Harold Pinter Biography Examples

This paper is the result of my research on the British dramatist, Harold Pinter. There is so much material available on Pinter that it was sometimes hard to decide exactly what to use, so I have limited my source texts to two authoritative reference books. As well as giving biographical information, I have tied to trace his contribution to the theatre, but even that was slightly problematic, since he did so much – he directed, acted and wrote for the theatre. Even if we concentrate on his writing, we are dealing potentially with a huge amount since he wrote plays, poems, short stories, one novel, radio plays, newspaper articles, screenplays – the list goes on. I have sometimes mentioned these other writing activities, but have concentrated on his writing for the stage. Harold Pinter was born on October 10, 1930 and became the most influential writer in British theatre in the second half of the twentieth century.   He was born into a relatively humble Jewish family in London’s East End and was evacuated from the capital during the Second World War. After the war he was educated at Hackney Downs Grammar School, this was a formative period in his life: he made friends at school with other male students to whom he was to remain emotionally close to for the rest of their adult lives. He also came under the influence of an English teacher at the school who encouraged Pinter to act in school productions and to write for the school magazine, needless to say, perhaps, Pinter shone at English.   His first published poem appeared in the school magazine when he was seventeen and at the age of twenty several poems appeared in the poetry magazine Poetry London. School also gave him a lifelong passion for sport, especially cricket. His entry into the world of the theatre was rather chaotic and haphazard. He spent two terms at Rada, but dropped out and was then fined of refusing to do compulsory military service: Pinter registered as a conscientious objector and spent most of the fifties taking small acting roles, but also working at other jobs – postman, waiter, bouncer – while continuing to dabble with writing. In 1957 his first play, The Room, was written and performed at Bristol University; Pinter wrote it in three days so that his friend from school, Henry Woolf, could have a play to direct to complete his PhD. The play was a great success and caught the attention of Michael Codron, a leading British producer and director, who was keen to put on Pinter’s next play, The Birthday Party, which opened at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith in 1958. The play was a flop commercially and critically. However, the influential Sunday Times theatre critic Harold Hobson gave it a superb review, hailing Pinter as the most original talent working in the theatre in London – although the production had already stopped by the time the review appeared. The next ten years of play writing cemented Pinter’s reputation with a string of successful productions. Pinter’s work is credited with introducing Absurdist drama into British theatre and his lays also had an air of menace and threat, often arising from the most ordinary of situations. In this earl period of his work an element of animalistic violence always runs beneath he civilized faà §ade of his scenes. (Drabble, 2000, p. 793) Even the most mundane objects carry a threat of danger, such as the vacuum cleaner in The Caretaker. Plays such as The Birthday Party (1958), The Caretaker (1960), The Lover (1963) and The Homecoming (1965) had turned Pinter into a celebrity and he was also continuing to act, to write plays for the radio and to write poems and, increasingly, film scripts. (Alexander 364) In 1956 he had married an English actress Vivien Merchant and they had a son born in 1958 called Daniel. However, the marriage was troubled: Pinter had a series of clandestine affairs, although Merchant acted to great acclaim in most of his plays up until the mid seventies.   Pinter’s 1978 play Betrayal is based on this period of his life. Pinter was increasingly a public figure, actively involved in left-wing politics and campaigns against nuclear weapons and the system of apartheid in South Africa. In 1975 he and Merchant finally separated after Pinter admitted to having an affair with Lady Antonia Frazier, an eminent British historian. Pinter and Frazier married in 1980. One sad fact is that Pinter’s son changed his name to Daniel Brand and remained completely unreconciled with his father, not attending the funeral. From the late sixties onwards Pinter write lots of plays dealing with memories and the uncertainty and ambiguity of our relationship with the past – plays such as No Man’s Land (1975), Betrayal (1978) and A Kind of Alaska (1982), but after 1980 his dramatic output became increasingly radical and pollicised. This was partly a reaction to the right-wing neo-conservatism of the Thatcher government, but also reflected his stance on foreign wars and Western interference in the Third World. He was a passionate advocate for freedom of speech and the importance of the arts and often lent his very public support to left-wing causes at home and abroad. It is also said that his increased political engagement was due to his new-found domestic happiness. As he grew older his output decreased but his contribution to literature and to the theatre was increasingly celebrated and recognized with a string of awards, honorary degrees and revivals of his plays. This culminated in 2005 with the award of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Pinter continued to be active, appearing on stage for the last time in Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape at the Royal Court Theatre in London in October 2006 – very appropriately since he had always acknowledged Beckett as a key influence on his own work. He died on Christmas Eve 2008 during a revival of No Man’s Land in London. Well before his death the word ‘Pinteresque’ had been coined. According to Alexander (2000) it means two things in particular: Inconsequential cross-talk, less logical than Beckett’s, with pauses and silences, gives way occasionally, as also in Beckett, to operatic arias of banality expressing the loneliness of the speaker. (p. 364) And also: undefined ominousness. The neurosis of Beckett’s speakers has a metaphysical dimension, a fear of death, eternity, nothingness. Pinter’s are scared of being found out or beaten up. (p. 364) Drabble (2000) puts his appeal down to his themes: â€Å"nameless menace, erotic fantasy, obsession and jealousy, family hatreds, and mental disturbance.† (p. 793) Works Cited Alexander, Michael. (2000). A History of English Literature. London: Palgrave Macmillan. Drabble, Margaret (ed). (2000). The Oxford Companion to English Literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Napoleon Bonaparte And The Reign Of Terror - 792 Words

3.2~ The Reign of Terror was a point in time during the French Revolution in which Maximilien Robespierre attempted to live in â€Å"republic of virtue†, which didn’t end well for France. For instance, Robespierre ruled as a dictator in terms of remaining loyal to his duties. Also, another example would be his decisions which impacted his reputation along with his overall personality as a whole. First off foremost, Robespierre didn’t feel pity for his subjects and during the Reign of Terror, 40,000 people were killed for non-existent purposes. Furthermore, one person got executed due to the fact that he accidentally chopped off a tree which was quite significant to the empire, however, Robespierre was very careless and continued with his†¦show more content†¦As a result, Napoleon relied on honestly and whomever didn’t stay true to their words was removed from the office being replaced by better representatives of the school board officials from th e lycà ©es.Furthermore, Napoleon defended his empire by planning out war sites ahead of time and maintaining a strong background in terms of the army and physical overview when it came to the structure of his empire. 5.1~ The main events that led to Napoleon’s downfall were based on creating a blockade, making his brother the king of Spain, and trying to conquer Russia. For example, Napoleon came up with different systems to contribute to the downfall of Britain, although he never took inconsideration of his own empire. Also, another example would include having to overthink basic strategies which backfired him. Furthermore, Napoleon’s thoughts on the blockade system were that it would stop any trade with Britain which would bring down their economy, however it led to the continental system and instead it impacted the French economy. Also, making his brother the king of Spain didn’t end up so well when it came to the guerilla warfare since the Spanish peasants were upset because they thought that whatever happened to the French Empire, would occur to the Spanish Empire as well. Furthermore, Napoleon’s major defeat which started off his ending period of ruling France was the BattleShow MoreRelatedNapoleon Bonaparte As A Multi Faceted Genius1094 Words   |  5 PagesNour Ziena Mrs. Mackenzie CLN4U 2016-03-28 Introduction Throughout history, men have always been able to conquer different lands. But of these men â€Å"The Little Corporal also known as Napoleon Bonaparte was able to cast a long shadow, from Holland to Egypt, from Moscow to Cadiz. The code Napoleon still remains with us, as the Arc de Triomphe and the memory of a multi-faceted genius. Throughout the history Europe, kings and dictators have been infamous for their voracious desire for control and completeRead MoreFrench Revolution and Nationalism1411 Words   |  6 Pagesmovement. From the Declaration came the Reign of Terror, led by the National Convention. Enlightenment thought and the idea of equal rights were warped and mislead during the Terror. After the execution of one of the Convention’s main leaders, Maximillien Robespierre, France entered into a period of well-needed recovery and regrouping. This period of recovery was led by the French Directory. Though not often credited, the Directory was essential for Napoleon Bo naparte to take over as the first Consul ofRead MoreThe French Revolution1191 Words   |  5 PagesChristianity. Following that, they also freed the bloody Reign of Terror, which was a ten month period of time when suspicious enemies of the revolution were guillotined, plentiful of the killings were committed from the orders of Robespierre, who dominated the draconian Committee of Public Safety until his own execution on July 28, 1794. His death signaled the start of the Thermidorian Reaction, a moderate phase in which the French people went against the Reign of Terror’s excesses. Directory 1795-1799,Read MoreFrance - Change over Time Essay (French Revolution)1156 Words   |  5 Pagesequality, liberty, and democracy. 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This was a ten month long period where anyone who was su spected to be an enemy of the revolution was executed by the guillotine; thousands at a time were guillotined and a total of 16,594 people were killed. Many of the killings were carriedRead More French Revolution Essay812 Words   |  4 Pagesas the Reign of Terror. Anyone who went against the Convention, whose leaders included Robespierre, was given a death sentence under the guillotine. The Gironde, a radical group, rebelled against the convention, and Robespierre had them put to death. To end the Reign of Terror, the Jacobin dictatorship, and the democratic revolution, Robespierre was attacked by his rivals in the Convention as a tyrant on July 29,1794. He was put to death the following day, and the Reign of Terror was finallyRead MoreThe Death Of Louis Xvi1004 Words   |  5 Pagesrepublic. Louis XVI was put on trial for crimes by the National Convention. While no one doubted his guilt, they did debate whether the king should be executed. The Reign of Terror began in 1793 after the death of Louis XVI. Nine months after his execution, his wife, Queen Marie Antoinette was the first person to face the guillotine. The Reign was meant to fight those who opposed the revolution and also to stop any counter-revolution. Considered education the public would sit and watch the executionsRead MoreHow Far Did Napoleon Maintain the Ideals of the French Revolution?926 Words   |  4 PagesNapoleon managed to maintain the lesser ideals of the French Revolution. However, he managed to do this by giving all of the former ideals a ‘twist’ of his own if he was displeased by them. This included the fact that he re-wrote the constitution that had previously been written; he partially reversed the relationship with the Church, turning France into a Catholic country. It can also be stated that the way he gained power was against the French Revolution’s ideals: and this was the very beginningRead MoreThe French Revolutio n : The Revolution828 Words   |  4 PagesThe Revolution was fueled by Enlightenment concepts, such as collective sovereignty for the people and inviolable human rights. The Revolution was stricken by setbacks and France ultimately ended up in the hands of a revolutionary monarch, Napoleon Bonaparte (late 1790s). Furthermore, like the American Revolution, it allowed the world to recognize the power behind the working class. The French Revolution collapsed the â€Å"old order†; by spreading democratic ideals, political changes took place andRead MoreCauses Of The French Revolution911 Words   |  4 PagesThe French Revolution was a major turning point in all of European history. The old regime was destroyed and a new order came to be. We will talk about the causes of the revolution, when it ended, and if it was violent, Napoleon, what happened after his defeat, and some other leaders, and movies I have seen about the Revolution and how they were correct, plus other things I want to learn. The immediate cause of the French Revolution in 1789 was the near collapse of the French budget. On the

AP-Suffrage In England - 1416 Words

Describe the steps taken between 1832 and 1918 to extend the suffrage in England. What group and movements contributed to the extension of the vote? Several groups, movements and reform bills passed between 1832 and 1918 extended the suffrage in England. The process took many years and the voting rights were first given to the wealthier and more distinguished men, then later to the less wealthy men, and finally to women. The major reform bills that extended the suffrage in England were the Reform Bill of 1832, 1867, and 1884, and the Qualification of Women Act in 1917. (Mazour, Peoples) The suffrage movement began in 1832 when the Reform Bill of 1832 was passed by parliment. The Prime Minister since 1830, Earl Grey, authored the Bill and†¦show more content†¦Another problem with the voting system was the lack of a private vote. Employers could influence the way their employees voted by threatening to punish them if they failed to vote for their preffered candidate. This prob lem was fixed in 1872, when William Gladstones government passed the Ballot Act which guaranteed a secret system of voting. Although the immediate results of the reform act were not earth shattering, the country had taken, as Lord Derby said, a leap in the dark. Strikes, union advances, and labor organization were powerful forces for change in the final years of the century. William Gladstone was elected as Prime Minister of England for the second time in 1880 and the most important legislative action that took place during his second ministry was the Reform Act of 1884. The reform act was rejected the first time it was presented to the House of Lords, but accepted the second time because it was accompanied by a redistribution act, which had the following implications. (i) seventy-nine towns with populations smaller than 15,000 lost their right to elect an MP; (ii) thirty-six with populations between 15,000 and 50,000 lost one of their MPs and became single member constituencies; (i ii) towns with populations between 50,000 and 165,000 were given two seats; (iv) larger towns and the country constituencies were divided into single member constituencies (http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PR1885.htm). The actual Reform Act of 1884Show MoreRelatedEnglish Colonies in North America (Ap Us History)1253 Words   |  6 PagesAP US History English Colonies in North America Before the seventeenth century, countries such as Portugal and Spain had controlled the rich lands of the Americas, and England was left out of the race due to religious conflict back home. However, when Queen Elizabeth came into power, England’s power also rose in the colonial game in the America. Some of the first colonies they gathered are the ones of Virginia and Carolina. 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Communication and Personality in Negotiation free essay sample

Communication and Personality in Negotiation Paper RaLonda Blacklock August 23, 2010 MGT/445 – Organizational Negotiation – Jerry Tuttle This paper is about my negotiation skills and personality of time management. I will analyze the roles of communication, my personality in negotiation, and the contribution and detraction from the negotiation process. Negotiation is a process between two or more parties in hopes of arriving to a mutual agreement. Negotiation requires a common goal and in most cases includes: communication, a relationship, commitment, interest, alternatives, options, and legitimacy, which are also known as the elements of negotiation. Peter Starks says â€Å"negotiation is not an event, it is a process† (n. d. ). Negotiation is a choice where two parties battles to the end to reach an agreement of the desired choice. The negotiation process in itself requires time, therefore to negotiate an issue against an issue is redundant, but it happens. The question to ask is how do you negotiate with time? I find myself negotiating time on several occasions, which is primarily because of poor time management. In most cases my schedule if filled with a variety of tasks to complete, because of many jobs and responsibilities that I have. So my negotiation process begins with prioritizing. Prioritizing is an aspect of time management that helps to determine the most important task to the least important task. Prioritizing also helps determine the amount of time needed to complete each task. In my negotiation process with prioritizing in most cases are under the rule of irrational escalation of commitment. According to Lewicki-Saunders-Barry, escalation of commitment is partly individual perception and judgment (2006). My commitment to the various tasks I face daily or perhaps weekly causes me to negotiate the time of when to complete each task and how to do it effectively under the time straint I am under. The problem is when I am not allowing for incidentals. My time management schedule only includes job duties and functions that can and will be completed without the presence of incidental. When using the elements of negotiation, one is communication. How does one communicate with time in negotiating? In my case, I rations within myself to determine when will be the best time to begin and end a task. The majority of the time the task begins and ends in the eleventh hour, which is also an element of poor time management. To negotiate with time through communication requires writing down each task, thinking it through thoroughly and learning to say no. These elements of time management are to benefit the process when used properly. The negative of this process would be to implement them and not make proper use of them. Which indicates the negotiation process of failed. Simply because I am not taking the control of time, but allowing time to control me. According to Peter Stark time spent negotiating plays a critical role and will conclude in the final 20% of time allowed (n. d. ). This is saying that on 20% of the time negotiated will be used. Therefore, I must have patience to achieve what I set out to do. So in my negotiation process with time, I must allow for time to take its course. If you were to evaluate my negotiation behavior with time, it would be more on the style of avoiding and compromising, which may conflict with my personality factors of conscientiousness. Organization and avoidance is not a good negotiation mix. If a person is organized and responsible, there should be no reason to avoid an issue, but more the reason to take it on full force. Preparation is a part of the process of negotiation and facing the process early makes it easier to reach the common goal; completing the task on time. I chose this subject matter for my negotiation paper because I find myself constantly negotiating when to begin and complete a task. Although I spend a large amount of time organizing my calendar to accommodate the many tasks I have to complete, I still negotiate with time on getting them done. I wrestle with working eight hours on a regular job, devoting two to four hours per week to working and attending my church, allowing two to four hours for online school and study, saving time to spend with my sons, and oh my me time (can’t forget that†¦yeah right). Now it is a given that in most cases time will win due to the fact I am negotiation with basically 24 hours a day. When you take away time to sleep (approx six to eight hours) which only leave me with 16 hours a day to accomplish a daily task. So then you ask, why negotiate? Organize the calendar, prioritize the task, perform the duty and task is done. NO! You left off my negotiation period. The time when I sit and ponder over will I really have the time to complete the task at hand? The time when I convince myself that I will not get this all done today and may have to do some of this tomorrow. And what do you mean incidentals? Those are not on my schedule and when will I have time for them, I mean goodness, I just shifted a task today to tomorrow to free up time today, and the process starts all over again. This is what I call negotiating with time for time, when there really is no more time than what is given. The negotiation process in itself is a task. To consider a negotiation with two or more people may be more time consuming and a bit difficult to accomplish, especially when you give in account the differences of opinions, the possibility of confusion, and the conflicts of interest. But, to negotiate with time is basically negotiating with self, which leave no room for an opposing opinion only confusion within self and conflict of decision. Bottom-line, who actually negotiates with time? And what is the final outcome? No one may answer this most challenging question, but time is negotiated, perhaps not with just one individual, but many at that same time and on the same subject matter. Time management is not about getting everything done, but getting it done efficiently. The negotiation process is to improve my time management to achieve better results of my time than to redirect my time and achieve nothing. References: Lewicki, R. J. , Saunders, D. M. , Barry, B. (2006). Negotiation (5th ed. ). Boston: McGraw Hill. Retrieved August 17, 2010 from University of Phoenix online e-text material. Stark, Peter. (n. d. ) Negotiation: Putting Time and Information on Your Side. Retrieved August 23, 2010 from http://www. perterstark. com/files