Modern English
drama refers to plays written in the second half of the 19th and first half of
the 20th century. The drama which had suffered a steep decline during the
Victorian Age was revived with great force at the beginning of the 20th century.
Three Phases of Modern Drama:
English Drama
during the Modernist Period (1845-1945) falls into three categories:
1.
Social
Drama: The
first and the earliest phase of modernism in English Drama is marked by the
plays of G.B. Shaw and John Galsworthy, which constitute the category of social
drama modeled on the plays of Ibsen.
2.
Irish
Movement: The second
phase of Modern English drama comprises the plays of Irish movement contributed
by some elites like Yeats. In this phase, the drama contained the spirit of
nationalism.
3.
Poetic
Drama: The third phase
of the Modern English Drama comprises plays of T.S. Eliot and Christopher Fry.
This phase saw the composition of poetic dramas inspired by the earlier
Elizabethan and Jacobean tradition.
Major Dramatists:
1. Henrik Ibsen
(1828-1906): The
father of realistic drama. ‘Doll’s House’, ‘Ghosts’,
‘An Enemy of the People’, and ‘The wild Duck’ and others.
2. George Bernard Shaw
(1856-1950): The
father of comedy of ideas. Widowers'
Houses, Mrs. Warren's Profession, Arms and the Man, Candida and others
3. Oscar Wilde (1856-1900): The father of the revival of comedy
of manner or the Artificial of Comedy. ‘Lady
Windermere’s Fan’, ‘A Woman of No Importance’, ‘An Ideal Husband’, ‘The
Importance of Being Earnest’.
4. John Galsworthy
(1867-1933): He
believed in the naturalistic technique both in
the novel and drama. ‘Strike’, ‘Justice’, ‘The Skin Game’, ‘The silver Box’
5. Harley Granville-Barker
(1877-1946): dealt
with domestic tragedy and problems play. ‘The Marrying
of Anne Leete’, ‘The Voysey Inheritance’, ‘Waste’, ‘The Madras House’
6. John Masefield
(1878-1967): Known
for his domestic tragedies. ‘The tragedy of Nan’
7. J. M Barrie (1860-1937): His most characteristic and original
play is the ‘Admirable Crichton’. Barrie’s last and most ambitious drama was ‘The
Boy David’ which he was given a fine picture of the candied soul of a boyhood.
8. T. S. Eliot (1888-1965): Wrote poetic plays reviving the
Elizabethan and Jacobean tradition. ‘The Murder in the Cathedral’
Features of Modern Drama:
1. Realism:
Realism is the
most significant and outstanding quality of Modern English Drama. The
dramatists of the earlier years of the 20th century were interested in
naturalism and they dealt with real problems of life in a realistic technique
to their plays.
Henrik Ibsen a
Norwegian dramatist popularized realism in Modern Drama. He dealt with the
problems of real life in a realistic manner of his play. His example was
followed by Galsworthy and G. B. Shaw in their plays.
2. Problem
Plays:
Many modern dramatists
developed a new genre of problem plays towards the end of the 19th
century. They dealt with the problems of marriage, justice, law,
administration, and conflict between capital and labor in their dramas. They
used theatre as a means for bringing about reforms in the conditions of society
prevailing in their days. Henrik Ibsen’s play ‘A Doll’s House’ is a good
example of a problem play.
3. Plays of
Ideas:
Plays of Ideas
were the types of discussion play in which the clash of ideas reveals the most
acute problems of social and personal morality. They are essentially plays of
ideas rather than action. The stage is used by dramatists to give expression to
certain ideas which they want to spread in society. G. B. Shaw was the most
important exponent of this genre.
4. Romanticism:
The earlier
dramatists of the 20th century were Realists at the core, but the passage of
time brought in a new trend of romanticism in Modern Drama. Romanticism, which
had been very dear to Elizabethan Dramatists was rivived in Modern Drama and it
was mainly due to Sir J. M. Barrie’s efforts that the new wave of Romanticism
swept over Modern Drama for some years of the 20th century. Barrie kept aloof
from realities of life and made excursions into the world of romance.
5. Poetic
Plays:
In the
beginning of the 20th century, a new trend of the revival of poetic
plays of Shakespeare and Marlowe was visible. T. S. Eliot (The Murder in the
Cathedral) was the main dramatist who gave importance to poetic plays. Stephen
Phillips, John Drink Water, Yeats, etc also wrote poetic plays.
6. History
& Biography Plays:
Another trend,
visible in the Modern English drama is in the direction of using history and
biography for dramatic technique. Shaw’s ‘Caesar and Cleopatra’ is the best
example of modern historical plays. John Drink Water’s ‘Abraham Lincoln’ and ‘Mary
Stuart’ are also other popular historical plays.
7. Irish Movement:
A new trend in
the Modern English Drama was introduced by the Irish dramatists who brought
about the Celtic Revival in the literature. In the hands of the Irish
dramatists like Yeats, J. M. Synge, T. C. Murrey etc. drama ceased to be
realistic in character and became an expression of the hopes and aspirations of
the Irish people from remote ways to their own times.
8. Impresionism:
It is a
movement that shows the effects of things and events on the mind of the artist
and the attempt of the artist to express his expressions. In the
impressionistic plays of W.B. Yeats, the main effort is in the direction of
recreating the experience of the artist and his impressions about reality
rather than in presenting reality as it is. J. M. Synge and W. B. Yeats were
the exponents of this genre.
CONCLUSION:
In short, we
may say that modern drama is characterized by realism, romanticism,
expressionism and impressionism. They deal with real social and familial issues
and they sometimes open up the revolutionary taboo topics of discussion. Henrik
Ibsen, G. B. Shaw, J. M. Synge, Yeats and Eliot must be credited to have
brought life and vitality to English drama after the decline of drama during
the 18th and 19th centuries.
No comments:
Post a Comment