A Lie Of The Mind: A Play in Three Acts

A Lie of the Mind is a play by American playwright Sam Shephard. A Lie of the Mind was first performed at the Promenade Theater in New York City on December 5, 1985, and ran for 186 performances, closing on June 1, 1986. A work of psychological realism, the play charts the dysfunction of two American families in the 1980s. The premise is that a man named Jake has severely beaten his wife, Beth, forcing their families to reevaluate their relationships. The denial and traditions that bind the family members prevent them from confronting their issues, resolving in a tragic ending. In the play, Shepard explores The Collapse of the American Family, The Fragmentation of Memory and Identity, and The Role of Gender in Dysfunctional Relationships.

This guide uses the Dramatists Play Service, Inc. edition of the text published in 1986.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of gender discrimination, ableism, mental illness, cursing, illness or death, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and domestic violence.

Plot Summary

Jake calls his brother, Frankie, from a payphone on the highway. Jake has just beaten his wife, Beth, to the point that he believes she is dead. Frankie tries to console Jake and get him to calm down, but Jake is upset with himself for hurting Beth.

Beth is bandaged and resting in a hospital, where her younger brother, Mike, watches over her. Beth is dazed: She demands to know who hurt her and asks where Jake is. Mike tries to convince Beth to rest, but she feels he’s lying to her. She calls him a dog and spits in his face. Worried about his sister, Mike stays with Beth.

At a motel, Jake tells Frankie what happened with Beth. Beth was acting in a play, and Jake became convinced that Beth was sleeping with one of the actors. Frankie knows this is not the first time Jake has beaten Beth, and he suspects that Beth isn’t dead. Jake regrets his outburst; he misses Beth. Jake and Frankie’s mother, Lorraine, and their sister, Sally, arrive at the motel, and Lorraine insists that Jake go back to their home in Southern California. Jake is visibly disturbed and confused. He grabs Sally, thinking she is Beth. Frankie tries to explain what happened, but Lorraine ignores him, calling Jake a child that needs help.

At the hospital, Beth starts to improve, and Mike helps her with physical therapy. Beth still asks about Jake, which upsets Mike, who cannot understand why Beth still loves the man who hurt her. Mike wants to bring Beth home to their parents’ house in Montana, but Beth refuses, demanding to find Jake. Mike and Beth’s parents, Baylor and Meg, visit, but Baylor, who is a farmer, is focused on selling his mules. Meg is worried that Beth is being held against her will. Mike tries to explain the situation but his parents ignore him. Baylor leaves, but Meg stays, planning to return home with both Mike and Beth.

Jake comes home to Lorraine’s house in California, where his childhood room is filled with model airplanes from World War II. Lorraine tries to feed him soup, but Jake resists. He finds his father’s ashes, jacket, American flag, and medals, and he asks Lorraine about him. Lorraine thinks Jake already knows about his father, including his death, but this upsets Jake. A former Air Force pilot, Jake’s father abandoned his family and, supposedly, used codes to communicate with the government. He died in a traffic accident while drunk.

In Montana, Beth wears Baylor’s shirt and talks to Meg, who tries to help her. Mike argues with a man outside, whom Beth is convinced is Jake. It’s Frankie, and Mike becomes angry with Beth for being confused. Meanwhile, Baylor is hunting and mistakes Frankie for a deer. He shoots Frankie but realizing his mistake, brings him to the house. Mike is upset by Frankie’s presence, but Beth finds Frankie vaguely familiar. Frankie says Jake misses her, and Beth assures Frankie that she knows.

In California, Jake wears his father’s jacket and becomes increasingly confused. Sally tries to help him, but she is nervous that Jake’s mental state is devolving. Lorraine keeps trying to feed Jake, but Jake is convinced that Lorraine and Frankie are plotting against him. Sally agrees to help Jake, but Lorraine doesn’t let her. Jake shows Sally the box of ashes after Lorraine leaves, and they concoct a plan. Jake is going to flee the house and travel to Montana, while Sally will stay in his bed and pretend to be asleep. Growing agitated, he thinks he hears Beth calling his name.

Beth tends to Frankie’s leg wound, but he tries to stop her from taking off her shirt to use as a bandage. Beth, who has suffered a brain injury from the beating, says they may have to amputate Frankie’s leg. In her confused state, she claims Mike and Baylor gave her a lobotomy. Frankie is uncomfortable and wants to leave, but there is a blizzard keeping him inside. Mike arrives with a deer and is angry that Frankie is still there. He accuses Frankie of trying to sleep with Beth. Frankie begs to leave, but Mike ignores him.

Exhausted, Lorraine lies in Jake’s bed while Sally tries to feed her soup. Lorraine accuses Sally of breaking up the family, and Sally distracts her by talking about her father. Before their father died, Jake and Sally went to Mexico to find him. When they did, Jake and his father fought. Jake challenged his father to a drunken race, which led to Jake’s father’s death. Sally thinks Jake wanted to kill his father, but Lorraine refuses to believe it. Sally convinces Lorraine to stop covering up for the men in their family, and Lorraine concedes. Sally collects Jake’s things in a bucket while Lorraine makes plans for Sally and herself to travel to Ireland and find a distant branch of their family. They agree to set the bucket on fire and let the house burn down, leaving Jake to fend for himself.

In Montana, Baylor comes in from hunting and orders Meg to help him remove his boots and rub oil on his feet. Meg asks why Baylor is never around, and Baylor claims the house is full of women who want to control him. Meg says men and women need each other, but Baylor isn’t receptive. Meg leaves, and Baylor wakes Frankie, telling him he needs to leave. Still injured, Frankie wants to leave, but no one will help him. Beth enters and says she wants to marry Frankie, and Meg seizes on the opportunity to get Beth away from Jake. She even tries to plan Beth and Frankie’s wedding. Frankie rejects the offer, and Mike enters, claiming he caught Jake approaching the house. Confusion follows, with family members talking but not communicating with each other.

Mike guides Jake to the house, leading him by an American flag that Jake holds between his teeth. He forces Jake apologize to Beth. Baylor demands that Jake give him the flag, which he tells Meg to help him fold. Instead of apologizing, Jake tells Beth he loves her. Mike is upset that his family doesn’t seem to care about what’s happening, and he leaves. Jake tells Beth to stay with Frankie, and he leaves, as well. Frankie tells Jake to stay, but Beth stays by Frankie’s side. Baylor and Meg manage to fold the flag, which excites Baylor, and he kisses Meg. Meg sees Lorraine and Sally’s fire in the distance.