Which two of the following stage directions are from Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party?
A. The living-room of a house on a seaside town.
B. A garbage pail on the ground next to the porch steps.
C. A light shows from upstairs bedroom, lower floor windows being dark.
D. He hangs the drum around his neck, taps it gently with the sticks, then marches round the table, beating it regularly.

Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

Correct option is A

Explanation:
The setting description, "The living-room of a house on a seaside town," matches the opening stage directions of The Birthday Party and is central to the play's claustrophobic atmosphere.
The action involving the drum ("He hangs the drum around his neck...") is a pivotal and symbolic moment in the play, showcasing Stanley's humiliation and the surreal tension of the scene.

Information Booster:
The Birthday Party (1958) is an example of Pinter’s “comedy of menace”, in which the character is suddenly threatened by the vague horrors at large in the outside world.

While on tour with Doctor in the House in the summer of 1957, Pinter started writing The Birthday Party. He further stated: "I remember writing the big interrogation scene in a dressing room in Leicester."

Harold Pinter's three-act drama, The Birthday Party, was made in 1958 and released in 1959. Pinter's signature "comedy of menace," in which a character is abruptly threatened by the nebulous horrors prevalent in the outer world, was established in his first full-length play. The entire action takes place in a run-down rooming house, where Stanley, a slothful young boarder, is startled out of his delusion of security by the appearance of two enigmatic men who then "punish" him for unidentified misdeeds. Stanley's landlady throws a birthday party, but it quickly devolves into a violent and terrifying spectacle. Pinter's use of dialogue, which includes numerous pauses, fragmented talks, and non sequiturs, supports his humorous portrayal of paranoia and solitude.

The play focuses on themes of power, identity, and existential dread.

Key Characters: Stanley Webber, Meg and Petey Boles, and the enigmatic Goldberg and McCann.

Pinter often blends realism with absurdism, creating ambiguous and disturbing atmospheres in his works.
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Additional Knowledge:

Harold Pinter’s Stage Directions: Known for their precision and minimalism, his stage directions often create an unsettling atmosphere.

Symbolism of the Drum: In The Birthday Party, Stanley's drumming represents his psychological breakdown and the play's absurdist tone.

Setting in Pinter’s Plays: Settings are typically enclosed spaces that amplify the characters’ psychological tension.