the birthday party

Question 1

exploration of gender

Answer 1

• Petey used to be a soldier, now he stacks chairs
• Stanley flaunts his ‘masuclinity’ to impress Lulu
  -Lulu challenges gender concepts by taking up space and talking like a ‘man’
  -Goldberg objectifies Meg and uses Lulu like a toy

Question 2

heroes, villains, anti-heroes

Answer 2

-Goldberg and McCann are villainous and seem to embody conformity; they attempt to put Stanley in a box; they’re enforcers of something larger and terrifying (society)
-Meg is naive, ignorant, oblivious to the pain/ torture being caused to Stanley making her complicit

Question 3

relationship between individual and society

Answer 3

• Goldberg and McCann embody the oppressive nature of societal control, hindering and sabotageing Stanley during the party
• “abandoning and killing your wife”, attacking him for not settling down
• Meg is unable to have children which makes her feel as if she has failed as a woman
• Petey attempts to stand up for Stanley but he fails; he is defeated

Question 4

quest for meaning

Answer 4

-Stanley seeks a quiet life in the boarding house, is a social recluse for over a year, he is looking for meaning to his life after his career as a pianist took an abrupt end
- goldberg and mccann are invasive and represent pressure of societal expectations
- search for meaning in a hostile society is a fragile endeavor

Question 5

anger and revolt

Answer 5

• Lulu accuses Goldberg of assault but is met with condescension, she is shamed and forgotten
• her anger, though vocal, doesn’t move the men around her

Question 6

exploration of alienation

Answer 6

-Meg is isolated from Petey, despite being in the same room, she is often begging for his attention or for him to read the paper to her
-the setting is a physical expression of isolation
-Stanley is ostracized “no society would touch you, not even a building society” also stage directions to turn his back to the audience

Question 7

search for identity

Answer 7

-stanley is stripped of his identity, meg dictates his birthday
- mccann and goldberg’s rapid-fire interrogation make it difficult for stanley to formulate an answer// the world changes before one is ready to accept it
-meg desires external validation, turns to goldberg

Question 8

surprise and shock

Answer 8

• no etiquette; stanley insults meg’s cooking and calls her a bad housewife
• innapropriate demeanor on meg’s behalf
  -the audience is uncomfortable because there is no civility