Here is the synopsis of our sample research paper on Documentary Theater & Truth. Have the paper e-mailed to you 24/7/365.
Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 5 page research paper that examines documentary theatre and how it fits with Plato's definition of truth in storytelling. The writer addresses whether or not a documentary, of any stripe, as a "story," can present the truth in an unbiased, objective manner. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khdocthe.rtf
Buy This Term Paper »
Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
possible. Particularly since the purpose of documentary theater is often to promote a cause or publicize a societal wrong, the question arises as to whether or not a documentary, of
any stripe, as a "story," can present the truth in an unbiased, objective manner. In order to form a frame of reference for this examination, it is helpful to examine
some examples of documentary theater. Documentary theater has been around for quite some time. Perry Bruskin was part of the Workers Laboratory Theatre during the Depression era. Bruskin and
others produced anti-capitalist documentary-plays that portrayed, in various settings, the hardships placed on workers by capitalism (Shteir 32). Bruskin is one of the few surviving members of this theatre troupe.
During the Depression, Bruskin and his troupe performed short skits at factory gates, street corners, wharves, and rallies. One skit, "The Big Fight, " dramatized a New York election campaign
as a rigged boxing match between Republicans and Democrats (Shteir 32). Similarly, "Scottsboro" is a skit that defended young African Americans unjustly accused of raping two white women (Shteir 32).
"Tempo! Tempo!" contrasted Americans working conditions against a supposed more relaxed pace of work for workers in the former Soviet Union. After each skit, there would be a
call to action. Bruskin explains that "The essence of the period is that we were galvanized to do something." (32). While documentary theater today is less overt about making
a "call to action," the political message is nevertheless still there. For example, in the late 1980s, strikes and boycotts were the subjects of political-theater companies, such as Junction Avenue,
in South Africa (Anonymous 54).Their purpose was to aid trade-union members in creating documentary plays to support their labor struggle (Anonymous 54). More recently, "The Laramie Project" played at
...