The play The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter follows two hitmen, Ben and Gus, as they wait in a basement room for their assignment. Ben is the senior partner and dominates Gus, who is nervous and questions Ben. Through a dumb waiter, they receive orders to kill their target. As the tension rises, Ben betrays and levels his gun at Gus, leaving their fate unknown. The dumb waiter symbolizes being "dumb" and obediently serving others without question.

1. The Dumb Waiter
圖／路透社
by Harold Pinter
Presented by;
Hamidah Izzatul Laily 2311001
Siti Anis Istighafrain 2311015

2. biografi Harold
Pinter
(1930- )
►
►
Harold pinter is a playwright in london, director, actor, poet
and political activist He is a son of a Jewish tailor. he was
born on 10 October 1930 in East London and he was died
in west london on december at 2008 in 78 years old,He
studied briefly at the Academy of Dramatic Art he get a
nobel award in the literary in the 2005
The most famous plays that he wrote The Dumb Waiter is
a (1957) and The Caretaker (1959), which was mentioned
above is a sharp observation of social and linguistic issues,
with a storyline and a very deep conversation.

3. Social background the dumb of
writer
► The
dumb waiter, staged in 1960, the dumb
waiter help harold pinter status as a major
theatrical figure. The Dumb Waiter is one of
the master piece of Harold Pinter the
leading dramatist of the Theater of Absurd,
The Play was all about a Two Hit Men, Ben
and Gus, Ben is the Senior of the Gang and
Gus is a Beginner to the Gang team, They
were Hired to Kill someone,

4. Plot Summary
► Ben and Gus are waiting in a basement
room for their assignment.
► Ben reads the newspaper articles and
recites them out loud when he finds them
interesting.
► Gus is pacing around the room nervously,
and he complains constantly, including that
he is haunted by the memory of their last
victim, a girl.

5. Plot Summary
► In the back of the room is a dumb waiter.
► As these orders come in, the tension builds.
► Gus keeps asking Ben questions, and Ben
refuses to answer (or even listen to) him.
► When Gus leaves the room to get a drink of
water, Ben receives a message through the
speaking tube that the man has arrived and
they will execute their job.

6. Plot Summary
► Then Ben hangs up and calls for Gus.
► Ben levels his gun at the door and Gus
stumbles in. Gus looks up at Ben, and they
stares at each other through a long silence.

7. Characters
►Ben
 He is the more dominant of the two
criminals.
 He considers they’re fortunate for having
the job.
 He also accepts whatever Wilson orders
him.
 He executes Wilson’s order and betrays
Gus.

8. Characters
►Gus
 Gus is slower junior partner to Ben, and
generally submissive to Ben’s orders.
 He is somewhat child-like.
 He is actually more sensitive than Ben.
 He is betrayed by Ben.

9. Symbol: The Dumb Waiter
►A small elevator used to convey food or
other goods from one floor to another
►“Dumb” Waiter: the one who serves and
waits for others is supposed to be
“dumb”-- not express his own opinions
but just to fulfill the master’s command
and order

10. VALUE OF THE DUMB WAITER
Moral value in the dumb waiter
►In the story give negative value, because in
the story tell about two hit men to kill
someone.

11. THANK YOU
19 January 2014