Question 36

Listen to the recording: For centuries, the stage was dominated by heightened language and larger-than-life characters, designed to inspire or terrify. But the arrival of Realism in the 19th century disrupted this tradition entirely. Playwrights started depicting the messy, unglamorous lives of the middle class, using dialogue that stuttered and paused just like actual speech. While today we accept this as standard, contemporary critics were often appalled. They believed theatre should transcend reality, offering an idealized vision of the world. Consequently, they accused these realist writers of debasing the art form by obsessing over ...