Finance, Terror, and Science on Stage

This collection of essays examines the specific contribution of British plays to key social, political, and intellectual debates since the year 2000. It explores some of the most pressing and productive concerns that have dominated the public discourse in Britain within the last decade, focusing on their representation in dramatic texts. Following a general introduction to the topic addressed, each essay provides an in-depth analysis of one play, assessing its particular contribution to the debate in question. Rather than offering a comprehensive survey of dramatic forms and authors, the book aims to show how contemporary British drama has developed unique ways to voice certain issues, such as money, the role of science, poverty, religion, terrorism, and others, presenting their complexities and ambiguities with aesthetic as well as emotional appeal.

Dr. Kerstin Frank habilitiert in englischer Literaturwissenschaft an der Universität Heidelberg. Prof. Dr. Caroline Lusin ist Inhaberin des Lehrstuhls Anglistik II (Anglistische Literatur- und Kulturwissenschaft) an der Universität Mannheim.

Kerstin Frank and Caroline Lusin Introduction: Current Debates and British Drama since 2000 I. Politics Merle Tönnies Still / Again 'Political'? New Approaches to Questioning Power in Mike Bartlett's 13 (2011) Peter Paul Schnierer Immigration as Farce: Richard Bean's England People Very Nice (2009) Ariane de Waal Expel, Exploit, Exfoliate: Taking on Terror in Mark Ravenhill's Shoot / Get Treasure / Repeat (2007) II. Finance and Austerity Caroline Lusin Surviving Boom and Bust: Finance, Responsibility, and the State of the World in Nicholas Pierpan's You Can Still Make a Killing (2012) Annika Gonnermann Homo Homini Rhino Est: April De Angelis' Wild East (2005) and the Deconstruction of Responsibility in Corporate Culture Dorothee Birke The 'Underclass' Talks Back: Poverty and Homelessness in Nadia Fall's Home (2013) III. Science and Technology Christine Schwanecke Data Streams, Post-Human Lives, and (Virtual) Realities: Jules Horne's Gorgeous Avatar (2006) Maurus Roller A Critical Review of Science: Caryl Churchill's A Number (2002), Individual Identity, and Human Cloning Stefan Glomb "No View from Nowhere": Science, Freedom, and Determinism in Nick Payne's Incognito (2014) IV. Cultural Identity Lisa Schwander Re-Visiting the British Empire: Neo-Victorian Perspectives on Multicultural Britain in Tanika Gupta's The Empress (2013) Kerstin Frank Defusing Stereotypes with Comedy: Conflicting Afro-Caribbean British Identities and Urban Street Culture in Bola Agbaje's Gone Too Far! (2007) Abir Al-Laham Apple Stores and Jihadi Brides: Hassan Abdulrazzak's Love, Bombs and Apples (2016) and the Role of Religion in Contemporary British Society