The treatment of Women in the History of the United States as portrayed American Drama
Jennifer CHUNG Hiu Kei 2005654208 ENGL3032 Advanced Topics in English Studies Title: The treatment of Women in the History of the United States as portrayed American Drama Due Date: 26 May 2008 Professor: Otto Heim Contents . Introduction and Background Page 30 2. Role of Women in American Society Page 13 3. Assimilating as a Woman Page 33 4. Conclusion Page 42 5. Bibliography Page 43 Chapter 1: Introduction and Background Drama is one of the quintessential attributes of English literature and to a certain extent, perhaps one of the more powerful categories as drama has the advantage of extra visuals to connect with the viewers than poetry or novels. With the influential element of props and actions performed with dialogue in scenes and acts, the ending segment of the texts often create a much more personal response among viewers in the form of 'catharsis'. Defined by Aristotle in Poetics at around 350 B.C, he structured tragic plays into four stages: hamartia, hubris, anagnorisis, and lastly catharsis. The first three stages illustrate the tragic hero, who is often the protagonist in the plays, with a flawed personality of some sort which is responsible for their downfall from a high status in their society. Catharsis on the other hand has more to do with the purging of emotions which cause the viewer to experience two particular feelings, pity
To what extent, and in what ways, would you describe any TWO or THREE of the following as feminist plays: Overtones, Trifles, A Man's World, Machinal?
To what extent, and in what ways, would you describe any TWO or THREE of the following as feminist plays: Overtones, Trifles, A Man's World, Machinal? Throughout the early and mid 20th century, Feminism played an important factor in the readings of many literary works, mainly those written by leading women writers. The female cannon of Modern American Drama contributes to those feminist readings with leading authors such as Sophie Treadwell, Susan Glaspell and Alice Gerstenberg. Their literary work such as, 'Trifles', 'Machinal' and 'Overtones', are just three plays that express feminist ideologies; all of which feature female protagonists or female characters that "struggle for autonomy...in a male dominated society."1 The form of Expressionism and the use of Language, stage directions and names are all approached in a feminist way to go to the extent of providing awareness to the troubles of women in their society. Sophie Treadwell's 'Machinal' contains a central reading of feminism. Critics of her literary work often claim that her "Partisanship of Feminism" marks the majority of her works."² Within the play this "Partisanship" or devotion to feminism is clearly seen through the female protagonist Helen, otherwise known as 'Young Woman', "an ordinary young woman, any woman,"³ and the other women within 'Machinal'. Even just through this choice of character name, 'The
Dandyism and Moralism in Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband
Dandyism and Moralism in Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband Oscar Wilde, An Ideal Husband Oscar Wilde wrote An Ideal Husband in 1895, during the decade known as the "Yellow" or "Naughty Nineties", a movement with its roots in dandyism and decadence, the twilight years of England's Victorian era, reflecting decay and scandal . Some biographers suggest that Wilde might have been inspired by a number of events which occurred in his private life, to write this play , as it is the case for the dandified character of Lord Goring, which one could say is the double of Wilde himself, and who will maybe incarnate the figure of the ideal husband. As the stage notes from Act III indicate, Lord Goring is in "immediate relation" to modern life, making and mastering it. An Ideal Husband emphasizes Lord Goring's modernity by opposing him to his father, Lord Caversham, who is still living the old fashion way, in a number of dialogues, which appear to be comic, when we notice the radical opposition of thinking of the two characters. The meeting of the two produces a clash between the old fashioned and the modern thinking. This is seen in the first part of the third act, in which there is a conversation between Lord Gorging and his father, who came to speak about the importance of getting married, and the fact he can not go one living only for pleasure. LORD CAVERSHAM: […] Want to have a
Inspector Calls
How Does J.B Priestley Present Arthur Birling in Act One and How Does This Reveal Priestley's Social Concerns? The play 'An Inspector Calls' By J.B Priestley is a drama written in the year 1945 but set in the year 1912 towards the end of the Edwardian era. The play is set in the house of rich, arrogant Capitalist called Birling. In the play the Birling family are celebrating an engagement when an Inspector enters, the Inspector is a Socialist and is the instant antithesis to Birling, the Inspector questions the family about their involvement with a young girl who has committed suicide and they discover they all played apart in her death. In this essay I aim to explore the first act of the play and comment on the different dramatic strategies used and the literary context. I also aim to understand the social and historical meaning behind the play and the reasons why I think Priestley wrote the play. I will also explore the character Birling and look at the way he talks to other people and his feeling towards the lower classes and Socialists. I believe that several things inspired Priestley to write this play one of them being Priestley's own upbringing. Priestley was born in Bradford in 1894, his mother was a mill worker and his father was a school teacher; both of his parents were Socialists and believed in equality and that social classes should not exist. Priestley
Langston Hughess play Mulatto: A Tragedy of the Deep South, opens on Colonel Thomas Norwood's Georgia plantation.
Langston Hughes's play Mulatto: A Tragedy of the Deep South, opens on Colonel Thomas Norwood's Georgia plantation. We learn his wife has died, and Norwood lives on the plantation with Cora, his black housewife, and their mulatto children. Several of their children are light skinned enough to pass as white. In fact, his oldest girls are going to school to learn typing although Norwood thinks they are learning cooking and sewing. They are secretly preparing for more pleasant and lucrative lives as educated light-skinned negroes who can pass as white than intending to admit their entire heritage. However, Robert, one of Norwood's mulatto sons, begins thinking of himself as "Mr. Norwood" and more important than he should during this time period. He is causing problems at the post office and calling himself Norwood's son in public, causing problems for Norwood and for all the slaves on the plantation. In Act 2, scene 1 Robert has taken his sister Sallie to the train to go to school. Norwood has asked Cora to send Robert to him when he returns. Cora gets Robert to agree with anything Norwood says to him, which Robert says he will unless Norwood tries to beat him. When they meet, Norwood tells Robert that he will address him as an African American should. Robert says he is Norwood's son, and Norwood says Robert has no father. The two fight, and Robert strangles Norwood
An analysis of the dramatic structure of Kalidasa's "Abhinjanasakunthalam"
Dramatic structure of Abhijnanasakuntalam: An analysis Submitted by Sherrin Rajan 11/PELA/002 The Abhinjanasakunthalam is regarded as the very first Indian play to be translated into a western language. After the translation by Sir William Jones, there were about forty six translations in twelve European languages. Some English translations are “The Fatal Ring: an Indian drama” by Sir William Jones, “The Lost Ring: an Indian drama “by Sir Monier Monier Williams and “Sakuntala and other works” by Arthur W. Ryder. In the thesis by Tripti Mund , it is mentioned that the Abhinjanasakunthalam contains over two hundred verses. These verses are mostly uttered by the major characters. The language spoken by them is Sanskrit. The division of language spoken by the character is according to the social status. Vidushaka speaks Prakrit, Maharastri is spoken by high class women, children and royal servants. The other attendants of the royal palace speak Magadhi. The low class people like cowherds, robbers, gamblers speak varieties of prakrit like Abhiri, Paisaci and Avanti. ( Mund 24, 25) The themes for any Sanskrit play are usually from history or epic legend. But the dramatist mixes it up with his own fictitious inventions like Kalidasa has done it many places in his Abhinjanasakunthalam. The play commences with Nandi followed by the prologue wherein the stage manager
A Comparison between Strindbergs Miss Julie and Henrik Ibsens A Dolls House
A Comparison between Strindberg’s Miss Julie and Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House Miss Julie which was published nine years after Ibsen’ realist play A Doll’s House, is an example of naturalist movement which tried to show that heredity, environment and social conditions rather than hard work shape an individual’s fate. Strindberg considering himself a naturalist and being an opponent of Ibsen’s ideas in A Doll’s House, wrote Miss Julie with a naturalist pessimism and rejected the idea of women being independent and liberating themselves from the unfortunate situations they were in. The physical worlds of the two plays are somehow the same. In both cases the space is an interior one and the scene is a single room fully described by the author. However Ibsen has used more props on the stage in order to make it more lifelike. Time plays an important role in the two plays. As the time passes the peaceful happy mood of the beginning of the play changes to a nervous one and the protagonist approaches her doom. We can feel the same anxiety that the central characters feel from passing of the time. However, the social worlds of these two plays are different. Strindberg has portrayed the world of aristocrats and their servants where the differences between the social classes is important and referred to continuously while Ibsen has chosen people who are almost of
Japanese Americans. It is best to examine the Issei, Nesei relationship by looking at the strongest one in John Okadas No-No Boy
Damato 1 Francesca Damato WR100-ES Dr. Kordonowy 22 October 2010 Immigrants and Their Children: Is a Cultural Difference Detrimental To The Well Being of 1st Generation Americans? The hatred thrust upon the Japanese by other Americans during and immediately following World War II made it much more difficult for the Japanese to restore their pre-WWII lives. Japanese Americans were discriminated against based on their appearance alone and had to deal with a great deal of negativity from other raced Americans. However, it wasn’t just the white Americans that kept the Japanese down. In other words, the Japanese were also the root of their demise. Without looking at the effects the Japanese had on people within their own culture, it is impossible to fully understand the strength needed to begin a new, successful life postwar. Ichiro, for example, is a young Nisei with major internal conflict. His mother, a strict Issei, raised her children with as much Japanese influence as possible. This was an issue for many Japanese Americans. The young adults felt caught between their homeland (America) and their parents while their parents felt caught between their homeland (Japan) and their children. Nisei and Issei were two generations that were lost in translation; because of this, many Nisei, including Ichiro, felt lost and unable to escape from a dominant discourse (Ling 367).
Examining the "insincerity, inauthenticity and unnaturalness" of Victorian high society in Oscar Wilde's 'The Importance of Being Earnest'.
ENGL 113 : Introduction to Literature and Cultural Politics Trimester 1, 2007 Assignment 2: Question 4: It has been suggested that The Importance of Being Earnest satirises the "insincerity, inauthenticity and unnaturalness" of Victorian high society. It has also been suggested that The Importance of Being Earnest celebrates these qualities and holds them up for our delighted admiration. Which of these interpretations of Wilde's play do you find more plausible, and why? If you think both statements are true, explain why. Thursday May 10, 2007 Charlotte French ~ 300075543 Tutorial Group : James, Monday 11am Word Count : 1556 words (including quotes) In the play The Importance of Being Earnest Oscar Wilde can be seen to both satirise elements of Victorian high society, and to celebrate them and hold them up for delighted admiration. Otto Rienert supports the argument of this play as a satire: "Wilde's basic formula for satire is [his characters'] assumption of a code of behaviour that represents the reality that Victorian convention pretends to ignore" (Rienert 15). But the assumption that The Importance of Being Earnest is trying to pass on a message to its audience about Wilde's opinions of Victorian society completely goes against Wilde's self-proclaimed commitment to aesthetic doctrines. As well as reading this play as a satire or celebration, it is possible to
'The way an audience experiences and appreciates a play...is by no means governed solely by what happens on stage. The entire theatre, its audience arrangements, its other public places its physical appearance, even its location in a city, are all import
Drama Essay 'The way an audience experiences and appreciates a play...is by no means governed solely by what happens on stage. The entire theatre, its audience arrangements, its other public places its physical appearance, even its location in a city, are all important elements of the process by which an audience makes meaning of its experience'. Discuss and analyse Carlson's statement in relation to at least one of the theatre events you have studied. Marvin Carlson makes a very valid and observant assertion here that I feel is pertinent to the study of theatre as a whole and universal issue. The idea that 'the entire theatre', the physical space in which a play is performed affects the audiences understanding of the theatre event, is one which, whilst has 'remained rather narrowly focused', 'has long been generally accepted as a legitimate, indeed, essential part of the historical study of both drama and theatre.'1 In this essay then, I will discuss and analyse this idea (which should not remain 'rather narrowly focused') in conjunction with Carlson's statement, and try to expand upon the issues he raises. In doing so, I will draw upon what I have studied in this module, and how I feel the statement applies to the theatre texts and events I have encountered. Firstly, I think that to understand Carlson's belief fully, semiotics must be addresses as they cannot be