The Homecoming

"The eloquence of the unspoken." Words as weapons of defense. Yeah, but the supersaturatedness of the words, the deadlock of menace, the unbearable implicatedness of being, and of being a family, and of being a family of scumbags who hate each other, fills the play up and freezes it, makes it a work of timing and spaces and paradialogue. Not that any of that's bad--it just means that, while I can see this, like a thugged-out Waiting for Godot, being devastating on stage, heartbreaking, obscene, on the page it comes across as just a little bit . . . insouciant.

I came across this book by pure chance, and I expected it to be a novel not a play (this happens to me when not buying physically). I picked it up because blurb sounded interesting, but I did not expect scenario from the soft cuckold-porn-production.

So, considering the writing and the story it is well written, dialogue is also good, but the subject was very ....... disturbing for me. And I say that because this story, while some might call it artistic, or even [I would not be surprised] liberating, reflects in so many ways today's public view of society (if one looks at what circulates around net) ...... as I said disturbing. In that way it proves that nothing is new under the sun, and that everything always comes to [another thing that show more keeps surprising me over and over again] to sex, and dominance through sex. Considering that other extreme side of spectrum would be totally cold and mechanical, maybe this is for the best ..... but, why does it always need to go into kinks, and by kinks I mean The Kinks.

Keep in mind that to explain my views of this short play I need to go into story itself so there are spoilers ahead - you have been warned.

We are introduced to a very weird household. Max is father, living with his sons, Lenny, [quasi]intellectual, and younger Joey, boxer in making. Max was a butcher, his wife Jessie, whom he adores - although from time to time, he does use very harsh words when he mentions her, sort of like a Freudian slip situation - died long time ago so he now finds himself old, needing the stick to walk, which makes him pissed all the time and in constant fight with his son Lenny. Joey is quieter and respects his father more, but he does lash out from time to time during discussions. In this mess we are also introduced to Sam, Max's younger brother, whom Max constantly ridiculous as incompetent, tame and retarded. Sam never married, worked all his life as driver, first as cab driver then like chauffeur, but he is quiet and introvert - for Max this is like red apron before the bull, and he just vents all the time on Sam, but Sam takes it all like trained masochist.

And then in all of this kerfuffle drops Max's oldest son Teddy, who sneaks into the house in the middle of the night with his wife of 6 years, Ruth. Teddy, living now for long time in USA, took his wife on Europe tour and he wants to visit his family and introduce them to Ruth. They have kids, house, all nine yards and Teddy works in the University, but it is obvious that something is not quite right between Teddy and Ruth.

And this is when sh*tstorm starts (I have no other word to describe this). And this is not a situation of woman stirring up household full of men of various ages. From the beginning Ruth is messing up with the already messed up people, and she never considered them a threat.

In the first contact Ruth has with Lenny, he tries, in a manner of pompous pricks all over the world, to show himself as fearless bastard who kicks woman right and left (although mind you, it is possible he did some of this for real). Normal reaction should be disgust, fear, something - right? Maybe even slap, kick, but definitely not almost crazy .... flirting? ... with the idiot. Ruth approaches him and pushes him back while trying to make him sit onto her lap and drink water from her glass with his head press to her. This shocks the prick so much he is speechless so Ruth finally drinks the water and goes to Teddy's room, leaving Lenny wandering what happened.

Now, this was weird. It takes a loon to scare a loon, right? But then this escalates as Lenny, feeling that Ruth is rather ..... unconventional lets say, especially when she comments on some philosophical discussion between Lenny and Teddy by saying how move of her leg also causes other parts of her body to move ....... takes his chance by slow dancing with her and starts kissing her. This arouses Joey who sees them and then he starts kissing and rolling with Ruth on couch and floor. And Teddy is just standing and watching all of this in the open with comment that comes to something like ahhhh, guys, let her breath!

And not just that, Max and Sam are also there and they bloody continue talking to Ted and ask him about his kids (who were left in USA while Ruth and Teddy travel). I mean wtf!

At this point, I was wandering what in the name I was reading. Could it be this was some weird kink porn play, but after I checked the author I was proved wrong, apparently this was serious work.

And then ...... last part escalated very quickly if you ask me. As this ..... not a triangle, more like a screwed polygon (pun intended) .... develops we learn that Max's wife was actually putting out to Max's second brother Mac (who also died years ago) while Sam was driving them around (wtf!) and we also find out that Joey and Lenny walk around, kick other guys out and take their girls and have sex with them (and for those talking about raping, while these two are thugs, that part of the play did not indicating any foul play - guys who were with the girls left, and girls went with these two .... nuts but not unheard of) and then move on. And then Lenny, Joey, and Max concoct the weirdest scheme I ever saw in anything except Brazzer's scenario - they want to keep Ruth in house, obviously looking forward to sex with her, and then they decide - hey, why does not she bring some money in the household by doing sex work in apartment they will buy for her. And Ruth is all in (wtf!) Lenny, ever a businessman, even asks Teddy to inform his colleagues from University to come to UK to have a good time, and even says dont tell them she is his wife (wtf!).

And during all this time Teddy is just sitting, listening and only comment from his end is that she (Ruth) will be old soon! And Ruth's last words to Teddy before he goes back to US, and before she sits on a sofa and have Lenny, Joey and even Max fully fall under her spell and try to tuck their heads under her palm so she can pat them, is - wait for it - dont be a stranger (again WTF!). She has them under her spell, her cuckold husband is going home to take care of the kids and work in University, while she will have ..... considering she is an adult in the play, I have no idea what does she want, is this solely "freedom" to sleep around and "enjoy" her life? If so, this play is disturbingly mirroring some of the contemporary views on sex, open marriages and this weird, crazy cult-like obsession with cuckolding and hotwifing.

For me, ending was like a repetition of the previous cycle - Ruth takes role of Jessie, Teddy is for all means and purposes in role of his uncle Sam (with difference that he slept with Ruth, Sam did not sleep with Jessie), Lenny will become his father Max, and Joey takes the role of his uncle Mac. Only more disturbing setup would be if Ruth was somehow related to all of them, that would be like Southern-Comfort-type-of-incest-story.

I would expect this to be quite a shocking play back in the day (today, hardly anything is shocking). But I dont understand the message. It is not about infidelity, because this to be about infidelity Teddy should have done something, and Ruth should have behaved more like someone ..... making a decision, not falling into the swirl of for all means and purpose pure lust. And for what reason, Teddy and Ruth had all the commodities they wanted...... were the kids the burden for her? I mean it makes no sense.

As a kink-porn fantasy, story makes sense. But as anything else...... I just dont see what the message is.

Weird play, w-e-i-r-d play. show less

I’m so sorry, what? How the hell did we get here? An interesting critique of the monoliths of marriage and family, but was so ambiguous and lost me for a bit in its lack of a real plot. Really left me thinking “what the fuck did I just read? The sixties be wildin”

Recently reread. I can see that good actors would have a fine time with this. The dialogue is sharp and at times funny, but the play has that Pinter menace. Teddy, a philosopher, and his wife Ruth visit Teddy's family in London: the patriarch Max, Max's brother Sam, a chauffeur, and Teddy's brothers Lenny, a pimp, and Joey, a would-be boxer. Ruth turns out to be a former lady of the night. She makes a deal with Teddy's family to return to her old profession (and service the brothers), and Teddy returns back to his philosophy job in America.
Critical reaction to the play points to oedipal and freudian themes. I am undecided whether this is a callout for the role of women in 60s society or a misogynist take. Is it that Ruth can only have show more power by playing to male instinct?
I prefer Sam Shepard's treatment of a visit home, Buried Child. Equally dysfunctional, but somehow closer to where i live. show less

It may be absurd, but Pinter's "The Homecoming" speaks volumes about gender dynamics of power during a time when the discussion was still taboo.

Am I a better person after reading this play? Almost certainly not. Was I entertained/amused/intrigued? Well, maybe intrigued but apart from conceding the the dialogue generally sounded fairly natural (apart from Lenny's sudden lapse into the philosophical). But there seemed to be a period in British theatre where casual violence or shocking behaviour seemed to become the norm. I, for one, don't enjoy it. And in "The Homecoming" the misogyny and general crudity is certainly very much in your face. What's the message? Is there one apart from as male oriented family in London showing up their general crudity. I"d berth try reading a review to see what other people took from to. OK. I've read a few reviews and there seems to be a general show more consensus that Lenny is a pimp (as well as being violent to women; that Ruth is probably a prostitute and certainly willing to prostitute herself. Though why she would want to hook uo with the likes of Lenny and Joe is beyond me. Id it because her PhD philosopher husband id not satisfying her and she craves rough sex? Who knows but it certainly doesn't seem a very likely scenario to me. Max is clearly meant to be the old lion patriarch of the family but now losing his authority.OK but so what. Not sure that I learned a great deal from his put down and flights of fantasy and his hero worship of the absent Mac. Would I pay to go and watch the play? Hmm. Don't think so. Two stars from me. show less

Troubling. Not a sympathetic character in the lot.