"I found the offer of a knighthood something that I couldn't possibly accept. I found it to be somehow squalid, a knighthood. There's a relationship to government about knights"
- Harold Pinter
About this Quote
Harold Pinter's quote suggests that he found the deal of a knighthood to be unacceptable. He implies that the deal was in some way "squalid" which it was linked to the government in some way. This could be translated as Pinter's criticism of the government and its involvement in the awarding of knighthoods. He may have felt that the offer was not authentic or that it was a way for the government to get favour with the general public. It might likewise be viewed as a rejection of the idea of a class system, with knighthoods being seen as a method of enhancing the divide between the upper and lower classes. Eventually, Pinter's quote suggests that he discovered the offer of a knighthood to be horrible which he was not going to accept it.
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