Approximating Mother

Roles

• Jen - Teenager (13-19), Female

About this piece

Jen tells a social worker how she got pregnant and why she decided to keep the baby

Summary

Fran and Molly are good friends. Molly is married to Jack but their marriage is on the rocks as Jack feels Molly doesn't love him anymore and is using him to have kids. They already have a daughter and she is soon to deliver another baby. Fran is single and always goes through harrowing dates and doesn't seem to be able to find a stable partner. After Molly gives birth to her child, Fran decides that she wants to adopt a baby. Through a shady lawyer, she arranges to adopt the child of a 17 year old from Indiana, Jen, that will give her her baby if she covers the medical costs. This is the first scene where we meet Jen. She is in the office of Sylvia, a social worker. In a stream of consciousness monologue she tells the social worker how she got pregnant and how, after talking to another social worker, changed her mind about doing an abortion and decided to keep the baby.

Tone

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