THET 209 Modern Drama

Modern Drama studies work written for European and American theater in the last and present century. Students discuss and appraise plays; identify basic elements which distinguish modern drama from earlier periods; evaluate performances of contemporary plays; and study what playwrights have said about the nature of drama. Students also discuss the impact of major philosophical and scientific achievements on dramatic material. This course is writing intensive.

Credits

3

Prerequisite

ENGL 121

Hours Weekly

3 hours weekly

Course Objectives

1. 1. Identify and apply critical theories and concepts related to enduring and contemporary issues
   of aesthetics and creativity by using basic literary and theatrical concepts, elements, and
   stylistic characters.
2. 2. Articulate and evaluate the dramatic script and its structure, form, and style as it relates to
   issues of aesthetics, humanism, and meaning.
3. 3. Incorporate innovation, risk-taking, and creativity into analysis and problem-solving methods,
   by exploring theatrical practices during the modern era.
   
4. 4. Develop techniques to pose and address questions for analyzing and evaluating scripts from
   diverse, modern, social, intellectual, and historical contexts in which theatre developed.
5. 5. Develop an appreciation for theatre as a collaborative and global art tradition and evaluate it
   effectively, analyzing its role in illuminating the human condition and the search for meaning.
6. 6. Identify and describe the major trends in modern European and American theatre, including
   Realism, Naturalism, Expressionism, Epic Theatre, and Theatre of the Absurd.
   
7. 7. Perform basic research and use MLA-style documentation demonstrating the standard
   conventions for writing about theatre.

Course Objectives

1. 1. Identify and apply critical theories and concepts related to enduring and contemporary issues
   of aesthetics and creativity by using basic literary and theatrical concepts, elements, and
   stylistic characters.
2. 2. Articulate and evaluate the dramatic script and its structure, form, and style as it relates to
   issues of aesthetics, humanism, and meaning.
3. 3. Incorporate innovation, risk-taking, and creativity into analysis and problem-solving methods,
   by exploring theatrical practices during the modern era.
   
4. 4. Develop techniques to pose and address questions for analyzing and evaluating scripts from
   diverse, modern, social, intellectual, and historical contexts in which theatre developed.
5. 5. Develop an appreciation for theatre as a collaborative and global art tradition and evaluate it
   effectively, analyzing its role in illuminating the human condition and the search for meaning.
6. 6. Identify and describe the major trends in modern European and American theatre, including
   Realism, Naturalism, Expressionism, Epic Theatre, and Theatre of the Absurd.
   
7. 7. Perform basic research and use MLA-style documentation demonstrating the standard
   conventions for writing about theatre.