Research on Brecht

Brecht was a German playwright, born in 1898 and died in 1956. He actively wrote plays throughout the early 1900's, expressing his views on suffering and the effect of poverty and conflict through writing during the second world war. Brecht worked as a medical orderly through ww1 and as a result he saw the physical and mental pain that war created and the wounds thst were inflicted, this hugly influenced his writing. He was also exiled from Germany for a period of time in ww2 and therefore he saw most of the war from a outside perspectivec from America, allowing him to see clearly the changes and effects it had on Germany. His main work consists of 'The Caucasian Chalk Circle', 'The Threepenny Opera', and 'Mother Courage and Her Children'.Brecht was a huge fan of Charlie Chaplin and strived to achieve an acknowledge meant on how artifical theatre was within the art.

Bertolt Brecht's style of theatre was called 'Epic Theatre'. A style that aimed to emotionally distance the audience member from the content of the play its self so that they are able to make conscious and informed thoughts and decisions about the issues within the play. To avoid this emotional investment Brecht's plays aimed to break the forth wall in order for the audience to actively engage with the play and stay thinking/reflecting through out. He also used techniques such as narration, coming in & out of character, speaking stage directions and direct address to break the ideas around the play being a reality and more of a presentation.