Conflict In Irish Drama

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How does Irish drama show on stage the survival of Irish people in the face of conflict and disappointment?

Irish Drama shows on stage the survival of the Irish people in the face of conflict and Disappointment from feelings of, and suppressed violence and disappointment. This is expressed through a style of heightened realism in both The Beauty Queen of Leenane (BQOL) by Martin McDonagh and Dancing at Lughnasa (DAL) by Brian Friel. In BQOL, cold-hearted violence is shown by close proximities of the characters on stage emphasising facing conflict that leads directly to the characters judgements. While In DAL, tension and violent outbursts arise from characters’ conflicting in religious and ethical frameworks due to staging, thus shows how stubborn intolerance of differing beliefs leads only to dysfunctional relationships.

Through my empirical judgement of staging of both sets, I believe it is constructed in a way that makes it look living a room on stage but at the same time includes a kitchen area, with dim lighting and olden style worn-down structure making it into a gloomy and depressing atmosphere. While additionally ADL requires a garden and yard at stage right, such while allows the audience to look in on the action through the fourth wall.

From my own heuristic view DQL has eight main characters where the play is set in a single level, small house in which they live. Through observations of workshops it can be seen that this, intimate -family feel is foundational leading to concern from behaviour, which cause sudden outbursts from these sisters especially Kate.

The Irish drama starts off with simple discussion between Chris, Agnes and Maggie about there physical appearance where during workshop the broken mirror was t...

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...to use level and pacing of Mag’s fast delivery of dialogue and Maureen’s slow and deliberate delivery to denote status and the character’ power relationship emphasising Maureen brutality and the calm delivery of her lines following the torture, through her apparent indifference about mag, show her heartlessness. That the scene comes as recurring as it already has been done once before and gives a sense of the suppressed violence of the play, and of Irish theatre in general.

From an examination of Irish drama through these two plays The Beauty Queen of Leenane and Dancing at Lughnasa shows that staging of the survival of the Irish people in the face of conflict and disappointment through feelings of facing conflict and a sense of suppressed violence contribute significantly to the intended meanings of the plays and provide a basis into understand the Irish people

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