

Kill the Old Torture Their Young
David Harrower


What readers are saying
Readers have a mixed but mostly positive response to the play. Many admire the strong and atmospheric writing, while others appreciate its poetic qualities and intriguing themes. A few find it slower-paced and less engaging, but overall, it is seen as a worthwhile work that raises thought-provoking questions.
The village has lied.
William has lied.
It is not because I am undeserving.
Not because I am young and they are old.
God has given them nothing.
I know this now.
Knives in Hens is a brutal fable set in a timeless spartan rural community.
First staged at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh in June 1995, before transferring to the Bush Theatre, London, in November 1995, the play was playwright David Harrower's first professionally produced work.
It has been staged in twenty-five countries around the world and is widely acknowledged as a modern Scottish classic.
A remarkable play about the transformative power of knowledge and an emerging consciousness as the world moves from rural to the urban and industrial.
With an introduction by Mark Fisher.
Knives in Hens is a British historical play written by David Harrower and published by Methuen (2015).
Digital editions available on Amazon Kindle, Google Play (eISBN 9781472574329).
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Revised
Methuen · 2015 · 64 pp
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