Adeline Virginia Woolf (1882 - 1941) was an English novelist and essayist, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century.
Her most famous works include the novels Mrs Dalloway (1925), To the Lighthouse (1927) and Orlando (1928), and the book-length essay A Room of One's Own (1929), with its famous dictum, "a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction."
Woolf, says Wikipedia, is considered one of the greatest innovators in the English language. In her works she experimented with stream-of-consciousness writing. She addressed the underlying psychological as well as emotional motives of characters. Woolf's reputation declined sharply after World War II, but her eminence was re-established with the surge of Feminist criticism in the 1970s.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
The freedom of contemporary drama: anything goes as long as you can find funding
For generations both the stage and movies avoided the heavier issues of life. Incest, pedophilia, pre-marital sex, abortion, copulation, miscegnation, ribald language, nudity and consumption of narcotics were taboo on stage and screen.
In the 1960's audiences in Europe and the US found themselves facing drama that brazenly brought the seamy side of life to the stage. Yet "Glengarry Glen Ross" would have been an unthinkable presentation in 1965.
European playwrights pioneered the Theater of the Absurd style in the late 1950's. Playwrights said that human existence has no meaning or purpose and therefore all communication breaks down. Logical construction and argument gave way to irrational and illogical speech and to its ultimate conclusion, silence.[1]
Radical plays which were examples of this were "The Bald Soprano" and "Rhinoceros" by Eugene Ionesco. Samuel Beckett published "Waiting for Godot" in 1953.
"Zoo Story," by Edward Albee, came out in 1959. In 1962 Albee's masterwork, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" hit the European stage.
Albee frankly addressed infidelity, alcoholism, divorce and adult language in "Woolf."
It is a horrific story and a break-through production.
But there is a limit on the adventurous playwright who can address any topic under the sun: who will pay the fees and salaries? Sometimes producers find public grant money for the arts, often they appeal to private donors. One way or another, the budget is the building block of the stage.
In the 1960's audiences in Europe and the US found themselves facing drama that brazenly brought the seamy side of life to the stage. Yet "Glengarry Glen Ross" would have been an unthinkable presentation in 1965.
European playwrights pioneered the Theater of the Absurd style in the late 1950's. Playwrights said that human existence has no meaning or purpose and therefore all communication breaks down. Logical construction and argument gave way to irrational and illogical speech and to its ultimate conclusion, silence.[1]
Radical plays which were examples of this were "The Bald Soprano" and "Rhinoceros" by Eugene Ionesco. Samuel Beckett published "Waiting for Godot" in 1953.
"Zoo Story," by Edward Albee, came out in 1959. In 1962 Albee's masterwork, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" hit the European stage.
Albee frankly addressed infidelity, alcoholism, divorce and adult language in "Woolf."
It is a horrific story and a break-through production.
But there is a limit on the adventurous playwright who can address any topic under the sun: who will pay the fees and salaries? Sometimes producers find public grant money for the arts, often they appeal to private donors. One way or another, the budget is the building block of the stage.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Mamet's 'Glengarry:' The art of persuasion and ethics
Eschew obfuscation - the ironic message of this epigram is "do not attempt to confuse."
Offer an example of ethical behavior and the ethical grey area between ethical and non-ethical behavior: would it be copying someone else's homework? For many students the answer is "That is definitely a grey area."
See quotes from Glengarry at imdb.com.
See satirical videos under Glengarry Parody at youtube.com.
Offer an example of ethical behavior and the ethical grey area between ethical and non-ethical behavior: would it be copying someone else's homework? For many students the answer is "That is definitely a grey area."
See quotes from Glengarry at imdb.com.
See satirical videos under Glengarry Parody at youtube.com.
David Mamet: playwright, screenwriter, film director
David Alan Mamet (born November 30, 1947) is an American author, essayist, playwright, screenwriter and film director,says Wikipedia.
His works are known for their clever, terse, sometimes vulgar dialogue and arcane stylized phrasing, as well as for his exploration of masculinity.
He received Tony Award nominations for Glengarry Glen Ross (1984) and Speed-the-Plow (1988). As a screenwriter, he received Oscar nominations for The Verdict (1982) and Wag the Dog (1997). Also notable work by Mamet: Sexual Perversity in Chicago, and American Buffalo.[3] He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for Glengarry Glen Ross. His play Oleanna, about a professor vs a feminst student, was made into a movie.
Mamet's style of writing dialogue, marked by a cynical, street-smart edge, precisely crafted for effect, is so distinctive that it came to be called Mamet speak.[8] He often uses italics and quotation marks to highlight particular words and to draw attention to his characters' frequent manipulation and deceitful use of language. His characters frequently interrupt one another, their sentences trail off unfinished, and their dialogue overlaps. Mamet himself has criticized his (and other writers') tendency to write "pretty" at the expense of sound, logical plots.[9]
One classic instance of Mamet's dialogue style can be found in Glengarry Glen Ross, in which two down-on-their-luck real estate salesmen are considering breaking into their employer's office to steal a list of good sales leads. George Aaronow and Dave Moss finagle the meaning of "talk" and "speak," steeped in fraudulent connivance of the language and meaning:
Moss No. What do you mean? Have I talked to him about this [Pause]
Aaronow Yes. I mean are you actually talking about this, or are we just...
Moss No, we're just...
Aaronow We're just "talking" about it.
Moss We're just speaking about it. [Pause] As an idea.
Aaronow As an idea.
Moss Yes.
Aaronow We're not actually talking about it.
Moss No.
Aaronow Talking about it as a...
Moss No.
Aaronow As a robbery.
Moss As a "robbery"? No.
Mamet dedicated Glengarry Glen Ross to Harold Pinter, who was instrumental in its being first staged at the Royal National Theatre, in 1983, and whom Mamet has acknowledged as an influence on its success, and on his other work.[11]
His works are known for their clever, terse, sometimes vulgar dialogue and arcane stylized phrasing, as well as for his exploration of masculinity.
He received Tony Award nominations for Glengarry Glen Ross (1984) and Speed-the-Plow (1988). As a screenwriter, he received Oscar nominations for The Verdict (1982) and Wag the Dog (1997). Also notable work by Mamet: Sexual Perversity in Chicago, and American Buffalo.[3] He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for Glengarry Glen Ross. His play Oleanna, about a professor vs a feminst student, was made into a movie.
Mamet's style of writing dialogue, marked by a cynical, street-smart edge, precisely crafted for effect, is so distinctive that it came to be called Mamet speak.[8] He often uses italics and quotation marks to highlight particular words and to draw attention to his characters' frequent manipulation and deceitful use of language. His characters frequently interrupt one another, their sentences trail off unfinished, and their dialogue overlaps. Mamet himself has criticized his (and other writers') tendency to write "pretty" at the expense of sound, logical plots.[9]
One classic instance of Mamet's dialogue style can be found in Glengarry Glen Ross, in which two down-on-their-luck real estate salesmen are considering breaking into their employer's office to steal a list of good sales leads. George Aaronow and Dave Moss finagle the meaning of "talk" and "speak," steeped in fraudulent connivance of the language and meaning:
Moss No. What do you mean? Have I talked to him about this [Pause]
Aaronow Yes. I mean are you actually talking about this, or are we just...
Moss No, we're just...
Aaronow We're just "talking" about it.
Moss We're just speaking about it. [Pause] As an idea.
Aaronow As an idea.
Moss Yes.
Aaronow We're not actually talking about it.
Moss No.
Aaronow Talking about it as a...
Moss No.
Aaronow As a robbery.
Moss As a "robbery"? No.
Mamet dedicated Glengarry Glen Ross to Harold Pinter, who was instrumental in its being first staged at the Royal National Theatre, in 1983, and whom Mamet has acknowledged as an influence on its success, and on his other work.[11]
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Presentations on notable playwrights
Choose 2.
Compare them.
7 image slides, including a map.
Factoids.
Documentation.
14 pts.
Aristophanes, (ca. 446 BC-385 BC) (Greece)
Sophocles, (497/6 BC – winter 406/5 BC) (Greece)
Euripides (ca. 485 BC-ca. 406 BC) (Greece)
William Shakespeare, (1564–1616)
Gustave Flaubert
Maxim Gorky (1868–1936) (Russia)
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) (Germany)
Victor Hugo (France)
Molière, (1622–1673)
Edward Albee (born 1928) (United States)
Samuel Beckett (1906–1989) (Ireland)
Ingmar Bergman (1918–2007) (Sweden)
L. Frank Baum (1856–1919) (United States)
Albert Camus (1913–1960) (France)
Karel Čapek (1890–1938) (Czech Rep.)
Noël Coward (1899–1973) (England)
Paddy Chayefsky (1923–1981) (United States)
Agatha Christie (1890–1976) (England)
Oscar Wilde (Ireland)
Christopher Durang
T. S. Eliot (1888–1965) (United States/England)
Bruce Jay Friedman (born 1930) (United States)
Günter Grass (born 1927) (Germany)
Lorraine Hansberry (1930–1965)
Langston Hughes (United States)
Henrik Ibsen (Norway)
Alfred Jarry (France)
James Joyce (Ireland)
Allan Stewart Konigsberg (United States)
Neil LaBute
Tony Kushner
David Mamet, (born 1947) (United States)
Arthur Miller (American. 1915–2005)
Sean O'Casey (1880–1964) (Ireland)
Eugene O'Neill (1888–1953)
Harold Pinter (1930–2008) (England)
Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936) (Italy)
Jean-Paul Sartre
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
Neil SimonGeorge Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
Sam Shepard (born 1943)
Tom Stoppard
August Strindberg
Thornton Wilder (United States)
Tennessee Williams (United States)
Compare them.
7 image slides, including a map.
Factoids.
Documentation.
14 pts.
Aristophanes, (ca. 446 BC-385 BC) (Greece)
Sophocles, (497/6 BC – winter 406/5 BC) (Greece)
Euripides (ca. 485 BC-ca. 406 BC) (Greece)
William Shakespeare, (1564–1616)
Gustave Flaubert
Maxim Gorky (1868–1936) (Russia)
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) (Germany)
Victor Hugo (France)
Molière, (1622–1673)
Edward Albee (born 1928) (United States)
Samuel Beckett (1906–1989) (Ireland)
Ingmar Bergman (1918–2007) (Sweden)
L. Frank Baum (1856–1919) (United States)
Albert Camus (1913–1960) (France)
Karel Čapek (1890–1938) (Czech Rep.)
Noël Coward (1899–1973) (England)
Paddy Chayefsky (1923–1981) (United States)
Agatha Christie (1890–1976) (England)
Oscar Wilde (Ireland)
Christopher Durang
T. S. Eliot (1888–1965) (United States/England)
Bruce Jay Friedman (born 1930) (United States)
Günter Grass (born 1927) (Germany)
Lorraine Hansberry (1930–1965)
Langston Hughes (United States)
Henrik Ibsen (Norway)
Alfred Jarry (France)
James Joyce (Ireland)
Allan Stewart Konigsberg (United States)
Neil LaBute
Tony Kushner
David Mamet, (born 1947) (United States)
Arthur Miller (American. 1915–2005)
Sean O'Casey (1880–1964) (Ireland)
Eugene O'Neill (1888–1953)
Harold Pinter (1930–2008) (England)
Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936) (Italy)
Jean-Paul Sartre
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
Neil SimonGeorge Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
Sam Shepard (born 1943)
Tom Stoppard
August Strindberg
Thornton Wilder (United States)
Tennessee Williams (United States)
Carnival quiz 2
Carnival quiz
1. North Louisiana does not intimately relate to Carnival because the dominant religious culture is a) Protestant b) Baptist c) Catholic d) Methodist.
2. Mardi Gras follows a season in which many are required to practice fasting abstinence. T / F
3. Which of these cultures first dominated the Mediterranean? a) Roman
b) Persian c) Greek d) Egyptian.
4. "Crescent City style was inspired by black residents:" in 1857, when The Krewe of Comus was established, most of the black residents of New Orleans had the social status of a) slaves b) free men of color c) blue-collar workers .
5. . When did jazz music begin? a) 1830's b) 1890's c) 1920's d) 1940's.
6. In what kinds of bands did jazz begin? a) Woodwind b) string c) brass.
7. Explain the meaning of the French term "boeuf gras." a) "Throw me something, mister" b) "Let the good times roll" c) "get out of the way or we'll kill you,"
d) the "fatted beef cow."
8. What are the flambeaux? a) trumpets b) torches c) dancers d) throws.
9. A famous Louisianian signed his letters, “Red beans and ricely yours." a) King Oliver b) Jellyroll Morton c) Louis Armstrong d) Buddy Bolden.
10. Cajun ancestors lived in coastal Canada for some __ years. a) 100
b) 200 c) 300 d) 400.
11. A holiday from school, doubloons, the colors purple, green and gold:
a) Rex b) Comus c) Zulu d) Bacchus.
12. Karnaval is a huge deal in Belgium and Germany. T / F .
1. North Louisiana does not intimately relate to Carnival because the dominant religious culture is a) Protestant b) Baptist c) Catholic d) Methodist.
2. Mardi Gras follows a season in which many are required to practice fasting abstinence. T / F
3. Which of these cultures first dominated the Mediterranean? a) Roman
b) Persian c) Greek d) Egyptian.
4. "Crescent City style was inspired by black residents:" in 1857, when The Krewe of Comus was established, most of the black residents of New Orleans had the social status of a) slaves b) free men of color c) blue-collar workers .
5. . When did jazz music begin? a) 1830's b) 1890's c) 1920's d) 1940's.
6. In what kinds of bands did jazz begin? a) Woodwind b) string c) brass.
7. Explain the meaning of the French term "boeuf gras." a) "Throw me something, mister" b) "Let the good times roll" c) "get out of the way or we'll kill you,"
d) the "fatted beef cow."
8. What are the flambeaux? a) trumpets b) torches c) dancers d) throws.
9. A famous Louisianian signed his letters, “Red beans and ricely yours." a) King Oliver b) Jellyroll Morton c) Louis Armstrong d) Buddy Bolden.
10. Cajun ancestors lived in coastal Canada for some __ years. a) 100
b) 200 c) 300 d) 400.
11. A holiday from school, doubloons, the colors purple, green and gold:
a) Rex b) Comus c) Zulu d) Bacchus.
12. Karnaval is a huge deal in Belgium and Germany. T / F .
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