The guerrilla hideout. West, still handcuffed, has been playing chess with Carlos. Now he contemplates the board, shrugs, makes a gesture with his free hand and pushes over his king. He looks up at Carlos, smiling and shaking his head.
Carlos Told you I was good.
West Yes. You are quite.
Carlos smiles, executes a courtly bow, gets up and moves round the room, stretching.
Carlos Want another game?
West Oh, not just now, I don’t think. Later on perhaps.
Carlos You very bored?
West Yes, I suppose you might say so, yes.
Carlos (abstractedly) Things move slowly. I get very bored as well.
West I hope you don’t expect me to sympathize.
Carlos (smiling) No.
Silence.
West Tell me, what’s your position, I mean, I didn’t see anything about it in any of that stuff you gave me to read, what’s your policy as far as the Indians are concerned?
Carlos Indians?
West Yes.
Carlos What Indians?
Carlos Oh. Well, I suppose our policy is to protect them from exploitation just as we intend to protect the workers and the peasants.
West It’s not so much that they’re being exploited, it’s that they’re being killed.
Carlos Oh, yes, well, I know about that, of course. It’s just one of the things we’d have to put a stop to, isn’t it?
West Not so easy.
Carlos No, probably not, but then neither are a lot of things. I must say, compared with most of the difficulties we’d have to face, it is rather a marginal problem. Why do you ask?
West I’m just interested in them, that’s all, I know quite a lot about them.
Carlos Well, so do we.
West Mm.
Silence.
Carlos You write some poems?
West No.
Carlos Oh, I’m sorry, why not? I was looking forward to seeing them.
West Well, I don’t know, I haven’t been feeling at my best for one reason or another. (He indicates the handcuff.) Also I’m left-handed.
Carlos (seriously) Oh, yes, well, that does make things difficult, I can see. (Brightening.) You can dictate them to me, if you like.
West Also I do find the idea of writing in Portuguese rather … inhibiting.
Carlos Well, sketch them out in English if you want to, then translate them into Portuguese, then give us the English so we can destroy it, you keep the Portuguese and translate it back when you get out.
West I’ll see.
Carlos Listen, I wrote a poem yesterday, I’m going to read it to you, then when you write your poems you can read them to me and we can discuss them, it’ll be interesting. All right? (He produces a piece of paper from his inside pocket.)
West All right.
Carlos It’s called ‘The New Beatitudes’. (He considers his piece of paper a moment.) ‘The New Beatitudes’.
Blessed are the corporations: for theirs are the kingdoms of the world.
Blessed are the complacent: for they shall never mourn.
Blessed are the aggressive: for they have inherited the earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after nothing but righteousness: for they shall be easily satisfied.
Blessed are the merciless: for they shall obtain power.
Blessed are the pure in race: for they shall see themselves as God.
Blessed are the armed forces: for they shall call themselves the children of the Revolution.
Blessed are they which persecute others for righteousness’ sake: for theirs are the kingdoms of the world.
Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and say all manner of evil against you for the sake of the poor and starving.
Send for the censor and secret police.
Rejoice and be exceeding glad.
Smear the electrodes and sharpen the knives.
Ye own the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his market value, invest in real estate.
He thrusts the piece of paper back into his inside pocket, looks expectantly at West.
West Erm …
Carlos Like it?
West (hesitantly) Yes. I mean, it’s a little bit more direct and er crude than what I’m used to.
Carlos Yes, well, you see, we haven’t time for all your old European bourgeois subtleties.
West I don’t know if that’s quite …
Carlos Myself, I think if anything it’s too literary, not direct enough.
West Well …
Carlos The understanding of a poem should be not merely an intellectual advance, but a political advance. Fanon. And he also said the national culture of an underdeveloped country should take its place at the very heart of the struggle for freedom. He said that in the revolutionary phase many people who under normal circumstances would never have dreamt of producing literary work have a job to do – as awakeners of the people.
West I suppose it depends what …
Carlos You see what interesting discussions we can have.
Silence.
West Your people are against organized religion, are you?
Carlos No, not particularly. Why do you ask?
Carlos Oh, no, that’s … No, many of the priests in Brazil, and especially the young ones, are with us, which is very good for us, because they know how to speak to the people. Of course, there are plenty of the other sort and nowadays they’re importing them from Spain, because they’re so clever at explaining how dictators are the beloved of God and how the poor are the only ones who’ll be admitted to heaven, except, of course, for those members of the ruling class who’ve kept up their subscriptions.
West Do they tell them to turn the other cheek?
Carlos Yes, yes, repeatedly. Are you a religious man, Mr West?
West Not at all.
Carlos Good, good. Let me see if I can get you a drink.
Blackout as he strides towards the door, beaming.