Harold Pinter, the British playwright, whose gifts for finding the ominous in the everyday and the noise within silence made him the most influential and imitated dramatist of his generation. In more than 30 plays written between 1957 and 2000 and including masterworks like The Birthday Party, The Caretaker, The Homecoming and Betrayal, Pinter captured the anxiety and ambiguity of life in the second half of the 20th century with terse, hypnotic dialogue filled with gaping pauses and the prospect of imminent violence. Pinter became one of the few modern playwrights whose names instantly evoke a sensibility. The adjective 'Pinteresque' has become part of the cultural vocabulary as a byword for strong and unspecified menace.
An actor, essayist, screenwriter, poet, director and dramatist, Pinter was also publicly outspoken in his views on repression and censorship, at home and abroad. He used his Nobel acceptance speech to denounce American foreign policy, saying that the United States had not only lied to justify waging war against Iraq, but that it had also 'supported and in many cases engendered every right-wing military dictatorship' in the last 50 years. His political views were implicit in much of his work. Though his plays deal with the slipperiness of memory and human character, they are also almost always about the struggle for power.
In Pinter's work 'words are weapons that the characters use to discomfort or destroy each other' said Peter Hall, who has staged more of Pinter's plays than any other director. But while Pinter's linguistic agility turned simple, sometimes obscene, words into dark, glittering and often mordantly funny poetry, it is what comes between the words that he is most famous for. And the stage direction 'pause' would haunt him throughout his career.
Intended as an instructive note to actors, the Pinter pause was a space for emphasis and breathing room. But it could also be as threatening as a raised fist. Pinter said that writing the word 'pause' into his first play was 'a fatal error'. It is certainly the aspect of his writing that has been most parodied. But no other playwright has consistently used pauses with such rhythmic assurance and to such fine-tuned manipulative effect. Early in his career, Pinter said his work was about 'the weasel under the cocktail cabinet'. Though he later regretted the image, it holds up as a metaphor for the undertow of danger that pervades his work.
Pinter was born in Hackney on October 10, 1930. With the outbreak of World War II, Harold was evacuated from London to a provincial town in Cornwall. His feelings of loneliness and isolation from that time were to surface later in his plays. Few writers have been so consistent over so many years in the tone and execution of their work. Just before rehearsals began for the West End production of The Birthday Party half a century ago, Pinter sent a letter to his director, Peter Wood. In it he said, 'The play is a comedy because the whole state of affairs is absurd and inglorious. It is, however, as you know, a very serious piece of work.'
Look for the sentence that names a theme running through nearly every Pinter play, not a single trait or a one off remark.
Struggle for power fits best, since the passage flags it as an almost constant thread in his writing.
The word mordantly describes poetry that stings even while it amuses, so the right synonym must carry that sting.
Harshly matches best, since mordant wit is sharp and cutting rather than gentle.
Match the phrase in the question to the exact clause the passage uses to explain his wide imitation.
The passage's opening line points to finding the ominous in the everyday as the true reason for his wide imitation.
The question asks which trait of Pinter's writing critics and imitators mocked most, so trace the passage's discussion of the pause.
The steady, rhythmic use of pause stands out as the most parodied part of his writing.
Notice how directly Pinter states his opinions, in his Nobel speech and through his political themes, when picking the tone.
Candid is the best fit, matching the open, frank manner shown throughout the passage.
Match the definition to a term from literary language, since the phrase describes a well known figure of speech.
Metaphor is the term that fits the definition given in the question.
Find the sentence that names his major plays and says exactly what they capture, since the question asks about celebrated works specifically.
The passage ties his masterworks directly to capturing the anxiety and ambiguity of that era.
Trace Pinter's letter to Peter Wood closely, since it gives his exact description of the play in his own words.
Pinter himself calls the play a very serious piece of work in his letter.