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The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter

The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter. 圖／路透社. Harold Pinter (1930- ). A playwright, director, actor, poet and political activist Pinter was born on 10 October 1930 in East London. He studied briefly at the Academy of Dramatic Art. Harold Pinter (1930- ).

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The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter

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  1. The Dumb Waiterby Harold Pinter 圖／路透社

  2. Harold Pinter(1930- ) • A playwright, director, actor, poet and political activist • Pinter was born on 10 October 1930 in East London. • He studied briefly at the Academy of Dramatic Art.

  3. Harold Pinter (1930- ) • One of the most important and challenging playwrights in the last half century • An actor • His first three plays: (1957) The Room The Dumb Waiter The Birthday Party • The Caretaker (1960)

  4. Harold Pinter (1930- ) • Screenplays • He was influenced by the theater of the absurd, especially by Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. • Pinter’s plays generally take place in a single and prison-like room which symbolizes the world of its occupants

  5. Harold Pinter (1930- ) • His works often focus on jealousy, betrayal, and sexual politics, and are known for the dialogue and the lack of dialogue. • Pinter’s language has been described as poetic. • Harold Pinter has been awarded the 2005 Nobel Prize for Literature.

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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.

  9. Themes • The Silence and Violence of Language [The Theatre of Menace] • Ben’s prominent response to Gus’s questions is silence. • Wilson has never appeared, he can give his malevolent message in silence.

  10. Themes • Miscommunication between • Individuals • The language seems not to be with the function of communication. • There’s no communication between Wilson and the two assassins.

  11. Themes • Anxiety Over Social Class • Ben and Gus are both lower-class criminals. • Ben’s attitude

  12. 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.

  13. 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.

  14. 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

  15. Study Questions • What is the significance of the title: “The Dumb Waiter”? • What is the relationship between Ben and Gus? • How do silence and pauses work in this play? • What are Ben and Gus waiting for? • What happens to Gus in the end of the play?

  16. Works Cited and Consulted • The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter and The Zoo Story by Edward Albee. 21 Mar. 2006 <http://www.nac-cna.ca/en/allaboutthenac/publications/education/zoo_story_guide.pdf>. • Harold Pinter. Harold Pinter.org. 21 Mar. 2006 <http://www.haroldpinter.org/home/index.shtml>. • Liu, Cecilia. Modern/Postmodern English Literature: The Dumb Waiter. <http://www.eng.fju.edu.tw/iacd_2003S/c_pm_lit/dumbwaiter.htm>. • Pinter, Harold. The Dumb Waiter. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 7th ed. Vol. 2. Ed. M. H. Abrams, et al. New York: Norton, 2000. 2594-2616. • Spark notes: The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter. 21 Mar. 2006 <http://www.sparknotes.com/drama/dumbwaiter/>.

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