Theme and various Interpretation of the play Birthday party.

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Name                  :     Jeel   j. Vyas
Roll No                :     11.
Paper No            :     09. The Modernist Literature.
Class                    :     M.A. Sem – 3.
Topic                   :    Theme and various Interpretation of
                                   the play The Birthday party.
Enrolment No   :    2069108420190045
College               :   Smt.S.B.Gardi Department of English.
Email ID             :    jeelvyas15@gmail.com
Submitted         :    Department  of English
                                M. K. Bhavnagar University.

Abstract :  The play Birthday Party is written by Harold Pinter. This play is divided  into three acts.  For this play Pinter got Nobel prize in 2005. This play is written in 1975. The play is painteresque play. The play is reactions against the trends of the time, displaying traits of the Theatre of the Absurd, such as the fluidity and ambiguity of time, place, and identity and the disintegration of language.  Michael Billiongton who is official biographer of Pinter wrote in Herold Pinter the play birthday party is deeply political play. He wrote,
"a deeply political play about the individual's imperative need for resistance,”
Though there is a doubt about that it is conscious or not about Pinter’s part according to  Billiongton. We also see that Arnold P. Hinchliffe, Polish critic Gregorz Sinko points out that in The Birthday Party "we see the destruction of the victim from the victim's own point of view: one feel like saying that the two executioners, Goldberg and McCann , stands for all the Principal of the state and social conformism. Goldberg refers to his job on typically Kafka esque official language which deprives the credit of all sense add reality ... ( Of Stanley’s removal , sinko adds : ) maybe Stenley will meet his  - death there or maybe he will only receive a conformist brainwashing after which he is promised ... Many  other gift of civilization.

When we talk about the theme and  Various Interpretation of the play we see that it has so many Interpretation. The play Birthday Party  is one of the good example of Painteresque. We also see that he uses two type of silence in play. 1. No use of language . 2. Torrent of language.

1. Theme of Absurdity :
            The Birthday Party has been described Martin Esslin as an example of the Theatre of Absurd As in many absurdist works, The Birthday Party is full of disjointed information that defies efforts to distinguish between reality and illusion. When we see the main protagonist Stenley himself remind big question for audience. Question about Stenley's past remain through out the play. We never come to know about who actually he is expect that he was playing piano. Apart from this question regards the character of Net Goldberg and McCann also remind unanswered. That , who actually they are ? What is their relationship ? Who is Monty ? Does they work for him? This are the questions which remain unanswered through out the play. Which is also one 9f the theme of the  Absurd  theatre that their is no beginning nor even end and no resolution of theme.
           Further we see that this play and its title talk about the birthday party. And mag also say that today is your birthday to Stenley but he refused that today is not my birthday. This is also one of the Absurd thing that they are thinking about one person’s birthday but person him refused that it is not his birthday.

2. Theme of Identity :
            Identity also can be one of the theme of the play. Because we see that  most of the character's identity remain unanswered.  One of the best example is Goldberg is in the play called Net but when he talks about the past stories he was known as Simey and Benny. The same way McCann also refer as Demote and Semus. By this way this character and their identity remind a question.  According to John Russell Brown (94), "Falsehoods are important for Pinter's dialogue, not least when they can be detected only by careful reference form one scene to another.... Some of the more blatant lies are so casually delivered that the audience is encouraged to look for more than is going to be disclosed. This is a part of Pinter's two-pronged tactic of awakening the audience's desire for verification and repeatedly disappointing this desire" 
               With the question of identity we also see that there past is also remind Ambiguous. This thing we see in the main character also. We see that we do not have much information about the Stenley. Apart from this we see that on the next day of birthday party Mag don’t even remember what bad happen. Also we see that Petey also do not tell her that Net and McCann take Stenley with them. He also allow Mag to remain in illusion that Stenley is still sleeping. So we see that this thing remain Ambiguous.

3. Theme of Blindness :
           We see that Sort from theme of Absurdity and identity , Blindness also become one of the most important Theme of the play. That thing we can see in the two scene first is the game blind man' s buff. This shows that how We also becoming blind in life about our purposes , our identity our surrounding , Absurdity of life. Other  scene in which we  see Theme of Blindness is the scene of glass when McCann takes away glasses of sternly he becomes blind and could not able to see things clearly. As well as glasses also symbolised the vision. Net and McCann say that we will buy new glasses that shows that they will give him New vision.

4. Society’s treatment to artist :
          This can be one of the Interpretation because we see that Stenley was a player of Piano. Playing Piano is connected with work of art. So Stenley here Becomes Artist and Net and McCann represenat the society. Stenely is am artist whom society claim back from comfortable lifestyle. We also see that McCann also broke his Glasses which shows that they broke vision of the artist which they don’t like. And they will by new from this this shows they will give vision to artist which they like. Not which artist like.  His appearance change in last. He were a suit , also clean shaved , he was also neatly dressed and collar and bowler which may be symbolised that  he has accepted the traditional way of leaving of society. And also leave his own thinking. This is may be the person that at last Petey shout that  Stan, don't let them tell you what to do!

5. Growing up from Adulthood from childhood. :
          In this play we also see that this Theme adulthood from childhood. We see that Stenley comes to Adulthood' s heard reality. We also can see the Oedipus complex. He refused to go out with Lulu and prefer to be with the Mag. We also see that when Meg wants to wake up that the voice from the room also indicate the same. Goldberg here also seen as father figure that  Stan’s fear is also an expression of his dread of punishment by the father figure for incestuous impulses. At last his dress up that shows that he dressed up as adults. This shows that now he not the child he has to leave mother’s womb.

6. Political views :
       When we talk about the political views we see that Stanley Weeber  stands  for poor country , who are may be under develop or developing countries. Where as Net and McCann stands for nation like UK and USA. This thing printer by himself also say in his speech ;
'There are no hard distinctions between what is real and what is unreal, nor between what is true and what is false. A thing is not necessarily either true or false; it can be both true and false.'

I believe that these assertions still make sense and do still apply to the exploration of reality through art. So as a writer I stand by them but as a citizen I cannot. As a citizen I must ask: What is true? What is false?
Truth in drama is forever elusive. You never quite find it but the search for it is compulsive. The search is clearly what drives the endeavour. The search is your task. More often than not you stumble upon the truth in the dark, colliding with it or just glimpsing an image or a shape which seems to correspond to the truth, often without realising that you have done so. But the real truth is that there never is any such thing as one truth to be found in dramatic art. There are many. These truths challenge each other, recoil from each other, reflect each other, ignore each other, tease each other, are blind to each other. Sometimes you feel you have the truth of a moment in your hand, then it slips through your fingers and is Lost.

So in this way we see that the play Birthday party has Various Interpretation.  We can Interpret this thing because we there are so many question which are un answer. And that is one of the reason can We are open to Interpret by ourselves. Also various Interpretation allow us to understand play in better way.