Violence, Body, and Memory: The Writing of Criminal Penalties and Political Viewpoints of Equality and Justice in Harold Pinter's Plays

Abstract

Abstract: In British playwright Harold Pinter's plays, the image of criminal penalties is represented in a great variety, ranging from the illegal retributions imposed upon individuals by unknown organizations to the punishments inflicted upon individuals by national authorities and the torture of others through the abuse of one's own power. As revealed in his plays, criminal penalties are merely levied on the vulnerable, conviction is randomly determined, and individuals are subject to physical torment without committing a true crime, which clearly deviates, to the extent of extreme absurdity, from the nature of criminal justice and the universality and procedure of law enforcement. Since the execution of criminal penalties embodies the ruling class's will and functions as violent measures by the state, the willful reliance on criminal penalties in his plays reveals Pinter's pungent sarcasm towards the power politics of the Western ruling class and his concern with the common people. Moreover, it represents from the side his perception of criminal penalties and his political viewpoints of equality and justice. The writing of criminal penalties in Pinter's plays mainly puts a stress on its violent nature and leaves a historical mark for the special eras of WWII and Cold War, a mark that is related to Pinter's own identity, life experiences, and memories.

Key words: Pinter's plays, violence, writing of criminal penalties, equality and justice, political viewpoint

Liu Minglu. Violence, Body, and Memory: The Writing of Criminal Penalties and Political Viewpoints of Equality and Justice in Harold Pinter's Plays[J]. Foreign Literature Studies, 2021, 43(3): 146-156.

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