Much of twentieth-century drama defies the traditional pigeon-holes
of tragedy and comedy: the heroes are not straightforwardly heroic;
the subject-matter seems at some times grimly realistic and at
others nearer to pure fantasy. Professor Styan explains and
illuminates the nature of this dark, paradoxical comedy. He reminds
us, first, that this is not a purely modern phenomenon: many great
plays of the past have similarly defied classification and have
called for an equally vacillating response from their audience. But
nonetheless this dramatic genre has had its clearest expression in
the last sixty years: we are shown in detail how its techniques
have developed from Ibsen and Chekhov to Pirandello, Brecht and
contemporary playwrights such as Ionesco, Beckett, Tennessee
Williams and Pinter. The author brings us to realize that the
playwright, by creating complex tensions in the action of the play
between the actor and the audience and within the individual
spectator, is able to explore new areas of human feeling and
response. In this second edition of The Dark Comedy Professor Styan
has brought the book up to date in relation to recent plays and
theatrical developments. He has modified some earlier judgements
and added detailed analyses of scenes from Brecht's Mother Courage
and from Beckett's Waiting for Godot. Anyone who takes an
intelligent interest in theatre-going will find profit and stimulus
in this book. It covers a wide range of subject-matter; but its
underlying theme is clear, forceful and unified.
General
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