CoNTeNt Le@Rn1Ng

I have learnt that through the lectures and tutorials, I now am able to discover the messages and context of plays and dramas. Before this, reading or watching a play was never of my interest; in fact I would close the text or turn off any programs on plays if I see one.

It all started with the play Oedipus Rex that we read for the course. I found that the play created by Sophocles has a deep allegories and agendas although we merely imagine the play when we first read it. Well, I did search for Wikipedia information on Oedipus before I read the play itself, but when I have read the play all the way through, I find that the play has more variety and also mysterious compared to the synopsis from Wikipedia. Therefore, now I will try to read the actual plays before I searched the translated versions; in case the play is totally cracking my head. The most important aspect from the lectures and tutorials is the discussion of the storyline of the drama. This is because when the lecturer (Dr. Edwin) and tutor (Mr. Harold Poong) review the dramas, we learn that the meaning of the drama itself does not entirely lie on what we read on the surface; there are ironies, hidden agendas and mysteries propelled in every sentence. The discussion is very useful in our studies on dramas; as the interpretations are subjective, we can voice out our own opinions and interpretations because everyone thinks differently towards the play being studied. All these are related and helpful as we are major in English and minor in Literature, therefore, we could be the only ones having the widest thinking sphere in these field ;p Although we have learnt much of conventional term of interpreting and use the dramas from our lecturer and tutor, that will not just restrict how I would look at play with the schemata and skills I have. I could come with any new alternatives, new interpretations undiscovered before perhaps? Or new ways to teach students how to look at dramas and plays from a different perspective and easier way to understand and decipher the texts.

From what and how I have studied drama in this course, I am confident that I would be able to adopt and adapt the skills that I have learnt for future lessons if I were a teacher. I would adapt Dr. Edwin’s skills of interpreting dramas. He does not just depend on delivering surface messages lay on the paper; he also connects the elements of the drama with other aspects, like relations to religion, history, society and myths. The way he relates them mesmerizes me, as I thought reading dramas is just about how to act them. Indeed, there are more than meets the eye with dramas and plays. The more we relate and discover, the more wonders and awesomeness we could find how unique the writers have created their masterpieces. I would adapt these skills while teaching literature lessons, even though the text might be simple, but I would try my best to look on the text by any alternative way, widening the horizon of reading.

Anyway, I still have some questions in my head even after the lectures and tutorials: would I be able to study and interpret dramas and plays to the full extent? (coz y’know, Shakespeare’s masterpieces are totally head-cracking, I prefer those of Greeks arts and contemporary issues like Kee Thuan Chye’s. oh, by the way, I also enjoyed reading The Big Purge by Kee Thuan Chye) Hahaha… or lol… well, that does not matter. I am sure that I would be able to solve these problems when I really get to it; as the sayings say “practice makes perfect”. I believe I can learn pace by pace, as knowledge will always expand. Yes, I would need input from anyone, I am not perfect, but I can improve myself. There will always someone better where I can learn from. Maybe when I further my studies, or learn from other colleagues at school, or the fastest source, the Internet. Why not?