(1996) is seen as one of Pinter’s most important plays by many critics. This relatively short, one-act play combines several of the themes that have dominated his earlier plays. It also displays his typical theatrical language in condensed form.

is thus a prototypical Pinter play.

Pinter’s playwriting career up to the 1990s is usually divided into three distinct stages, the first being the early phase of plays like The Birthday Party (1958), The Caretaker (1960), and The Homecoming (1965). These plays established the features that have become identified as typically “Pinteresque”: a theatrical format hovering halfway between social realism and the absurd; a special, partly realistic but also highly poeticised language, which was marked by the

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Citation: Berninger, Mark. "Ashes to Ashes". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 10 November 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=8976, accessed 22 November 2024.]