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The opening line of Joe Orton’s second play, ‘Loot’, is: “Wake up. ... Although spoken by Fay to McLeavy, it could also be construed as a direct message from Orton to his 60s audience. Orton’s disdain for society as a whole, and specifically establishments such as the church and the police force, show through strongly in this biting satire. A superficial reading of ‘Loot’ suggests that Orton was nothing more than a spiteful nihilist with no good intentions. However, as well as criticising and shocking society, he also wanted to purify it. By exposing the faults of human nature, and affronting his audience with misogynistic and blasphemous comments, and homosexual references, he not only entertains, but shows us what he believed to be wrong with the society he lived in. ... The following monologue by Hal illustrates Orton’s provocative nature when it comes to religion:
“I’d like to run a brothel . ... ”
This sort of comment would greatly shock an audience in 1966, when more people were devoutly religious. ... Orton satirises the Roman Catholic Church in particular; he made the McLeavy household Roman Catholics precisely so that he could abuse them for it. He also attacks the moral standards of priests - when Fay suggests McLeavy confesses to Father Mac, Hal declares: “Oh, not him! ... You’re not a Catholic”), yet commit crimes such as murder and theft as if nothing were wrong, effectively illustrating the hypocrisy of religion that Orton hated so much. ... Through the character of Truscott, who believes a hat is a masterful disguise, Orton criticises all aspects of the police. ... ”
He is also corrupt (“I’ll have to forge [a confession]”), and says himself that this corruption extends to the whole force:
“FAY: The British police force used to be run by men of integrity.
Approximate Word count = 1455
Approximate Pages = 5.8
(250 words per page double spaced)
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