Key Facts
FULL TITLE • The Dumb Waiter
AUTHOR • Harold Pinter
TYPE OF WORK • Drama
GENRE • Drama/comedy
LANGUAGE • English
TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN • 1960 in London, England
DATE OF FIRST PRODUCTION • January 1960
PUBLISHER • Grove Press
NARRATOR • No narrator; drama
CLIMAX • The climax occurs when Ben pulls his gun on Gus
PROTAGONIST • Both men share the role of protagonist, although the audience may empathize with Gus primarily
ANTAGONIST • Wilson and, eventually, Ben
SETTING (TIME) • Modern day
SETTING (PLACE) • The basement of a café
FALLING ACTION • Gus and Ben stare at each other in silence
TENSE • Play; present tense
FORESHADOWING • There are a few clues that Ben will betray Gus, such as his slip-up when giving directions to Gus; the messages from the dumb waiter show that the café is not defunct, as Ben says it is
TONE • Violent, comic
THEMES • The Silence and Violence of Language; Anxiety Over Social Class
MOTIFS • Repetition
SYMBOLS • The dumb waiter