What is Drama?
Drama is a genre that can span across many different forms of literature.
Simply, it is defined as a story full of emotions and conflicts that are conveyed through action and dialogue. Plays are considered the best form to convey a dramatic story (think Shakespeare).
No one is a stranger to drama, even in their own lives, but it’s thrilling and riveting. Drama can even give readers a form of escapism for when life grows a little dull. Though this is most prominent in fiction, drama is still seen in poetry and nonfiction.
Simply, it is defined as a story full of emotions and conflicts that are conveyed through action and dialogue. Plays are considered the best form to convey a dramatic story (think Shakespeare).
No one is a stranger to drama, even in their own lives, but it’s thrilling and riveting. Drama can even give readers a form of escapism for when life grows a little dull. Though this is most prominent in fiction, drama is still seen in poetry and nonfiction.
History of Drama
- Drama has different begins from around the world.
- In the West, drama originated from Ancient Greek plays, and songs. This continued through the Romans, medieval times, and until the late 19th century. The new preferred way to view drama would be film. Drama is still one of the most relevant genres today
- In India, the first drama would be the Sanskrit Drama. Like many other places in the world this would be shown through a stage-play. In the East, a majority of countries followed the same format (plays, songs, theater performances). Sometimes dance would be incorporated to complete the aesthetic of the performance.
Prominent Figures
- Jane Austen: English novelist - Pride and Prejudice, Emma
- Gabriel García Márquez: Colombian novelist, short-story writer, journalist and screenwriter - One Hundred Years of Solitude, Love in the Time of Cholera
- Zadie Smith: English novelist, essayist and short story writer - White Teeth, On Beauty
- John Steinbeck: American author - East of Eden, Of Mice and Men
- Anton Chekhov: Russian playwright and short-story writer - Kashtanka, Ward No. 6
Some Recommendations
- Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky - A novel about Raskolnikov, a student who plans to kill a pawnbroker for her money. Money can save him from poverty, but would it be worth all the guilt? A story of morality and what it takes to survive.
- Antigone by Sophocles - A play about a girl wanting to properly bury her brother after the king has commanded that no one does. A tale about who has the power. Is it human authority or the gods?
- A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry -A play about a lower-class African American family living on the Southside of Chicago during the 1950s. The family seeks to move into a home in a White middle-class neighborhood. This play explores the power a dream has.
- The Secret History by Donna Tartt - A novel about college students that study the classics, however, the death of a fellow classmate raises more questions and terrible secrets. This satire explores academic elitism and the dangers of power.
- The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte - The novel tells the story of Helen Huntington and her disastrous marriage to her husband along with the challenges she faces raising her young son on her own. This novel is about love and what it means being an independent woman.
Resources for Educators
| slides_for_ct-drama.pdf |