Sharon Pollock Monologue

In Sharon Pollock’s “Doc”, the commonplace is juxtaposed with the spectacular as she transcends time and memory in a dramatic representation of a domestic family relationship turned sour. There are many examples of how Pollock accomplishes this, specifically by incorporating dramatic units such as the monologue spoken by Bob in the second act. At this point in the play, it is clearly known that the family relationship is deteriorating and that Bob has a dependence on alcohol. This dramatic unit ties in with both of these facts as Bob contemplates how her time is spent and how she can be like the other wives she meets up with. “The more you do of certain things, the less it seems you do. You fill your time up, my time’s filled up [...]” (Pollock 1197).
Bob is clearly upset, though she is attempting to convince herself otherwise, about her lack of a job. This relates to the conflict that has consistently been mentioned throughout the play; Bob wishes to return to her job of being a nurse but Ev won’t allow her. It’s because of this that Bob is left alone with the kids and an overabundance of free time which soon turns to drinking as a way to cope as she is no longer working and Ev spends all of his time at the hospital. Bob’s monologue is a true lament of a depressed housewife. She does whatever she can to fill up her free time, though none of what she does feels as meaningful to her as being a nurse did. Bob has turned to alcohol as a way to fill up her time, though it seems that she is pretending otherwise as she contemplates that she can be just like the other wives if she really wanted