The origin of Edward Albee's Tiny Alice seems to be the old homosexual joke about the identity of God, whose punch line is "Actually, she is black." Since, however, it is no longer safe socially, let alone financially, to be jocular about Negroes, the God of Tiny Alice is, outwardly at least, white. But she is a bitch. (pp. 62-3)

It has been contended that Tiny Alice is based on Manichaeanism, or on Genet's notions of evil being good, and good evil. Accordingly, Alice may be God, or the devil, or both in one; she may also be anything one wants her to be (the lawyer explains that we do not get what we want but want what we get); or she may not be at all. (p. 63)

The time, place and duration of the action are left deliberately vague, with contradictory hints about each; the concentric castles...