Tool · Flashcards
Card 1 of 53 · 0 of 53 marked known
Every card
Characters · 6
Booth
Booth is one of the two main characters in Suzan-Lori Parks's two-hander Topdog/Underdog, a young Black man living in a dilapidated rooming house with his older brother Lincoln.
character
Cookie
Cookie is Lincoln's ex-wife, a character who never steps onto the stage in Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, yet her presence lingers in the cramped rooming-house setting of the play.
character
Grace
Grace is Booth's on-again, off-again girlfriend in Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, and although she never appears onstage, she has a strong influence on the play's action.
character
Lincoln
Lincoln is one of the two main characters in Suzan-Lori Parks's two-hander Topdog/Underdog, sharing a cramped rooming house with his brother, Booth.
character
Lonny
Lonny is a minor but thematically important character in Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog.
character
Zach
Zach is a minor yet crucial character in Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog.
character
Key quotes · 10
“Ima show you how to throw the cards.”
In Suzan-Lori Parks's two-hander play Topdog/Underdog, Lincoln speaks this line to his younger brother Booth.
Lincoln
“Don't open it. Don't open it. Don't open it.”
This urgent, repetitive plea is delivered by Lincoln near the climax of Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog (2001), directed at his brother Booth, who clutches the knotted stocking left to him by their mother.
Lincoln
“You got to keep the card in the mind of the man.”
This line is delivered by Lincoln, also known as "Link," in Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog.
Lincoln (Link)
“We're brothers. We supposed to look out for each other.”
This line is spoken by Lincoln (or shared between both brothers) in Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, a two-person play focused on brothers Lincoln and Booth, who live together in a shabby rooming house with a strained relationship.
Lincoln / Booth
“I am not my brother's keeper.”
In Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, this line is delivered by Lincoln, or "Link," one of the two brothers at the heart of the play.
Lincoln (Link)
“I could be you, you know. I could be the one sitting in that chair.”
This line is delivered by Lincoln to his brother Booth in Suzan-Lori Parks's play Topdog/Underdog (2001).
Lincoln
“You ain't gonna be doing no more cards. Lincoln. You done.”
This chilling line is spoken by Booth to his brother Lincoln near the climax of Suzan-Lori Parks's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Topdog/Underdog (2001).
Booth
“3-Card Monte. The card game of the streets.”
This line is spoken by Lincoln, or "Link," in Suzan-Lori Parks's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Topdog/Underdog.
Lincoln (Link)
“Lincoln. booth. 2 brothers. 1 is topdog. 1 is underdog.”
This line is from Suzan-Lori Parks's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Topdog/Underdog (2001) and serves as a structural thesis statement woven into the text.
Stage directions / authorial voice · Topdog/Underdog (full play)
“Hustling is an art.”
In Suzan-Lori Parks's two-hander play Topdog/Underdog (2001), Lincoln, the older brother, speaks this line to his younger sibling Booth.
Lincoln
Symbols · 5
Lincoln Assassination Costume
In Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, the Lincoln assassination costume—complete with a stovepipe hat, fake beard, and frock coat—captures the inescapable grip of a predetermined, tragic identity.
The Card
In Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, the three-card monte hustle represents the tempting illusion of choice and highlights the unfair reality of American opportunity.
The Gun
In Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, the gun represents the deadly clash of fate, masculinity, and the ongoing power struggle between the brothers.
The Stocking with Money
In Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, the money-stuffed stocking left for Lincoln and Booth by their mother symbolizes the risky illusion of inheritance, security, and maternal affection.
Three-Card Monte
In Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog, Three-Card Monte represents the alluring yet rigged nature of the American Dream—a system that promises opportunities while ensuring exploitation.
Literary devices · 12
Dramatic Monologue
Much of the play's impact comes from the extended solo speeches where Lincoln and Booth connect with the audience or each other in a way that blurs the line between character and confessor.
Irony
The play's central irony is both structural and relentless.
Symbolism
The three-card monte game stands out as the main symbol in the play.
Motif
The act of "throwing" the cards serves as a recurring motif that reflects Lincoln's mental state throughout the play.
Allegory
Topdog/Underdog serves as a powerful metaphor for race, capitalism, and sibling rivalry in America.
Juxtaposition
Parks consistently juxtaposes comedy and violence.
Repetition
Parks's signature technique, known as "Rep & Rev" (repetition and revision), drives the play's rhythm.
Metaphor
The whiteface makeup that Lincoln wears at the arcade serves as a powerful metaphor for the emotional toll of portraying a version of history that erases his identity.
Parataxis
Parks writes dialogue in short, straightforward units that stand next to each other without explanation, creating a paratactic texture that reflects the characters' emotional reserve.
Pathetic Fallacy
The play's single, unchanging set — a rundown rooming house with just one window — serves as a form of pathetic fallacy, reflecting the brothers' stagnant psychological state.
Conceit
The central idea of the play compares the three-card monte game to the relationship between the brothers.
Narrative Poem
Although Topdog/Underdog is a play, its scenes are filled with embedded narratives: characters share stories instead of just performing.
Vocabulary · 20
three-card monte
A street con game where a dealer shuffles three cards face-down and dares onlookers to track and pick the winning card; the dealer uses sleight of hand to ensure the mark always loses.
noun · Chapter 1
hustle
A swindle or street con — a scheme designed to trick people out of their money through skill and deception rather than honest work.
noun · Chapter 1
target
Here, the paid role of a person who is meant to be shot at; Lincoln literally sits still so customers can aim at him as part of an arcade act.
noun · Chapter 1
reformed
Having genuinely changed one's ways and given up a dishonest or criminal past life, not just claiming to have done so.
adjective · Chapter 2
legit
Short for legitimate — meaning lawful, honest work that does not involve cheating, stealing, or running cons.
adjective · Chapter 3
patter
The fast, smooth, rehearsed talk a street hustler uses to draw in a crowd, keep their attention, and distract them while the con is being run.
noun · Chapter 3
sleight-of-hand
Skillful, deceptive movements of the hands used to manipulate cards or objects so quickly that onlookers cannot see what is really happening.
noun · Chapter 3
whiteface
White theatrical makeup applied to the face so a performer can pass as a different race or character; here Lincoln wears it to portray the historical President at an arcade.
noun · Chapter 2
arcade
An amusement venue with coin-operated games and novelty attractions; in this play it is the place where Lincoln is paid to be 'shot' as part of a historical re-enactment booth.
noun · Chapter 1
replica
An exact copy or living imitation of something or someone; Lincoln uses the word to describe himself as a stand-in for the historical president.
noun · Chapter 5
historical personage
A real, named individual from history — as opposed to a fictional character; Lincoln uses the phrase to describe the president whose assassination he re-enacts for pay.
phrase · Chapter 5
inheritance
Money or property passed on by a parent or relative; here each brother received $500 in an envelope from their parents the night they were abandoned.
noun · Chapter 6
Dealer
In three-card monte, the person who throws and controls the cards — the one running the con and manipulating the game against the players.
noun · Chapter 6
boarding house
A cheap lodging house where residents rent a single room and share common spaces; it signals poverty and a lack of stable, private housing.
noun · Chapter 1
rooming house
A low-cost building where people rent individual rooms, often with shared bathrooms and no kitchen; a step below an apartment and associated with poverty.
noun · Chapter 1
con
A confidence trick — a scheme in which a swindler gains a victim's trust in order to cheat them out of money.
noun · Chapter 1
wager
To bet a sum of money on the outcome of a game or contest, risking losing it if you are wrong.
verb · Chapter 6
slumps
Falls or collapses heavily and limply, as a body does when it loses all muscle control — here indicating Lincoln has been shot and is dying.
verb · Chapter 6
cradles
Holds someone gently and closely in one's arms, the way you would hold a baby — here Booth holds his dying brother with grief and tenderness.
verb · Chapter 6
best
To defeat or outdo someone; used here as a verb meaning no one can beat or surpass the speaker.
verb · Chapter 6