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Jean-Paul Sarte
Jean-Paul Sarte wrote plays that set people's ideas into dramatic action. He was convinced that people should examine their situations and make decisions that permit them to act meaningfully in accordance with their own values. Among Sartre's plays, the best known are The Flies (1943) and No Exit (1944) Brockett, Oscar G... The Essential Theatre (p.191). Cengage Learning. -
Albert Camus
Albert Camus introduced and developed the twin philosophical ideas, the concept of the Absurd and the notion of the Revolt that made him famous. Among Camu's plays, the best known are Caligula (written in 1938, produced in 1945) and The Just Assassins (1949). Although his ideas broke from tradition, his plays expressed them using traditional dramatic structure. -
The Glass Menagerie
The Glass Menagerie, a one-act drama written by Tennessee Williams, was produced in 1944 and published in 1945. This play launched Williams's career and is considered to be his finest drama. The Glass Menagerie symbolizes the physical and emotional fragility of Laura Winfield. The play has strong autobiographical elements featuring characters based on the author. -
A Streetcar Named Desire
A Streetcar Named Desire, written by Tennessee Williams, opened on Broadway on December 3, 1947. This play dramatizes the life of Blanche Dubois, a Southern belle, who leaves her aristocratic background seeking refuge with her sister. The play's title refers not only to a real Streetcar line in New Orleans but also symbolically to the power of desire as a driving force behind the character's actions. -
All My Sons
All My Sons, written by Arthur Miller is intended to show that a man's public acts and responsibilities are inseparable from his private ones. Miller started writing the play in 1945, inspired by World War II and the true-life story of a woman who alerted authorities to her father's wartime wrongdoing. -
Death of a Salesman
Death of a Salesman, written by Arthur Miller in 1948 and produced in 1949. The play addresses loss of identity and a man's inability to accept change. It is a montage of memories, dreams, confrontations, and arguments, all of which make up the last 24 hours of Willy Loman's life. Miller won a Politzer Prize for his work. -
The Firebugs
The Firebugs is a dark comedy written by Max Frisch in 1953. This play was also known as The Fire Raisers. It was written in an allegory about fascism in Europe in World War II. The main character, Gotlieb Bierdman, discovers that the two men who enter their home, disguised as salesmen, are the arsonist who has already burned down much of the town. He and his wife do everything they can to postpone the inevitable holocaust. -
The Crucible
The Crucible, a four-act play by Arthur Miller, performed and published in 1953. This play takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692. It is an examination of contemporary events in American politics during the era of fear and desire for conformity. The play is a partially fictionalized telling of the Salem witch trials. -
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a three-act play written by Tennessee Williams. The play explores the emotional lies governing relationships in the family of a wealthy Southern planter of humble origins. This play is full of greed, deceit, sexual desire, and homophobia. -
The Visit
The Visit is a drama in three acts written by Fredrich Durrenmatt, performed and published in German in 1956. The Visit presents Durrenmatts criticisms in thinly veiled terms, representing a community that abandoned its moral convictions in the interest of material and political gain. In this morality play about vengeance and greed, the prospect of wealth is enough to corrupt the townspeople into agreeing to murder.