4000000000000000000000000 Miles

"Whatdayacallit". Vera says that almost literally every time she speaks in this play. On a personal level, it reminds me a lot of my scatter-brained mother who has real trouble with common nouns. "Can you get me the thing for the thing?" is a very typical phrase from her. Things like these are classic signs of air-headedness or endearing senility. In the case of 4,000 Miles, however, the use of the motif "Whatdayacallit" is used as more than just a way of further characterizing Vera. This motif further emphasizes the theme of miscommunication throughout the play. Nobody seems to understand each other in this play. Everyone is always putting their foot in their mouth and saying the wrong thing. Beck and Leo don't understand what one wants from the other, so they break up. Vera LITERALLY doesn't understand most of what if said to her because she is hard of hearing. Additionally, Vera has issues with her dentures so she is difficult to understand as well. Leo doesn't really communicate with anyone about the death of his best friend Michah at all though out the play even though that is like one of the main, central issues of this play. AND THEN, when he finally opens up about what happened, Vera's hearing aid was off and she heard none of if. Everyone is constantly missing the connection. Sometimes, even, the computer of phone literally loses connection, making communication even more difficult. Not to mention the issues that go along with Leo's inability to face and communicate what on earth is going on with this incest thing between him and his asian sister. The miscommunication, however, while frustrating at times, make the play more effective for me. I am not sure of the message the playwright was trying to convey, but I really felt like this was a true "slice of life".