play, he’s lost his charisma and his optimism. An architect by trade, Geoffrey seems to think highly of himself, and has affairs with other women, often bragging about it in innuendo-filled conversations with Ronald Brewster-Wright and Sidney Hopcroft. As time goes on, however, Sidney’s fortunes decline: his wife, Eva Jackson, becomes suicidal, and he loses his credibility as an architect after a shopping center he designs collapses. In some ways, Geoffrey’s “character arc” is the most tragic: the young, ambitious man rapidly becomes disillusioned and tired of life.
Geoffrey Jackson Quotes in Absurd Person Singular
The Absurd Person Singular quotes below are all either spoken by Geoffrey Jackson or refer to Geoffrey Jackson. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Act One Quotes
JANE: No, but it's special tonight, isn't it? I mean, with Mr. and Mrs. Brewster-Wright and Mr. and Mrs. Jackson. It's important.
SIDNEY: Don't forget Dick and Lottie Potter. They're coming, too.
JANE: Oh, well, I don't count Dick and Lottie. They're friends.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Jane and Sidney are nervous about hosting their Christmas party, as many hosts would be. They want to make good impressions on their guests, and make it clear that they have a lovely, respectable suburban home. But as this passage makes clear, not all the guests are equal in the Hopcrofts’ eyes. Some are more important and respectable than others. The Brewster-Wrights, in particular, are people who Jane and Sidney see as very important. The passage establishes one of the key themes of the play: there’s an intricate social hierarchy, and every one of the Hopcrofts’ friends belongs in a Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita
GEOFFREY: Oh now, come off it. Nonsense. She chooses to live with me, she lives by my rules. I mean we've always made that perfectly clear. She lives her life to a certain extent; I live mine, do what I like within reason. It's the only way to do it...
SIDNEY: Good gracious.
RONALD: I wish you'd have a chat with Marion. Convince her.
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Geoffrey Jackson, another one of the guests at the Hopcrofts’ party, is a charismatic, handsome man who likes to brag to his male friends about his sexual conquests. In oblique terms, Geoffrey suggests that he cheats on his wife all the time, but adds that she’s learned to “play by his rules.” In other words, Geoffrey uses adultery to assert his authority over Eva: he’s the “king of the castle,” and Eva has to support him in whatever he does. The passage is a grating, satirical example of “guy talk.” The three male characters crack little jokes about adultery, at Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequu
MARION: This really is a simply loathsome little house. I mean how can people live in them. I mean, Geoff, you're an architect, you must be able to tell me. How do people come to design these sort of monstrosities in the first place, let alone persuade people to live in them?
GEOFFREY: Well...
MARION: Oh, God. Now he's going to tell me he designed it.
GEOFFREY: No. I didn't do it. They're designed like this mainly because of cost and people who are desperate for somewhere to live aren't particularly choosey.
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Just as the Hopcrofts predicted, the Christmas party is in reality a subtle game of one-upmanship, in which the different couples quietly judge one another for social status. Marion, the wife of the successful banker Ronald Brewster-Wright, doesn’t seem to think much of Sidney and Jane, and in this passage Marion makes it clear why. She thinks they’re beneath her in the economic hierarchy: their house is cheap and ugly-looking, so they can’t be very wealthy at all. As Ayckbourn makes clearer and clearer as the play goes on, however, Marion and Geoffrey’s obsession with ranking other peoples’ social status Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita d
Act Two Quotes
GEOFFREY: Yes, I know. You’re very anxious, aren't you, that I should go and work for the up and coming Mr. Hopcroft? So is up and coming Mr. Hopcroft.
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As Act Two begins, one year has gone by since the last Christmas party, and things have changed. Sidney, first encountered as a pathetic, struggling businessman (in some vaguely defined field), is now a successful businessman (his jobs has something to do with real estate, but Ayckbourn says almost nothing more about it). Geoffrey Jackson, who in Act One comes across as a cocky, ambitious young architect, is now a cynical, prematurely jaded fellow, who clearly envies Sidney for his sudden success. In the turbulent world of the 1970s middle class, Ayckbourn suggests throughout the play, fortunes are always rising Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati.
GEOFFREY: Eva—I'm being very patient. Very patient indeed. But in a minute I really do believe I'm going to lose my temper. And we know what happens then, don't we? I will take a swing at you and then you will feel hard done by, and by way of reprisal, will systematically go round and smash everything in the flat. And come tomorrow breakfast time, there will be the familiar sight of the three of us, you, me and George, trying to eat our meals off our one surviving plate.
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A year after the Christmas party in Act One, Geoffrey and Eva’s marriage has disintegrated. Geoffrey is contemplating leaving Eva, perhaps forever, and claims that he’s been seeing another woman. Eva, chatty and energetic in Act One, has become quiet and apparently suicidal. Furthermore, Geoffrey alludes to having hit his wife in the past—perhaps on many occasions. Beneath the idle, banal façade of the characters’ lives, there’s a lot of violence in this play. Geoffrey and Eva seem like a typical thirty-something couple, but in fact Geoffrey is an abusive husband who often takes out his anger on his wife, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea su
GEOFFREY: Now, I'm going to phone the doctor. I’ll just be two minutes, all right? Now, you sit there. Don't move, just sit there like a good girl.
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In this passage, Geoffrey Jackson realizes that Eva Jackson, his wife, has tried to kill herself. Appallingly, he decides to leave her alone while he phones the doctor. This seems like a foolish thing to do, since—just moments ago—she tried to jump out of a window. One would think that Geoffrey should stay with his wife. The passage is a good example of how the actors and director of a theatrical production—not just the playwright—get a hand in interpreting it. On paper, it’s unclear if Geoffrey is just clueless, and doesn’t know any better than to abandon his wife, or Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio
Act Three Quotes
EVA: Darling, I hate to remind you but ever since the ceiling of the Harrison building caved in and nearly killed the Manager, Sidney Hopcroft is about your only hope of surviving as an architect in this city.
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In this expository line of dialogue, it’s revealed that Geoffrey Jackson’s career is in crisis. He designed and built a shopping complex, but the building collapsed, nearly killing a few people. Now, nobody in town will hire Geoffrey, with the possible exception of Sidney Hopcroft, a man who, as we’ve seen already, Geoffrey despises. As was the case in Act Two, it’s unclear why Geoffrey’s fortunes have plummeted. We’re given so little information about the collapse of the shopping complex that it’s impossible to tell if the collapse was a product of Geoffrey’s carelessness, or just an unrelated mistake. More Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam elige
SIDNEY: Yes. Up at Walter's place. Walter Harrison.
RONALD: Oh—old Harrison's.
SIDNEY: Oh of course, you'll know him, won't you.
RONALD: Oh, yes.
GEOFFREY: Yes.
SIDNEY: Oh, yes, of course. Asking you if you know old Harrison. I should think you do know old Harrison. He certainly remembers you. In fact he was saying this evening...
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At Ronald’s party, Sidney is his usual obnoxious self. He brags about having gone to another party before Ronald’s, hosted by Walter Harrison—seemingly a powerful, wealthy member of the community (and therefore a symbol of Sidney’s newfound social status). Furthermore, Sidney brings up the fact that Geoffrey knows Walter, since it was Geoffrey who designed the ill-fated shopping complex Walter owned. The passage is another good example of why it’s up to the actors to interpret a playwright’s work. On paper, it’s unclear if Sidney is trying to mock Geoffrey for his failings and brag about his own success, or Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia
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Geoffrey Jackson Character Timeline in Absurd Person Singular
The timeline below shows where the character Geoffrey Jackson appears in Absurd Person Singular. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act One
...shelves. Jane pokes her head into the kitchen and announces that the Jacksons, Eva and Geoffrey, have arrived. Jane and Sidney walk out of the kitchen.
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Eva, speaking half to herself, goes on to explain that she and her husband, Geoffrey, have left their dog, George, in the car so that it won’t get too restless....
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Geoffrey Jackson, a handsome, confident man in his mid-thirties, enters and asks, “Is there a chance...
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...the back door. Sidney waves her away, without his guests seeing him. Meanwhile, Ronald asks Geoffrey about a party the two of them went to, during which Geoffrey flirted with a...
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...the men have “abandoned” the ladies at the party. Sidney leaves the kitchen. Eva tells Geoffrey that they should get going, since their dog needs to go home and eat its...
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As Eva leaves, Geoffrey brings up a business deal with Ronald—he wants to know if Walter Harrison’s new shopping...
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Marion enters the kitchen, just as Ronald is leaving. She tells Geoffrey that the house is horribly ugly, and Geoffrey agrees—he explains that houses like this are...
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Act Two
Act Two takes place “This Christmas” in the kitchen of Geoffrey and Eva’s fourth-floor flat (apartment). The kitchen seems untidy—the appliances “have seen better days” and...
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From offstage, Geoffrey plays with his dog, George. He walks into the kitchen and kisses Eva. Eva barely...
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Geoffrey notices that Eva seems distracted. He points out that she’s still in her dressing gown....
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Geoffrey recalls that some friends will be coming by soon and realizes that there’s only a...
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Geoffrey picks up a dishcloth and carries it around with him. He turns to Eva and...
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Eva immediately turns to the window. She opens it and stands on the ledge. Geoffrey comes back into the kitchen, explaining that the “bloody Hopcrofts” have arrived. He cleans some...
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Geoffrey notices Eva’s note on the table and reads it. He asks Eva, “what do you...
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Geoffrey walks back into the room, and Jane asks him if she could borrow an apron....
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...joins in—first Marion, then Jane, then Ronald, then Sidney. In the distance George barks. Suddenly, Geoffrey walks in. He’s astounded by the sound of his guests and his wife singing.
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Act Three
...down the first time. Just then, the bell rings, and Eva says that it’s probably Geoffrey. Ronald walks off to answer the door. A moment later, Geoffrey walks into the kitchen...
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...drinks. Ronald goes off to look in other parts of the house. Alone, Eva tells Geoffrey that she hates working for him—he leaves in the middle of the day, leaving Eva...
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Ronald returns with the drinks, and the three of them toast and drink. Geoffrey notes, “Bit quieter than last Christmas, eh?” He notices the book Ronald was reading—a “saucy”...
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...rings, and Ronald explains that it’s Marion upstairs. Eva goes to attend to Marion. With Geoffrey, Ronald reminisces about his first wife, a woman who left him abruptly and wrote him...
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...the kitchen and tells Ronald that it’s the Hopcrofts. Ronald says “Oh, good grief,” and Geoffrey adds, “Heaven forbid.” Marion asks Ronald why he doesn’t yell for them to go away,...
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...and Jane walk into the kitchen and turn on the light, to find Ronald, Marion, Geoffrey, and Eva trying to hide in various spaces. There’s a pause, and then Marion says,...
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...drinks, and Sidney mentions that he’s just come from Walter Harrison’s party. He turns to Geoffrey and says, “You’ll know him, won't you?” He mentions that he and Jane went to...
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...for Ronald and Marion’s children. Finally, Jane produces a tiny bell, which she gives to Geoffrey, saying that he can put it on George’s collar. She apologizes for not bringing any...
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...we’re not our usual cheery selves.” However, Marion says, “I’m perfectly cheery.” Eva mentions that Geoffrey is “dying” to do jobs for Sidney, and Sidney replies, “I’ll certainly keep him in...
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