The Theatre of the Absurd

The Theatre of the Absurd is a post–World War II designation for particular plays of absurdist fiction written by a number of primarily European playwrights in the late 1950s. It is also a term for the style of theatre the plays represent. The plays focus largely on ideas of existentialism and express what happens when human existence lacks meaning or purpose and communication breaks down. The structure of the plays is typically a round shape, with the finishing point the same as the starting point. Logical construction and argument give way to irrational and illogical speech and to the ultimate conclusion—silence.

In fact, many of them were labelled as “anti-plays.” In an attempt to clarify and define this radical movement, Martin Esslin coined the term “The Theatre of the Absurd” in his 1960 book of the same name. He defined it as such, because all of the plays emphasized the absurdity of the human condition

In this SDG, we will read 10 plays by 10 playwrights and will dissect the deep meaning of each play by trying to interpret their meaning and their significance in understanding the human condition.

7 Mystery Novels by 6 British Women

Although the British detective first appeared in novels by Wilkie Collins and later, Arthur Conan Doyle, it was brilliant female writers who brought the form well into the 20th century and beyond. 

We begin with 2 of the 4 Queens of the Golden Age of Mystery fiction (between the 2 World Wars,): Dorothy Sayers, and Agatha plus a 3rd wonderful author of the period,  Josephine Tey,  They led the craze for mysteries featuring twisted, ingenious plots, murders most horrible, and cunning imaginative villains.

We will see the form they established and how the genre continued and changed as we look at a novel from 1962 by PD James, followed by 2 novels from the current century. 

The first 6 weeks, each novel is the first in a series featuring a protagonist who goes on to carry multiple subsequent novels. The last week we have a very special novel by Josephine Tey. It was first published in 1951, is 5th in her Alan Grant series, and quite unique in its purpose and structure. It comes last because it is dessert. 

We'll examine how these plots are structured, how they are similar and how different.  We will ask how the notions of gender and class play in them.  We will question why the mystery form has been so consistently popular from its beginnings and how the conventions have changed over time. We will wonder why so many woman were the best writers. Last but not least, we'll have a wonderful time visiting (or revisiting) these novels, all of them fun reads. 

What Pop Culture Tells Us About Politics

Today, we are again witnessing a generational cultural divide. Ron Brownstein, the author, shows how the voices resistant to change may win the political battle for a time, but they cannot hold back the future In Rock Me on the Water. In this SDG we will trace the confluence of movies, music, television, and politics in Los Angeles month by month through that transformative year, 1974. The early 1970s in Los Angeles was the time and the place where conservatives definitively lost the battle to control popular culture. We will discuss how 1974 represented a confrontation between a massive younger generation intent on change, and a political order rooted in the status quo. Has Brownstein made the connection between pop culture and politics? Can we who lived through the events recounted make it stronger? Or just conclude it did not exist?

Antitrust

This SDG seeks to examine the history of the regulation of big business through antitrust legislation, the lessons that may be drawn from that history and how those lessons may be applied to address the dominance of the largest tech companies in the 21st century economy The core book is Antitrust: Taking on Monopoly Power From the Gilded Age to the Digital Age by Senator Amy Klobuchar. The Minnesota Senator examines the history of monopolies in America from the Colonial period to the Gilded Age. She provides the background and policy considerations in the adoption of the Sherman and Clayton Antitrust Acts. She surveys the significant opposition to monopolies from the Grangers to the Progressives. Klobuchar details the historic struggles against monopolies in the state legislatures, the Congress and in State and Federal Courts. In Klobuchar's view big business ultimately prevailed in the struggles to contain them to the detriment of not only our economy but our democracy. The book is an impressive work of scholarship and delivers a highly informative and readable description of antitrust policy and provides the historical background to conduct a discussion of what to do about a handful of technology companies that have grown to gargantuan size fueling concern across the political spectrum.

Amazon

This SDG seeks to examine the creation, growth, and impact of Amazon both as a business entity and as a cultural and political force. The core book is Fulfillment Winning and Losing in One-Click America by Alec MacGillis. The book has been widely praised and through interviews, investigative reporting and vignettes from across the country MacGillis tells the story of how Amazon works at the ground level, from the working conditions to its market strategies, to its political operations. Amazon has not only grown its retail and wholesale operations but created other significant cloud based businesses which are all having a deep impact upon communities throughout the country. This SDG will seek to answer the question of whether Amazon is good, bad, or indifferent. Further it will look at how should communities and governments respond to Amazon and its challenges.

Time and Entropy in the Cosmos

Brian Greene, a professor of physics and mathematics at Columbia University, and the author of three previous books on cosmology, explores the physical principles that yield orderly structures, from stars and galaxies to life and consciousness. He discusses the mathematical laws governing the cosmos and the efforts of the human mind to understand the universe, and he explains how life and mind emerged from the initial chaos of the Big Bang. Though human life is short and most physical objects are impermanent, the mind seeks to find truth, meaning, and timelessness in human experience. He transitions from particles to planets, consciousness to creativity, and matter to meaning, showing how humans employ narrative, myth, religion, and art. And he traces the cosmic timeline between evolution and entropy. He poses two big questions: How do humans fit into the grand expanse of time?; and What are the physical principles that yield orderly structures within a universe destined for decay? Greene is a fine writer, and he has written this book for the general reader.

Two Masterpieces about Ordinary Germans Under Nazism

In contrast to many other German writers, Hans Fallada (1893-1947) did not leave Nazi Germany . He chose to stay because he couldn’t imagine uprooting himself from his beloved language and country. His depiction of social misfits, influenced by his personal experience (struggle with alcohol and morphine addiction) resonates with readers of the 21st century as much as it did for his contemporaries. 

We will be introduced to two of Fallada’s books: The first, A Stranger in my Own Country, is his memoir, written while he was in prison and smuggled by him out of prison. This "underground" book reveals insights into ordinary life in Hitler’s Germany.

The second book, "Every Man Dies Alone is a novel based on a Gestapo file that was given to Fallada in 1945. The file was about a working class couple who started a postcard campaign against Hitler’s war.  The novel was translated into English in 2009 and became an international bestseller.

The loss of a son drives the protagonists to begin a post card campaign. Fallada uses their rebellion as a launching pad for a panorama of life under the Nazis, from the Hitler Youth who bully his parents to a postal worker who flees to the countryside in despair when she learns of atrocities committed by her beloved son.

Both books challenge the reader to wonder how he/she would have acted under such dreadful circumstances.

Best of the Brontes - Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre

In this thirteen-week SDG, we will read two of the best-known English novels written by women, Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights and Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. We will first explore life in their remote Yorkshire parsonage in the mid-19C, on the edge of the wind-swept moors. We will examine each novel in depth, focusing on issues of female education, religion, marriage, love, race and imperialism in the Victorian period. We will then watch two of the many films based on these novels to see how directors and screen-writers have re-interpreted the Brontes' characters, plots, and social contexts. We will end by reading the most successful "prequel" to Jane Eyre, Jean Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea, which gives voice to Charlotte Bronte's "madwoman in the attic." (Amount of reading is roughly 100 pages per week.)

The Films of Stanley Kubrick

Stanley Kubrick is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and photographer, who  wrote produced and directed some of the most iconic films of our times,  including such films as: 2001 A Space Odyssey dr. Strangelove,  Full Metal,  Jacket Clockwork Orange,  and Eyes wide shut.  

His films are noted for their realism, dark humor,  set designs, evocative  music, and .unique cinematography.   

He is frequently cited as one of the greatest filmmakers in cinematic history.

Each week we will  both enjoy and discuss his films as spectators; and also use these films as a vehicle to learn more about the art of filmmaking,  and  explore what goes into making a great film 

A film creates a world and characters and a story.  Typically, we will spend the first hour of each session discussing the world the film creates and the story that happens in that world--   what happened, who were the characters,  why what they did what they did,  and so forth. 

And, in the second hour we'll  look more closely at the filmmaking process that went into creating that world and story,  and examine at the choices Kubrick, as a director,   made in doing so,  the casting,  the dialogue,  the filming location and set, the camera work,   the music,   sequencing, and finally   what was left in and left out in the final editing, 

Ideally, each of us will  view each film several times,   to carefully examine the various  elements  that go into making a great film

Most of the films can be viewed  free on the internet,  or are  available as inexpensive  DVD sets,  and on streaming services like  Amazon and Netflix.

You don’t need any experience or knowledge about filmmaking to enjoy and participate in this SDG . We’ll all learn together.

So,--If you want to have fun -- watching, examining, and discussing some of the greatest films ever made , by one of the greatest directors of all time,--and  end up with much more knowledge and appreciation of the  filmmaking process-- Please sign up to  join us Wednesday afternoons online on zoom.

See you at the movies!