User:Shershmoc/sandbox

blah "The New World Order" By Harold Pinter is a short, ten minute, one act play about two people who are about to torture someone strapped to a chair with a blindfold on.

Plot
Three character, Des, Lionel, and the blindfolded man, are all in a room. Des and Lionel intend to torture the blindfolded man for some unknown purpose. Des and Lionel each take turns discussing, or rather bickering, openly how little the blindfolded man knows concerning what Des and Lionel intend to do to both him and his wife, who is not present. Des and Lionel continue, then, by insulting the blindfolded man with crude language, pause to think about the theological aspirations of women, and then continue insulting him with crude language. Lionel, after being corrected by Des for using contradictory insults, then points out the "ignorance" of humans and points to the blindfolded man as an example; he talks of how the man was one outspoken and questioned ideas but now he is silent. After some light dialogue, Lionel, then, begins to cry because he feels so "pure". Des supports Lionel's feelings by telling him they are keeping the world clean for democracy. The two shake hands and Des ends the show by stating that the blindfolded man will also be shaking Lionel's hand in about thirty-five minutes.

Characters
Des: one of the torturers Lionel: one of the torturers The blindfolded man: the man about to be tortured who is strapped to a chair and blindfolded

Themes
The New World Order is a dramatic play and successfully keeps the audience in suspense throughout the performance. The play, being written at the same time as the Persian Gulf War, quotes President George H.W. Bush very closely and makes clear criticisms of the actions taking place overseas by the U.S. military. One example from the play is when Des and Lionel defend their actions in the name of democracy. This is a criticism of U.S. foreign policy and actions as the U.S. government has engaged in numerous wars whilst claiming they were being fought in order to protect democracy. Another theme is the absurdity of humans themselves. Within the play, Des and Lionel have multiple moments where they simply repeat what each other said and also debate with or correct each other over seemingly meaningless language, all while a man, who they are about to torture, is strapped to a chair, blindfolded, and is forced to listen to it.

Theatre of the Absurd
help blah