Oldal 128 [128]
ANIKÓ LUKÁCS
the first one to reach the state of liminality, where he confronts himself and
sets a major goal to not only overcome his own lies but also those of Nick and
Honey, and then Martha’s as well, thus creating a communal, ritual cleansing.
Get the Guests focuses on the initiation of Nick and Honey, in the context
of a game that George calls The Story of his Second Book, and it is based
on Nick’s earlier revelations. During Humiliate the Host, the young man, in
an unexpected and unguarded moment, reveals to George the details of his
seemingly idyllic marriage: “NICK: I married her because she was pregnant.
[...] She wasn’t ... really. It was a hysterical pregnancy. She blew up, and then
she went down. GEORGE: And while she was up, you married her. NICK: And
then she went down.” George deliberately exploits Nick’s moment of weak¬
ness, in order to know more revealing details of the true circumstances of the
couple’s marriage.
GEORGE [...] you marry a woman because she’s all blown up ... while I, in my
clumsy, old-fashioned way...
NICK There was more to it than that!
GEORGE Sure! ll bet she has money, too!
NICK (Looks hurt. Then, determined, after a pause) Yes [...] You see...
GEORGE There were other things.
NICK Yes [...] We sort of grew up together, you know [...] And it was ...
always taken for granted ... you know ... by our families, and by
us, too, I guess. And ... so, we did. [...] I wouldn't say there was any
... particular passion between us, even at the beginning ... of our
marriage, I mean."
After finishing the first game, holding the secrets of Nick and Honey, George
starts a new game, with the focus no longer on him (at least not in his former
position as the victim) but on his guests. The story of George’s second book,
which uses an ironically childish tone to intensify the cruelty and humiliation
aimed at Nick and Honey, is an attempt to detract from the apparently perfect
marriage of the younger couple, pointing out that behind the illusion of the
“American Dream” lies an empty and loveless relationship.
The discovery of truth (the story of George’s tale) destabilizes Nick’s status,
gradually pushing him into the state of liminality (to its edge for the time be¬
ing), where the man who appears to be the “wave of the future” will experi¬
ence the ruthlessness of this state as it eliminates the lies, and the former self
of complete confidence is replaced by a man fearfully trying to preserve that
identity. Honey’s reaction — realizing Nick’s betrayal of exposing their secrets
13 Ibid., 93-94.
* Ibid., 102-105.
15 Ibid., 68.
+ 126 +