The Loss Of Identity In Brighde Mullin's Play 'Click'

In the play “Click” by Brighde Mullins, the character Man can be described as a rehabilitating alcoholic that expresses loneliness and anger towards Woman in their short conversation, and loses part of who he was. Man’s anger is reflected by his inability to bare the sound of the click he hears in the background of their conversation, and then later impulsively hanging up. Additionally, the reader can see that Man has become less of who he was before his rehabilitation because of his low tolerance for Woman’s metaphors, and has been overcome by loneliness.
First, Man is angered because the click he hears in the background of the phone call reminds him of the sound of opening of a beer. When one goes through rehab, one has difficulty overcoming their addiction, and may encounter triggers. The

noise of clicking was a trigger for him, and reminded him of when he used to open beers. It made him angry because it gave him a temptation in which he can not help but desire the alcohol. Moreover, Man is highly disturbed and reacts in a very dismissive way. He hangs up the phone without giving any warning to Woman because he accuses her of drinking beer, and brought up that it is inconsiderate of her to do that since he is going through rehabilitation at the moment. His antecedent impulse has swayed him to be angry and less loving. Towards the end Man does not appreciate Women's light sarcasm of explaining the consumption of beer. Soon after abruptly ending the phone call between the two to ease his frustration. His actions here depict his anger, that are motivated from the hard time that rehabilitation has been for him.
Man has given up part of his identity as a result from trying to recover from alcoholism.

Woman’s constant metaphors upset Man and portrays his loss of identity because it was something he previously enjoyed. In the play the audience can see this as it is illustrated through their dialogue when Woman states “You used to like my turns of phrases,” and Man replies with “That’s before I started rehab.” This infers that his transition has not been easy for him, but rather harder than he had initially expected and has taken a toll on his identity. Further, as Man describes his surroundings to Woman it is a very plain description, and no real vivid imagery until Woman pushes it on him to be more vivid. Man is being reserved in this dialogue which the reader can infer is connected to his anger and difficulty with being in rehab. However, the only time Man spoke descriptively was when he described the room. The room symbolized a lot of negativity and dreadfulness towards his current situation. He goes as far as to directly incline that he really wishes that he can have an alcoholic beverage. Thus, his description of the room clearly shows the reader the distress he is

experiencing.
Lastly, Man is having a tough time handling his situation, and being two thousand miles away only discourages him and needs more sincere support. The phone call is not enough to emotionally combat his rehabilitation situation.