Mormonism as Optimistic at Jones Beach

In Act III Scene 4 of Perestroika, Joe expresses opinions rooted in his Mormon beliefs which contradict Louis’ view on America. Not only is this ironic because of the Mormon church’s view of homosexuality as a sin, it also presents warmth than expected toward Joe’s background within the church, specifically because the church’s views seem optimistic when contrasting Louis’ pessimistic, hopeless view of America. On page 202, Joe asks Louis, “Do you know why you find the world so unsatisfying?” and answers this question himself, saying “you never face the sorrow of the world, it’s bitterness,” and continues, “You have to accept that we’re not here to make the entire earth into a heaven, you have to accept we can’t. And accept as rightfully yours the happiness that comes your way” (203). Louis, rightfully, points out that these ideas are distinctly republican and Mormon. However, the most interesting that Kushner does in this scene is create space for these republican, Mormon ideas to contribute toward Joe’s acceptance of his own identity. Louis’ pessimistic view of America, while understandable, may actually be less helpful to self-acceptance than Joe’s ideas rooted in his Mormon upbringing which allow him to accept the imperfections of the world. Ironically, this means that some aspects of Joe’s Mormon beliefs make him more willing to accept his relationship to Louis. Whereas Louis, who relies almost entirely on his own internalized ideas about acceptance, America, and optimism, struggles more to accept his newfound distance from Prior and can hardly fathom that all of Joe’s characteristics as a gay, Mormon, republican can exist at once. Through this scene, Kushner calls into question Louis’ more stereotypical beliefs about what it means to be a queer man to suggest that there is not necessarily one way to come into or express one’s identity. Joe’s identity as a gay man is complex, but his willingness to except that some things do not have inherent explanations, a trait taken directly from his Mormon upbringing, gives him a leg up in understanding his place in the world over Louis’ panicked philosophical uncertainty.