Irish Drama and the Celtic Tiger

Kursbeschreibung / -kommentar

In this course, we will survey a number of plays by contemporary playwrights that engage, often critically, with the rapid economic, social and cultural changes that have taken place in Ireland from the mid 1990s onwards. Ireland’s development from the poorhouse of Europe to one of the best performing economies within a period of less than 15 years has also had significant consequences for Irish culture and society. Aspects such as urbanisation, secularisation, immigration, multiculturalism and racism, economic and cultural globalisation, or the conflict between tradition and modernity have found quick entry into the Irish theatrical scene.
The following plays will be subject to closer inspection in this seminar:
Enda Walsh, “bedbound” (2000);
Declan Hughes, “shiver” (2003)
Martin McDonagh, “The Lonesome West” (1997)
Mark Doherty, “Trad” (2004)
Gianina Carbunariu, “kebab” (2007)
The playtexts will be made available as electronic scans in Moodle at the beginning of the course.
Depending on the number of Credit Points desired for your course of study, the following requirements apply:
2 CP: regular and active participation and participation in an expert group
5 CP: see 2 CP + short take-away exam
7 CP: see 2 CP + term paper (10-12 pages)