Release me. Now. Or I will make you suffer. SOREL I will be glad to be released from this place. MARTHA I did not come here to give an order. ROGER I did not ask for it. MARTHA I will not let myself be abused. ROGER I am quite sure you will not. MARTHA I will be sent back to England, and you will be punished. ROGER Very well. I will suffer. MARTHA No! MARTHA _begins to make towards the door, but_ ROGER _restrains her._ ROGER I am not beaten yet. You came in uninvited. MARTHA And how shall I enter? ROGER If I am not the man I was, you do not enter. MARTHA I had forgotten that. MARTHA _begins to cry._ ROGER Have you come to make fun of me? Is that it? MARTHA It is not right. ROGER Is that the only way you can make fun of me? MARTHA It is not right. ROGER Then what way is it right? MARTHA The right way is not to treat me like this. ROGER You think I am treating you badly. MARTHA Yes. ROGER No, you do not. You lie. MARTHA When I speak the truth I lie. ROGER And I? Have I come to tell you the truth? MARTHA Is that what you are trying to do? ROGER Why do you come here to tell me lies? Is that what you think I need? MARTHA You are like a father. ROGER Your father does not beat you? MARTHA No. ROGER Ah! It is you who beat me. If you took my place, you'd probably be beating me too. MARTHA That is what you want me to say. ROGER Is it not what you think? MARTHA I don't think. ROGER Would you like to? MARTHA No. ROGER Good. You will find out when I am gone. MARTHA I would not dare, even if it was so. ROGER Then sit down and talk. MARTHA I am sorry. ROGER Will you have some wine? MARTHA No. ROGER Then sit down and talk. We do not have to talk about me. MARTHA I am sorry. ROGER Sit down. The seat is over there. It is still warm from yesterday. You have only to stretch out your legs, to make the warmth go away. MARTHA But I am used to my own room, and I would not be happy in this place. ROGER This is not your place. This is my house. And you must put up with it. MARTHA It would be good if I could go away. ROGER Sit down. MARTHA Thank you. I was afraid of sitting down. ROGER It was not an apology. I do not ask for apologies. But I know you had something to say. MARTHA I had nothing. ROGER You had. I could tell you to go if I wanted. MARTHA I could not do that. ROGER Of course you could. MARTHA It would be easier for you to go, than to have me go. ROGER It is not so. MARTHA It is true. I am tired, and when I am tired I cannot think. ROGER You have come here to think. MARTHA You cannot talk to me about the weather. ROGER What then? MARTHA You think you are the only person in the world. ROGER No. MARTHA Then you are the first. ROGER No. MARTHA Then you are the only person. ROGER It is not so. I am alone, yes. But you are like me. MARTHA You are nothing like me. ROGER I know that I am not. I was lucky, but there are some that are even luckier. MARTHA You talk about me as though I was a machine that you work. ROGER I talk about myself in the same way. If I can. MARTHA And is it so much trouble to speak about yourself? ROGER Sometimes. But you have to tell me all about you, too. MARTHA I am sorry. ROGER Then tell me. MARTHA I was not brought up to do that. ROGER And what does that mean? MARTHA That you could not do it. ROGER Who could not do what? MARTHA You could not do it either. ROGER I would not expect to be told anything about you. MARTHA And that is why you are so unhappy, and I am so happy. ROGER You know nothing about me. MARTHA I do know something. ROGER Then I wish you would tell me. MARTHA What would you like to know? ROGER Your life is a tragedy. MARTHA But if I tell you it will make it a tragedy. ROGER But if I ask you, you will tell me. MARTHA Perhaps I will. But do you promise me you will forgive me if I do not tell you anything? ROGER Yes. MARTHA You will not think badly of me for not saying anything? ROGER How can you know that? MARTHA I think you must know a great deal, to treat me like this. ROGER If you think that I am able to control what I think of you, you are mistaken. MARTHA It is too late to do anything. I must be patient. ROGER If I had wanted to control you I should have married you, not sent you away. MARTHA That would have been more comfortable. ROGER And more satisfying for me? MARTHA And more satisfying for me. ROGER For one day, yes. But for the rest of my life? MARTHA There is no other way. ROGER No other way? MARTHA Only this. ROGER But there are other ways. MARTHA If you think so. ROGER You do not agree? MARTHA No. ROGER You cannot be very happy. You are lying in wait. You have come to tell me you want to stay here with me. MARTHA I told you that? ROGER You did not say you wanted to stay here. But that is what you have come to tell me. MARTHA How do you know? ROGER You are right, you have no sense of fun, you tell me about people. MARTHA The only people I have to do with are Mr. Sorrel, and him sometimes his daughters. ROGER Who are they? MARTHA And you. And Roger. ROGER How do I compare with him? You must choose. MARTHA Not like him. ROGER Why not? MARTHA He has something in him, I do not know what. ROGER Has he? MARTHA I have seen them. I am not so happy as you think. ROGER What do you want? MARTHA I want to get away from Mr. Sorrel, and everything. ROGER But what else do you want? MARTHA That I do not know. ROGER To know. MARTHA Yes. ROGER You are unhappy. MARTHA Yes. ROGER But you do not know what you