Page 204 - DENG402_HISTORY_OF_ENGLISH_LITERATURE

Unit 26: Twentieth Century (Poetic Drama and Problem Play)

The concept of problem plays arose in the 19th century, as part of an overall movement known as Notes
Realism. Prior to the 19th century, many people turned to art as a mode of escape which allowed
them to look outside the world they lived in. In the 19th century, however, art began to take on a
more introspective, realistic air, with a conscious focus on ongoing issues such as the social
inequalities exacerbated by the Industrial Revolution.
Although the idea of creating problem plays was popularized in the 19th century, numerous
works have been retroactively termed problem plays. Several Greek playwrights, for example,
addressed ongoing social issues like war, in the case of Lysistrata, by Aristophanes. Several works
of Shakespeare are also considered to be problem plays, like Measure for Measure, which has very
Biblical themes of justice and truth, or Troilus and Cressida, which confronts viewers with infidelity,
sexuality, and betrayal.
Many people regard Henrik Ibsen as a master of the problem play, along with authors like George
Bernard Shaw and some 19th century French playwrights, many of whom were also authors.
Problem plays can cover a wide variety of topics, ranging from women’s rights to greed and
inequality, and they can tell their stories in a wide variety of ways. For example, it is common to
have a tragic protagonist who ultimately suffers as a result of his or her refusal to confront social
problems.
Essentially, problem plays are a form of commentary on the societies they are performed in.
Because social problems are often universal across cultures and eras, many people find something
to appreciate in problem plays, whether they are contemporary or not, and such plays tend to be
popular in performance. They can also be difficult to watch, as many people find something of
themselves in the characters, and struggle with this revelation.

26.3 Summary
Like the rest of the literature of the twentieth century, drama is marked by excessive
realism-almost naturalism.
But even before this “renascence of imagination” we find some dramatists writing verse
drama in the early years of the twentieth century.
The Irish Movement contributed a lot to English drama, both prose and verse.
W. H. Auden in collaboration with Christopher Isherwood wrote some good poetic plays—
TTze Dog Beneath the Skin, The Ascent of, F6, and Frontier.
The concept of problem plays arose in the 19th century, as part of an overall movement
known as Realism.

26.4 Keywords

John Masefield (1878-1967) : John Masefield was not affected by the Middle East, but he was
influenced a great deal-especially in his later dramatic work-by
the Japanese drama which was introduced in English for the first
time in 1913.
Abercrombie’s : Abercrombie’s verse plays, like Deborah (1913), The Adder
(1913), The End of the World(1914), Staircase (1920), The Deserter
(1922), and Phoenix (1923), struck a note of departure from the
fanciful and symbolical plays of Yeats.
Problem Play : The problem play is a form of drama that emerged during the
19th century as part of the wider movement of realism in the
arts.

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