Reading: Drama: Background of Dramatist, Setting, Plot Summary, and Themes – JSS1 Literature-in-English Lesson Note (Second Term)

Four areas help students understand a drama text: the background of the dramatist, the setting, the plot and the themes.

• Subject: Literature in English
• Class: JSS 1
• Duration: 40 minutes
• Topic: Reading: Drama, Background of Dramatist, Setting, Plot Summary and Themes

Behavioural objectives

By the end of this lesson, students should be able to:

1. Identify the dramatist and describe his or her background.
2. State the time and place setting of the drama text.
3. Summarise the plot in the correct order of events.
4. Identify and state the major themes of the play.
5. Link the dramatist’s background to the play.

Previous knowledge

• Text: students have been reading the prescribed drama text this term.
• Characters: they know the main characters.
• Scenes: they have read several scenes from the play.

Teaching aids

• Copies of the drama text
• Picture or short biography of the dramatist (if available)
• Chart showing the plot structure
• Map or pictures of the setting
• Chart listing themes with examples

Introduction (4 minutes)

The teacher asks the class these questions:

• Who wrote the play we are reading?
• Where does the story take place?
• Can anyone say briefly what the play is about?
• What lessons have you noticed so far?

The teacher then states the aim: to learn about the writer, the setting, the story and the messages of the play.

Teacher’s note: use the details of your own prescribed text in every step. The tables below show what to look for.

Step 1: Who is the dramatist and what is his or her background? (8 minutes)

A dramatist (or playwright) is a person who writes plays for performance.

The dramatist’s life helps explain why the play was written and what the writer wanted to say.

What facts should we know about the dramatist?

How does the dramatist’s background connect to the play?

• Upbringing: a village childhood may appear as a village setting in the play.
• Education: the writer’s schooling may shape the characters and the language.
• Society: the writer’s experience of change in society may appear as conflict between old and new ways.
• Purpose: the writer may want to teach, warn, criticise or entertain.

What is a worked example?

• Dramatist: Wole Soyinka is a Nigerian dramatist and the winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature.
• Play: he wrote The Lion and the Jewel.
• Use: the teacher may use this only as a model if it is not the class text.

Class discussion: How do you think the dramatist’s life influenced the story we are reading?

Step 2: What are the background and setting of the drama text? (8 minutes)

The setting of a play is the time and place in which the story happens.

What is the background of the play?

• Date written: the year the play was written and what was happening in the country then.
• Purpose: why the writer wrote it, for example to entertain, to teach or to comment on a social problem.
• Audience: the people the play was first written for, such as students or the general public.

What are the types of setting?

There are three types of setting in a play: time, place and social setting.

Why does the setting matter?

• Behaviour: it explains why characters act as they do.
• Rules: it shows the customs and laws they follow.
• Conflict: it shows which problems come from the environment.
• Normal and strange: it shows what the society accepts and what it rejects.

Class activity: students say how the play would change if it were set in a modern city.

Step 3: What is the plot summary? (10 minutes)

The plot is the sequence of events in a play from beginning to end.

A plot summary is a short retelling of those events in the order they happen.

What are the stages of a plot?

A plot has five stages: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution.

How do we write a plot summary?

1. Name the main character and what he or she wants.
2. State the problem or conflict that stops the character.
3. List the key events in the order they happen.
4. Name the climax.
5. State how the play ends.
6. Keep the summary to three or four sentences.

Sentence frame: The play tells the story of (character) who wants (goal). When (problem) happens, he or she must (action). The conflict peaks when (climax), and in the end (outcome).

What types of ending are there?

• Happy ending: the problems are solved and the characters do well.
• Sad ending: the main characters suffer loss or defeat.
• Open ending: the play stops without a clear answer.

Class activity: students work in pairs to make a timeline of the five most important events in the play.

Step 4: What are themes? (10 minutes)

A theme is the central idea or message about life or society that a writer presents in a play.

How do we state a theme?

• Central idea: it is a main idea about life or society.
• Message: it is what the writer wants the audience to think about.
• Wide meaning: it applies beyond this one story.
• Full sentence: it is best written as a complete sentence, not one word.

How do we find a theme in a play?

1. Name a topic that keeps appearing, such as honesty or power.
2. Find the characters who show it by their actions.
3. Note the dialogue that expresses it.
4. Note the event or conflict that supports it.
5. Write the message as a full sentence.
6. Give one example from the text as proof.

How can a theme be shown?

• Character: a person’s actions show the idea.
• Dialogue: spoken lines state or suggest the idea.
• Events: what happens to characters proves the idea.
• Conflict: the struggle between opposing sides shows the idea.

What are common themes in drama?

• Tradition and change: old customs meet new ways.
• Love and marriage: people choose partners and families react.
• Power and leadership: people struggle to gain or keep authority.
• Greed and pride: selfish desire leads to trouble.
• Justice and honesty: wrong actions bring consequences.
• Respect for elders: the young are expected to honour the old.

Teacher’s note: choose only the themes that appear in your prescribed text.

What are universal and cultural themes?

• Universal theme: an idea that applies to people everywhere, such as courage or family love.
• Cultural theme: an idea that belongs to the culture in the play, such as respect for ancestral customs.

How do themes connect to our lives?

1. Which theme interests you most, and why?
2. Have you seen a situation like this in real life?
3. How does this theme apply to Nigeria today?
4. How does it apply to students of your age?

Class activity: students choose one theme and act a two-minute skit showing it in school life.

Evaluation (2 minutes)

1. Who wrote the drama text we are studying?
2. When and where is the play set?
3. Summarise the plot in three or four sentences.
4. Name and explain two themes in the play.
5. How does the dramatist’s background influence the play?

Assignment

Write a one-page fact sheet on the prescribed play. It should state:

1. The dramatist’s name, birthplace and two other facts about his or her life.
2. The time and place setting.
3. A four-sentence plot summary.
4. One theme written as a full sentence, with one example from the play.