The Evolution of David Hare's Political Drama as Observed in Fanshen, The Secret Rapture and The Absence of War

Abstract

The aim of this dissertation is to expose how David Hare’s political drama evolves within the social and political context of three decades, the 1970s, the 1980s and the 1990s and to illustrate this evolution by examining one distinctive play by the playwright from each decade, respectively Fanshen (1975), The Secret Rapture (1988) and The Absence of War (1993). In accordance with this purpose, each play is analysed within its contemporary political context as well as in its theatrical context. Such a contextual study of the plays helps to expound the varying attitudes Hare adopts and the different roads he takes in order to deal with British contemporary politics of each decade. In addition to the contextual framework, the extensive analysis of these plays demonstrates the evolution in Hare’s political playwriting from an overt representation of a socialist revolution to discuss socialist politics as exemplified in Fanshen, through the depiction of the virtues of the Left only within the boundaries of the characters’ private lives as illustrated in The Secret Rapture to the assertion that the institutions are required though they are dominated by the principles of the Right as argued in The Absence of War. These three plays also help to instance the wide range of techniques and forms Hare employs in his political drama from epic theatre techniques to cinematographic devices, from classical dramatic forms to novel forms of his time. Besides, the scope of the plays provides the opportunity to observe Hare’s transference from fringe theatre companies to mainstream theatres. It is concluded in this dissertation that Hare’s political drama evolves, in terms of the themes and the issues he discusses, the techniques he utilises and the theatrical venues his plays are staged, throughout three decades and under the influence of contemporary politics.