CHAPTER 2
Given Circumstances
This chapter begins the study of formalist analysis, which is the foundation for action analysis studied in the previous chapter. Unlike action analysis, which is rapid and sketchy, formalist analysis is slow and detailed. Like the first years of medical study that involve the close study of anatomy and how the body works, formalist analysis studies the form (anatomy) of plays and how plays work. Formalist analysis asks readers not to cling to any ideas of their own about the play or characters, but to allow the play to come to them and identify itself piece by piece. Readers have ideas, of course, but they are asked to set them aside and let the play speak to them. Readers should also try to forget about previous ...
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