How Could Anybody Write This?

When my Modern Drama teacher mentioned at the end of class yesterday that she "almost had to apologize" for the play we were reading next, I knew it was going to be bad. It was.

The play is The Homecoming, by Harold Pinter.

And here is my breakdown of the plot: Basically, a son returns to his family with his wife of six years. Then he calmly stands by as his three brothers and father plan on turning her into the family prostitute. She accepts this idea and demands certain business accommodations. The husband returns home to his three young sons. The end.

Obviously I have expedited a lot of the information of the plot, but essentially every core element has been included.

So I ask, what is the point? Why did Harold Pinter feel the need to "shock" me in such a way?

These aren't rhetorical questions, I seriously don't understand why I just read this crappy play.

I'm not one to be easily offended by literature. I claim to be a writer myself and I firmly believe in presenting realistic characters and situations. Any book (play, film, picture, etc. . .) that seeks to have cathartic power must portray darkness to truly demonstrate light. Sometimes those scenes of darkness can be offensive, but they are necessary for a true portrayal of redemption.

There is no attempt at redemption in Pinter's play, only darkness.

Here's a picture from one of the play's productions. This is around 12 hours after Teddy returns home with his wife, Ruth. That's not Teddy rolling around on the floor with Ruth either. And it only gets worse. . .

It just doesn't make sense.