DRAMA 303 A: The Structure Of Dramatic Narrative

What's the root of drama? Conflict. How do human beings create and resolve conflict? Dialogue. Does this work? Not always.

Drama 303 examines old and new plays to understand human struggle through written and performed drama. Scripts are a way of holding multiple points of view to tell a story. By walking through great stories, characters, and dilemmas, we study aesthetics, politics, and change. For example, consider an ongoing question of causality: do heroes shape their own fates, or are people products of circumstance? Which stories tell of heroes, and which stories tell of circumstance – how do we read both kinds of narrative, and how do we know the difference?

Plays will be read in units, older and newer plays that examine similar questions or engage similar stylistic techniques.

The main requirements for Drama 303 are the readings, with regular quizzes and vigorous classroom discussions. Other work includes one brief in-class presentation, two or three discussion postings, and a take-home final.