MEMORY PLAYS: HAROLD PINTER’S OLD TIMES AND ANTHONY NEILSON’S PENETRATOR

Abstract

As a much-discussed part of the human mind, memory today is an interdisciplinary subject studied by a variety of academic fields such as psychology, sociology, psychiatry, cultural studies and literature. In British drama, it finds a reflection with the term “memory plays” whose representative playwright in the twentieth century is Harold Pinter. On the other hand, it can be observed that Anthony Neilson, emerging as a voice of the British In-Yer-Face drama of the 1990s, makes an emphatic use of memory in his plays like his predecessor. In this sense, this paper argues that Anthony Neilson’s play writing shows resemblances to Harold Pinter’s, which is acknowledged as the Pinteresque, that, more specifically, Pinter’s Old Times (1971) and Neilson’s Penetrator (1993) share much in their use of memory, and analyses the particularities each playwright employs in their utilisation of this concept within their plays.

Keywords

• Memory,Memory Plays,Harold Pinter,Old Times,Anthony Neilson,Penetrator

MEMORY PLAYS: HAROLD PINTER’S OLD TIMES AND ANTHONY NEILSON’S PENETRATOR

Abstract

İnsan aklının çokça tartışılan bir bölümü olan bellek günümüzde psikoloji, sosyoloji, psikiyatri, kültürel çalışmalar ve edebiyat gibi çeşitli akademik alanlarda çalışılmakta olan disiplinler arası bir konudur. İngiliz tiyatrosunda, yirminci yüzyılda, Harold Pinter’ın temsilcisi olduğu “bellek oyunları” kavramıyla bir yansıma bulur. Öte yandan İngiltere’de 1990’lı yılların Yüzevurumcu Tiyatro’sunun yükselen sesi Anthony Neilson’ın da belleği selefi Pinter gibi oyunlarının önemli bir unsuru haline getirdiğini gözlemliyoruz. Buradan hareketle bu çalışmamızda, Anthony Neilson’ın oyun yazımının Pintervari diye adlandırılan Harold Pinter’ın oyun yazım üslubuna benzerlikler taşıdığını, daha özelde Pinter’ın Eski Zamanlar (1971) adlı oyunu ile Neilson’ın Delici (1993) adlı oyununun bellek kullanımları bakımından çokça ortak özelliğe sahip olduklarını tartışıyor ve yazarların bu oyunlarında bellek kavramı kullanımlarında ortaya koydukları özellikleri inceliyoruz.

Keywords

• Bellek,Bellek Oyunları,Harold Pinter,Eski Zamanlar,Anthony Neilson,Delici

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