Module Identifier DR30420  
Module Title MODERN EUROPEAN DRAMA  
Academic Year 2003/2004  
Co-ordinator Ms Karoline Gritzner  
Semester Semester 2 (Taught over 2 semesters)  
Pre-Requisite Successful completion of Part 1 Drama.  
Course delivery Lecture   20 Hours  
  Seminars / Tutorials   10 Hours  
Assessment
Assessment TypeAssessment Length/DetailsProportion
Semester Assessment Assignment 1 - 1500 words/ Assignment 2 - 1500 words - 30%. Practical Presentation - 20%. Timed Essay - 50 %. For information on due dates for submission of assessed work, please refer to the departmental web pages at http://www.aber.ac.uk/tfts/duedates.shtml100%

Learning outcomes

Typically, upon completion of this module a student will be able:

To demonstrate knowledge of the relation between their reading and viewing of theatre texts of the period covered in the module (and beyond) to broader historical developments on performance modes (Realism, Expressionism, Epic Theatre, etc.).
To participate knowledgeably in debates (written and oral) about the relationship between theatrical theory and practice.
To critically read dramatic texts as indicators of complex theatrical events.


Brief description

Compulsory for Single Honours Drama Students. Optional for Joint Honours Drama Students

Aims

To introduce students to significant developments in theatrical theory and practice in Europe from the onset of realism to the 1960s.
To develop appropriate methods of analysing specific texts, chosen because they manifest significant differences in theatrical method.
To examine how drama serves as a means of mediating the discourse of a given time.

Content

Performance modes: Realism, Expressionism, Surrealism, Political and Epic Theatre, The Theatre of Cruelty; The Theatre of the Absurd.
Illustrative dramatists: Gogol, Ibsen, Strindberg, Chekhov, Pirandello, Brecht ,Genet and Weiss.

Reading Lists

Books
** Essential Reading
GENET The Balcony
WEISS Marat/Sade
GOGOL The Government Inspector
STRINDBERG A Dream Play
PIRANDELLO Six Characters in Search of an Author
CHEKHOV Uncle Vanya
IBSEN Hedda Gabler
BRECHT Galileo
** Recommended Background
Dukore, B.F. (1974) Drama Theory and Criticism
Elam, K (1983) The Semiotics of Theatre and Drama
Pavis, P (1982) Languages of the Stage
Pfister (1988) The Theory and Analysis of Drama
Szondi, P (1965) The Theory of Modern Drama (trans. M. Hayes 1987)

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 6