232105 The Meeting of Classes in British Drama and Theatre (S) (SoSe 2011)

The classes are relevant in drama and theatre, both on the stage and in front of it. The fictional worlds presented in theatre plays are structured according to basic social categories, including gender, age, and, importantly, class and social position. At the same time, the theatre itself is a social space in which class distinctions are at work, and as a cultural institution, it contributes to social distinction. Plays are written for the benefit of certain groups in society, but the dramatis personae on the stage is not restricted to mirroring the social structure of the audience. Stereotypes and differentiated representations of classes can be found on the stage, and the structure and relevance of class in a particular society may be commented on, ridiculed, questioned, supported, etc. in the theatre.

Based on theoretical concepts provided by the cultural sociology of Pierre Bourdieu, we will study the ways in which the classes have been depicted in British drama, and in which the theatre has played a role in social differentiation. We will analyse texts and the social history of theatre from three periods: the Elizabethan Period, the Restoration and 18th century, and the post WWII-period. We will discuss the following texts and their contexts:

William Shakespeare: As You Like It
Oliver Goldsmith: She Stoops to Conquer
J.B. Priestly: An Inspector Calls
John Arden: Live Like Pigs

Bibliography

A reader containing the theoretical texts and the plays will be made available towards the beginning of the semester.