Selection of Works from Western Modern Drama (I)

Author: Wang Yiqun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: The Western Modern Drama Anthology (Volume 1) collects works of Naturalism and Realism from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. This volume translates the Realist dramas from the mid-19th century, represented by the Norwegian playwright Ibsen, which later spread widely in Europe and America. The Realist dramas mentioned here actually include what we commonly refer to as Realist and Naturalist dramas. As different theatrical schools, Realism and Naturalism have distinctions, which we will discuss in the following text. However, we tend to emphasize their commonalities. For instance, the belief that the essence of art is imitation of nature, the advocacy of objectively representing the external world, the promotion of truthful reflection of life and human existence, the opposition to the strong subjectivity of Romantic dramas and their fantastical and convoluted plots, as well as the rejection of traditional mythological themes in favor of material drawn from ordinary daily life—all these are shared characteristics. For this reason; we classify Realism and Naturalism together under the umbrella of Realism. The purpose of doing so is also to avoid the tedious and entangled disputes over many cumbersome and confusing terminology debates.