Tension, humour, violence and ambiguity in play 'The Birthday Party'

2. Tension, Humour,
Violence &
Ambiguity

3. Tension, Humour, violence &
Ambiguity in play The Birthday
Party
Reena Khasatiya Sem3
Dept. Of English
Maharaja Krishnkumarsinhji Uni. Bhavnagar

4. Introduction
 The Birthday Party was Harold Pinter’s
first full length play
 Play described as Tragedy with the
number of comic elements

5. What doyoufeel
incricket,when
India need24run
in9ball???

6. Tensioninplay
 Wheel-barrow, Meg’s anxiety that some
people would be coming, in order to take
somebody from here
 McCan tears a sheet of newspaper into
several vertical
 Suspence is terrible in whole play, which
create tension

7. IfIgot1000rs. for
everyfailed math
exam,I’dhave rs.
30.000now.…

8. Humouror
comedyinplay
 Beginning of Acf I, dialouge between Meg
& Petey and between Meg & Stanley
 Bit of comedy in the conversation
between Goldberg and McCan
 In Act II, dialouge between Goldberg and
Stenley

10. SilentViolence
inplay
 Nagging, bullying and buffeting as
Stanley, Goldberg & MacCan juggle for
position or Stanley’s Brain washing
session
 Game of Blind Man’s Buff as shouting
game
 Black Out
 Violence appear to be the only turth in
Pinter’s world

11. Whattodo
afterM.A.???

12. Ambiguityin
play
 What is Stanley’s crime or guilt?
 Why has Stanley suffered a nervous
breakdow?
 Why are the two outsiders persecuting
him with illogical question?
 Is it really Stanley’s birthday?

13. To Conclude
 Who are the two men? (Who are you?)
 Where did stanley come from? ( Where did you
come from?)
 Were they all supppsed to be normal? (Are hou
supposed to be normal?)
 These, to Pinter, are genuine problems: Of
identity, of motivation, and of verifcation.
 Man’s existential fear as an everyday occrrence is
at the bottom of Pinter’s Work!