How I Learned to Drive by Paula Vogel

¶ … Drive

Perhaps one of the most famous pedophiles in literature was Humbert in Nabokov's masterpiece, the novel Lolita. If that novel shows the reader anything, it's that pedophiles, though monstrous and selfish, are anything but simple creatures. This is absolutely true and reflected in the play How I Learned to Drive by Paula Vogel as Vogel has created Uncle Peck, the uncle who molests the main character L'il Bit. Vogel works hard not to present Uncle Peck as an antagonist; she shows him as tremendously flawed, but intricate and compassionate and very attentive of his niece, L'il Bit, as she struggles to exist in an insensitive family where her needs to be nurtured aren't being met even remotely.

This lack of nurturing sets L'il Bit to be a prime target for the attentions of Uncle Peck. Much in the play is made about the size of L'il Bit's breasts as the spectator frequently observes other characters teasing her about their size or the heroine recalling incidences of unwanted attention. One of these recollections causes L'il Bit to remember a time when Uncle Peck asked her to pose for him during a photo shoot. The photo shoot acts as a very revelatory moment in the play, demonstrating aspects about Uncle Peck's character to the reader. The reader sees that he as at once a sensitive man, or a man who can appear sensitive, and one also sees that he can very readily manipulate, however, gently a young girl into doing what he wants her to do. In this scene the reader sees Uncle Peck very clearly objectifying L'il Bit, encouraging her to pose in the most provocative manner. The reader sees that Uncle Peck is not simply a pedophile who gains pleasure just from touching a child in an inappropriate manner, but that there is a degree of voyeurism involved for his pleasure and titillation as well. In order to receive pleasure in this regard, he has to actually stand back away from L'il Bit so that he can capture her image. In this regard, the reader sees that he's not only capable of creating space between her and him, but that he can find away to voyeuristically enjoy the space between them, certainly when he's successfully encouraging her to pose seductively.