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Having been awarded the Nobel prize for literature in 2005, Harold Pinter has become a cultural celebrity. In the tradition of Samuel Beckett, in the company of Tom Stoppard and as a key influence on writers like Sarah Kane, Pinter has become the pivotal figure of contemporary British theatre. The course will serve as an introduction to the analysis of dramatic and theatrical communication, surveying Pinter's literary career of fifty years. We will look at critical responses to Pinter's unsteady output of plays which have been called comedies of menace (Wardle) and which stage precise 'linguistic ballets' (Esslin) and absurd ‘battles for position’ between characters. We will analyse Pinter's successful and controversial early plays (The Birthday Party, The Dumb Waiter, The Caretaker, The Homecoming), the mature 'society' plays of the 1970s (Old Times, Betrayal) as well as at his later angryforays into political writing in the 1980s and 90s (Mountain Language, One for the Road, Moonlight). We will also discuss his influential work as an adaptor and screenwriter (Joseph Losey’s The Servant and The Go-Between, Paul Schrader’s The Comfort of Strangers, from a short story by Ian McEwan, Volker Schlöndorff’s The Handmaid’s Tale, from a novel by Margaret Attwood, Kafka’s The Trial or The French Lieutenant’s Woman from the novel by John Fowles). For a general introduction to studying drama and theatre, please refer to: Pfister, Manfred (2001). Das Drama. 11th ed. Munich: Fink (UTB), or: Prerequisites: Intermediate exam/”Zwischenprüfung” Assessment: Regular participation, an oral presentation and a term paper Registration: Please send an e-mail to Eckart Voigts-Virchow before March 31st, stating your name, semester standing and subjects. The number of participants is restricted to 30. |
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Harold Pinter