My three chosen pieces are my essay analyzing the lens metaphor created by How I Learned to Drive and Our Dad is in Atlantis, an original scene I wrote for the detective assignment, and my analysis of forwards in Sweat. I chose these pieces because I tapped into my creativity the most and best applied learned principles from class.
Essay:
Play-analysis-essay-2-1Download
Detective Assignment Script:
Detective-Assignment-SceneDownload
Sweat discussion post:
1. How does the first scene of Sweat use “forwards” to draw us in? What intrigues you in this scene; what questions or mysteries does it set up for the rest of the play to answer? How does the playwright handle exposition (levels of knowledge) to draw us in and reveal character?
To me, the dialogue seems very tense and already creates a story. Jason’s short and unrevealing answers reveal a lot about the situation between the two characters. It is up to the audience to then decipher it. Regardless, a viewer will be leaning forward to figure out the situation. Aside from Jason’s dialogue, Evan’s tactics of interrogation are interesting. He beautifully changes his notes like a musician, and the audience will recognize these as moments where they will uncover pieces of the plot. From the back-and-forth between the characters, I wonder about their history immediately, and when there is any kind of description of their actions, I try to piece together a story.
Immediately, the characters’ physical descriptions grasp the audience’s attention. Not much needs to be known about the story’s background because of this. Jason and his white supremacist tattoos immediately grab the audience’s attention. No matter what background you come from or what you identify as, a white supremacist’s tattoos will grab your attention. Because of this, Jason’s appearance is the audience’s most significant asset in making assumptions. Jason is paired with Evan, a black police officer. The racial tension has been deeply established before the characters even speak. The tone is easy to gather from there, and in my opinion, this expositional piece allows the characters to have an easier time having dialogue instead of establishing their roles.
