Class, Culture and Tragedy in the Plays of Jez Butterworth

Jez Butterworth is a popular and commercially successful playwright who revitalizes traditional forms of tragedy in a theatricalized working-class language, addressing present cultural crises with resonant narratives. This book explores his development from Mojo (1995) to The Ferryman (2017).

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 217 pages
Publication date: 31 December 2021
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

Jez Butterworth, a prominent and highly successful playwright in Britain during the early twenty-first century, has garnered immense popularity and commercial success. This second book dedicated to him explores the profound influence of his most acclaimed work, which stems from a revitalization of traditional forms of tragedy conveyed through a theatricalized working-class language.

Butterworth's most mature tragedies employ myth and legend as a symbolic resistance to the flat and mechanistic instrumentalism of contemporary British political and economic culture. By invoking these ancient narratives, he seeks to address current cultural crises in a language and form that have broad appeal.

Tracing the chronological development of Butterworth's work, from Mojo (1995) to The Ferryman (2017), each chapter provides in-depth critical readings of individual plays, delving into how myth and legend become significant in various ways in Butterworth's portrayal of cultural and personal crises.

Through this comprehensive analysis, the book sheds light on Butterworth's artistic brilliance and his ability to engage audiences with profound and meaningful narratives that resonate across time and cultural boundaries.

Weight: 305g
Dimension: 210 x 148 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030627133
Edition number: 1st ed. 2021