ENG3600 Drama: Postmodernism, Pinter, Stoppard, Churchill

A shape-shifting fairy terrorizes two teen mothers in contemporary London. A philosophy professor struggles with the meaning of life while trapeze artists perform feats of daring high above his office. A story of adulterous lovers is related in reverse so that it ends happily—at the beginning. What connects these scenarios, besides their inherent “theatricality,” is that each describes the central action of a major 20th century British play. This course will look at the works of three prominent playwrights—Harold Pinter, Tom Stoppard, and Caryl Churchill—and consider how these contemporaries redefined the possibilities of theatre in the modern world.

Credits

4 sh

Course Types

Expression, Literature, Advanced Studies

Course Outcomes

1. 1. Read in-depth the plays of Tom Stoppard, Harold Pinter, and Caryl Churchill, as well as a number of essays by major structuralist/poststructuralist/postmodernist theorists/critics.
2. 2. Consider how the interpretation of drama differs from the interpretation of other genres of writing.
3. 3. Interpret texts both in discussion and in writing through close reading, intertextual analysis, historical contextualization, and through applied theory.
4. 4. Consider the relationship between theories and texts by adopting diverse theoretical lenses to examine the works of these 20th century British dramatists.
5. 5. Investigate ideas of “structuralism,” “poststructuralism,” and “postmodernity” as potentially useful ways to approach contemporary culture.
6. 6. Draw continuities across the plays of these three writers and the theories that have been labeled “structuralist,” “poststructuralist,” and/or “postmodern.”