Harold Pinter: “The Collection”, tragedy in an act, ed. Faber and Faber,London,1961

Consuelo Hernández Rubio: Grup B

“The Collection” by Harold Pinter is a play developed through the several dialogues kept between four characters in which James, who is husband of Stella, try to discover her ADULTERY with Bill.

The dialogues are always kept between two characters and never superposed. It’s in an only moment when there’s a conversation between three of the them ( pags.152-153: When Bill and James are keeping a duel and Harry enters).

The four characters are James, Stella, Harry and Bill. Their relationships are showed through these conversations. So:

- James and Stella are married (pag.131: James: “My wife was in there”; pag.148: Stella: “We’ve been happily married for two years, you see.”) and they have an “iron” relationship (pag. 151: Bill: “There’s a bond of iron between you and your wife”)

- Harry and Bill are living in a flat together (pag.123: Bill brings on a tray from the kitchen….. Harry, in a dressing-gown….)

- Stella and Bill are lovers (pag.131: James: “That’s where you slept with her”) and they are dedicated to the same kind of work (pag.147: Harry: “You’re both dress designers”)

- All of them are neighbour (pag.153: Harry: “Funny we’ve never met, living so close, all in the same trade, eh?”)

We also know, through their conversations, how the characters are:

-James is presented as a intriguing man when he dialogues through telephone without telling who he is (pag.121:voice),maniac (pag.142),intruder(pag.129) and idiotic(pag.138)

-Stella is a dress designer (pag.147) and a manipulative woman (pag148: Stella: “…my husband has suddenly dreamed up such a fantastic story…”;”..he’s just not been very well lately…”)

-Harry is a protector and manipulative man (pag.147: Harry: “I found him in a slum…I gave him a roof, gave him a job…”; “I’ve come about your husband”;pag.148: “I mean, the boy has his work to get on with. This sort of thing spoils his concentration”; “Why don’t you take him on a long holiday?”)

-Bill is the youngest character. He’s a contradictory man who is a dress designer. First Bill denies the adultery (pag.131: “…Nowhere near your wife either…”); later he asks James “Do you believe her?”(pag.133); later he admits the adultery (pag.136: “Just a few kisses”) and so on.

All of these different dialogues are developed in an only act in a strange distribution of a closed space “divided into three areas two peninsulas and a promontory…., telephone box” (pag.120). One of these areas is selected by a illumination, fading to blackout and fading up on the house, the flat or the telephone box (through all of the play), according to the dialogue that is started and according to the day that it’s and the moment of the day when it’s (pag.137: “Sunday morning”)

This game with the illumination is the way how the author wants to guide us towards the most important moment in the play.

All of these elements, the game with the illumination, the intriguing pun in the dialogues, the three closed spaces, the characteristic of the characters and the relationships between them, give form to the play in which I would select THREE BASIC ASPECTS:

-The reality or farce of the things that are said: pag.136: Bill:

“….Pure fantasy. Really rather naughty of her. Rather alarming…”;

when Bill first denies, later admits and so on.

-The difficulties in the human relationships are present in all the

moments of the play when James tries to discover the infidelity of her

wife with Bill and Harry manipulates Stella and James to evade the

TRUE. The only solution that is offered to resolve the situation is

the threat and the violence (pag.131: James: “Be careful”;

pag.152: James: “Let’s have a mock duel” ; James throws a knife al

Bill’s face….It cuts his hand”.

-The looking for the personal identity when Bill and James talk about

the mirrors (pag.146: Bill: “There’s one right in front of you”).

OPINION

I think that the author gets that the reader have feelings of oppression through the closed spaces, through the manipulative conversations and through the game with the illumination.

In fact, I have felt a need of participate in the dialogues of the characters to tell the TRUE and finishing with the lie, also because of the personal characteristics of James. He, who wants to discover the true, is presented as a maniac, intruder and idiotic man. Also when Bill wants to tell us the true and he isn’t let do it (pags.156-157)