The Birthday Party (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Harold Pinter
- First Published: 1959
- Type of Work: Play
- Type of Plot: Absurdist
- Time of Work: The 1950’s
- Setting: England
- Genres: Existential literature, Drama, Absurdist literature
- Subjects: 1950’s, Values, Sex or sexuality, Crime or criminals, Music or musicians, Communication, England or English people, Fear, Paranoia
- Locales: England
Characters Discussed
Stanley Webber, a boarder at a seedy seaside home. In his late thirties and unkempt, he indulges in fantasies about exotic cities in which he had performed as a concert pianist. In Kafkaesque fashion, he speaks of a career that was ended by persons he refers to as “them.” Filling his landlady’s need for a lodger and a surrogate son, he is comfortably ensconced as a member of the household until his position is threatened by the arrival of two strange, surrealistic guests, Goldberg and McCann. He suggests that the two have come to cart away Meg, his...
[The entire page is 885 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Navigate
See Also
