Drama and Reality: The European Theatre Since Ibsen

by Ronald Gaskell

Overview

First published in 1972, Drama and Reality is a lucid account of the forces that have shaped modern European theatre, and especially of the different conceptions of reality implied in different plays. Three major views are distinguished (the naturalistic, the subjective, the religious) and related to the choice between poetic and representational form in drama. In the second part of the book, Ronald Gaskell takes a number of plays which offer a distinctive vision—a personal modification of one of the views of the world already discussed—and shows how the form of each play expresses and defines this personal vision.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781040402436
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/01/2025
Series:	Routledge Revivals
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	184
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Ronald Gaskell (1927–2010) was born and grew up in Glasgow where he graduated from university having studied English literature. Just after WWII he served in the British Army in Germany, lecturing to soldiers soon to be demobilised who wanted to pursue further education. After teaching in Scotland, he then worked for the Commonwealth Universities Office, London. From teaching English literature at Nottingham University, he moved on to the University of Bristol, teaching mainly Shakespeare and modern poetry, retiring as a senior lecturer after 20 years.

Table of Contents

Part 1: The world of the play 1. Shakespeare and the modern theatre 2. The naturalistic vision 3. Subjective drama 4. The religious vision 5. Representational and poetic form Part 2: Vision as form 6. Ibsen: Peer Gynt 7. Ibsen: Rosmersholm 8. Chekhov: The Cherry Orchard 9. Synge: Riders to the Sea 10. Lorca: Blood Wedding 11. Pirandello: Six Characters in Search of an Author 12. Eliot: The Family Reunion 13. Brecht: The Caucasian Chalk Circle 14. Beckett: Endgame 15. Postscript