Cosi Louis Nowra Summary

Close Study of Text: Cosi

The play “Cosi” by Louis Nowra is about a young, inexperienced university student who is given the task of directing a play in a mental hospital. The play uses many dramatic techniques including the setting of the play, humour, Language, the play within the play structure, and the fourth wall to help draw the audience into the world of the play. The play also has distinct ideas such as the question of people’s attitudes towards the mentally ill and people’s attitudes towards love and fidelity to further draw the audience into the world of the play when mentally ill people were ignored and not accepted as ‘normal’ people.

The setting is very important to the success it has in bringing forth its ideas and drawing
Some of the types of humour used includes vulgar humour e.g. “DOUG: poofter”, one-liners e.g. “JUSTIN: Where would the world be without social workers? DOUG: In tip top condition”, and running jokes e.g. “CHERRY: go burn a cat”. Using humour really helps the audience connect with the characters and draws them into the world of the play showing that mentally ill people are certainly not that different from the supposedly ‘normal’
At the end of the play Lewis steps through the fourth wall and addresses the audience directly, giving them information about what happened to the characters and himself. This assists Nowra in drawing the audience into the world of the play and helps leaving them with the lasting impression the characters were real people with real problems and weaknesses and we should not stereotype them as mental patients but recognise them for the individuals they