Ashes to Ashes

Author: Harold Pinter

Title: “Ashes to Ashes”

Editorial: Faber and Faber

Year and place of publication: 12 September 1996 in London

Dramatis Personae:

   - Devlin: a man in his forties, a kind of psychologist and Rebecca’s friend, he tries to show Rebecca realities about a man, “help her” and to make her understand it have not to trust of appearances.  

   - Rebecca: a woman in hr forties, too innocent and blind because she do not see reality, she could suffer Stockholm syndrome because she forgives damage man makes her, even to understand him. 

Plot:

   All begins inside a country house, in a dark room. Rebecca and Devlin are talking about a man, who had done she kissed his fist, his knuckles and the palm oh his hand, then he had put his hand round her throat. It seems her normal, she thinks he loves and adores her. Devlin does not understand nothing and want to know everything occurred and about him.

   Then, as he asked her, she stars to describe this man. He worked in a travel agency as guide. He gone to the local railway station and walk down a platform and tear all babies from the arms of their mothers. Besides, he is inside a kind of sect, many people follow him until the death, but of course, she does not see that.

   Afterwards she talks about a mum she had seen, who was following a man and his son and as she left her baby. Devlin goes to her and says her would say, “Put your hand round my throat”, Rebecca does not speak neither speak. He loses his control and she speaks. An echo sounds. She speaks about her baby.    

Space and time:

   Play happens inside a house in the country with a ground floor, a large window, a garden

beyond. In the room, there are two armchairs and two lamps. It is early evening in summer.

The time used is present, and few times past.

Recourse:

   Pinter had used silence, one and dark place, own by he, with two characters have two roles in the play, Rebecca has the role of patient and victim, and Devlin has the role of “doctor” and aggressor. Echo for show confusion of her for it occurred.

Opinion:

   It is a good play, as it is typical in Pinter, where something is on the air, something does not understand completely. We could have reference to “The Collection”, where truth and lie are mix. Here the real and not real could be mix also, besides times present, past and future, because play end as begins, memory about this woman could be her own reflect, she at the end suffer a kind of attack or shock. That play reflects violence and sexual abuse, without it to be able do something. The sadness of ought to leave a baby for strange and bad reasons.

   Again, it had been difficult for me to understand a play by Pinter because he has a way to say things difficult to see sometimes. However, possibility, that had been the most difficult.