AFRS 301 - Seminar in Classical Civilization: Athenian Drama on the African Stage

Semester Offered: Fall
1 unit(s)

(Same as DRAM 301 and GRST 301) Topic for 2014/15a: Athenian Drama on the African Stage. Since the independence of many African countries in the early 1960s, an increasing number of playwrights have drawn on Greek tragedy as a model for their productions. In this class we both read a selection of these works alongside their Greek intertexts and consider several larger issues at play in these adaptations. Among the questions we consider are the affinity between Greek and African theatrical forms related to their origins in ritual and the question of the particular role of the classical in a postcolonial world. Readings include such works as Soyinka’s Bacchae, Rotimi’s The Gods are Not to Blame, Osofisan’s Tegonni and Fugard’s The Island. Ms. Friedman.

Prerequisites: previous coursework in Greek and Roman Studies or another related discipline and sophomore status.

All readings are in English.

Two 75-minute periods.