Security
Security—the state of being free from threat—is a major theme in The Room. Pinter explores the theme primarily through Rose's connection to her bedsit flat—the "room" the play takes its title from. For Rose, the room is a place of safety from the uncertainty and threats of the unknown outside world. As she rambles at Bert, Rose returns to the subject of how much she appreciates their room, which is warm and encourages well-being. She also withers to think about what it would be like to live in the damp basement or even to leave their room to go out in the cold. However, Rose's sense of security is threatened when the Sands say that a man in the basement told them Rose's room—number seven—is going vacant. When Riley appears, he threatens Rose's security further by asking her to leave her room and "come home," an action akin to death.
Mundanity
Another major theme Pinter explores in The Room is mundanity. Defined as dull daily life, mundanity is used as a backdrop against which the play's menace and otherworldly elements can develop. Rose's long one-sided conversation at the beginning of the play establishes her humdrum existence with Bert. Talking about how she prefers her dull but safe life in the bedsit, Rose putters around the room, straightening up their few objects and speculating on life outside their flat. While the audience may interpret the play's opening as an exercise in dullness, Pinter juxtaposes Rose's mundane life with the uneasy arrival of Riley, a mysterious stranger whose presence portends death. Ultimately, Pinter uses mundanity to allow the audience to feel lulled into a false sense of security before he destabilizes the narrative.
Alienation
Alienation—being isolated from something to which one should belong—is another key theme in The Room. Pinter explores the theme through Rose's rambling comments about how she prefers her isolated life within her room to the cold, dark unknown world outside the flat. Early in the play, Rose goes to the window and believes she has seen someone outside; however, she quickly realizes she saw no one, commenting later that there isn't a soul about. With this detail, Pinter shows how she is marooned in her home, unable even to watch people passing on the street. She also comments to Bert that they keep to themselves, as if their isolation is something to be proud of. Rose echoes this sentiment when she tells Riley that he couldn't possibly know her because no one knows she is there and she doesn't know anyone. Ultimately, Pinter shows how Rose's need for security results in alienation from the outside world, which is too full of threats for her to engage with it.
Miscommunication
Throughout The Room, Pinter uses the theme of miscommunication to generate both humor and uneasiness. In the opening scene, Rose carries on a one-sided conversation with her husband, Bert. As Rose goes on about the weather, Bert gives no reaction, as if he has learned to disregard everything his doting wife says. The theme arises again when Mr. Kidd enters the stage; even though he speaks with Rose, their back-and-forth is punctuated by misheard statements and unanswered questions. Communication issues also plague Rose's conversation with the Sands, and it takes several minutes to clarify how they came to believe room seven (Rose's room) was going vacant. In this way, Pinter elegantly switches from comedy-generating miscommunication to miscommunication that threatens Rose's security. The theme arises again with Riley and Rose's dialogue. Speaking in short statements, the two trade off lines as though taking turns delivering fragments of their own monologues, only occasionally making a direct reply to what the other has said. However, in the uncertain space opened by their broken communication, Pinter invites the audience to draw their own conclusions about what exactly Riley and Rose's relationship signifies.
Uncertainty
Uncertainty is another dominant theme in the play. Set in contrast to the theme of security, uncertainty arises when Rose frets over the dangers of the cold outside world and dark basement. Discussing Bert's recent illness, Rose withers to think what might have happened had they been living in the basement, where the damp walls might have "finished [Bert] off." Pinter also makes it clear that Rose associates their flat with certainty when Rose repeatedly says "you know where you are" in a place like theirs, a sentiment that suggests anything other than the known space of the room risks an uncertain future. The theme comes back when the Sands reveal that someone told them Rose's room is going vacant. Threatened with the uncertainty of not knowing whether her landlord plans to evict her, Rose panics. However, this instance of uncertainty is a precursor to the greater uncertainty unleashed by Riley's visit. With his request that she "come home," Rose must confront the unknown fate Riley is revealing to her.
Fear
Complementing the themes of uncertainty and security is the theme of fear. Ensconced in her warm bedsit, Rose exhibits fear of the outside world, which is cold and dark and potentially dangerous. In her one-sided conversation with Bert, Rose has to reassure herself of Bert's driving skills to assuage fears of him getting into an accident on the icy roads. Pinter also emphasizes the dullness of Rose's life by showing how she is animated by fear, as it gives her mundane life a sense of anxiety-generated meaning. Toward the end of the play, Rose's fear shifts from trivial matters to the very real threat posed by Riley and his invitation to "come home." Perhaps perceiving that he is inviting her to join him in the afterlife, Rose is deeply destabilized by what he says. However, she begins touching Riley's head. This action suggests that Rose decides to embrace the menace, rejecting the security that has counterintuitively held her hostage in a state of anxiety.
Bewilderment
Bewilderment—a feeling of utter confusion—is another important theme in The Room. While Pinter spends most of the play establishing Rose's seemingly trivial fixations and alienated existence, a building sense of unease gradually chips away at the foundations of her mundane life. While there are many instances of confusion born of miscommunication, the first major instance of bewilderment comes with the revelation that a man in the basement told the Sands that Rose's room is going vacant. Rose is bewildered by this information, and her confusion only increases when she confronts Mr. Kidd and learns that the mysterious basement-dweller has asked for her by name. With this bewildering turn, Pinter takes the narrative in a surrealist direction, baffling the audience with the final events of the play. In this space of utter confusion, however, Pinter invites the audience to make their own sense of the associations he has presented. In this way, bewilderment is used to explore the deeper symbolism of the story.
