English Literature - 20th Century Drama

Code:

LLC088

Acronym:

LID_20

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	English Literature

Instance: 2021/2022 - 1S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Department of Anglo-American Studies
Course/CS Responsible:	Bachelor in Languages, Literatures and Cultures

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
LLC	27	LLC - Monodisciplinary Study Plan	1	-	6	52	162
			2
			3
		LLC - Bidisciplinar Study Plan (Two Foreign Languages)	3	-	6	52	162

Teaching language

English

Objectives

The programme will focus on the work of five playwrights who represent a variety of modes on the British stage in the relevant period, whilst also allowing for a recognition of the grounds for the global acknowledgement (literary as much as theatrical) of such a dramatic corpus. Study of the primary texts will be preceded and supported by a presentation and discussion of critical / theoretical notions on drama and the theatre, as well as by a brief overview of relevant historical contexts.

Learning outcomes and competences

To acquaint students with prevalent strands in British drama since the mid-twentieth century. 

Working method

Presencial

Program

1. Drama and the theatre: from the place of drama in the genre system to its full actualisation on stage. 2. Contemporary British drama: an overview of relevant historical and cultural frameworks. 3. John Osborne, Look Back in Anger (1956): representations of individual insurgency and historical discomfort. 4. Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot (1955): paucity of language and lack of meaning -- the avant-gardes and the human condition in the Post-war period. 5 . Harold Pinter, The Homecoming (1965): on the uses of language, chronicles of power and dissension. Peter Shaffer, fictions of memory - all for a moment of grace.
Bibliography: 1. Primary Sources: John Osborne, Look Back in Anger (London: Faber, 1978) Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot (London: Faber, 2006) Harold Pinter, The Homecoming (London: Faber, 1991), Peter Shaffer, Amadeus (London,Penguin Books, Modern Classics, 1985O), Caryl Churchill, Three More Sleepless Nights, in Churchill: Shorts (London: Nick Hern Books, 1990), and Top Girls (London, Methuen, 1984.  2. Secondary Sources* Michael Billington, State of the Nation: British Theatre since 1945 (London: Faber, 2007). Keir Elam, The Semiotics of Theatre and Drama (London: Methuen, 1980). Cristopher Innes, Modern British Drama: The Twentieth Century (Cambridge: C.U.P., 2002). Dominic Shellard, British Theatre since the War (New Haven and London: Yale U.P., 2000). * additional information will be provided in the course of the semester.

Mandatory literature

Beckett, Samuel, 1906-1989; Waiting for Godot. ISBN: 0-571-05808-6
Osborne, John; Look back in anger. ISBN: 0-571-03848-4
Pinter, Harold ; The Homecoming, London: Faber, 1991

Teaching methods and learning activities

Lectures, seminars and tutorials. Active student participation will be regarded as fundamental for an adequate fulfilment of the course's goals.

keywords

Humanities > Arts > Performing arts > Theatre studies
Humanities > Literature > European literature > Germanic literature > English literature
Humanities > Literature > Literary criticism

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation with final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Exame	70,00
Trabalho escrito	30,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

Designation	Time (hours)
Estudo autónomo	75,00
Frequência das aulas	54,00
Trabalho de investigação	33,00
Total:	162,00

Eligibility for exams

Students will have to attend a minimum 75% of classes, unless special legal dispositions apply.

Calculation formula of final grade

Essay or report - 30%; exam - 70%. In the tutorials students will be expected to deliver short oral assignments, sometimes complemented by written work. All items submitted for assessment will be graded 0-20 (in accordance with standard practice).

Examinations or Special Assignments

n/a

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

n/a

Classification improvement

Re-sitting will be allowed for the final exam as well as for written essays awarded 8 or more points.

 

 

Observations

This course will be integrally taught and assessed in English.

Re-sitting will be allowed for the final exam as well as for written essays awarded 8 or more points.