Two Afro-American Contributions To Dramatic Forms Analysis

In “Two Afro-American Contributions to Dramatic Form” Eleanor W. Traylor discusses the importance of the slave narrative, and the minstrel show in regards to the development of American theatre, and how they were developed. This essay includes origin stories, famous writers, critical opinions, and textual excerpts from theatrical pieces.
She begins by talking about minstrel shows and how they came to be. The minstrel show was originally an improvisatory art form that involved folklore, singing and dance, and was performed by slaves on plantations as spiritual rituals involving a wooden mask. When it first was introduced to the theatre realm, it became the first true American dramatic form. White actors would paint their faces black and attempt to replicate the African rituals in an exaggerated way. Rather than portraying the slaves accurately, they created overly comic and ridiculous characters that were intended to mock the slave’s practices and further the racial divide. This theatrical form was tremendously popular with theatre patrons for over 50 years.
She then goes on to talk about the new
It asks us to read these plays to learn about the horrors that African Americans have faced during their period of enslavement, and how freed slaves attempted to bring these atrocities to light through writing literature. It also helps us understand how theatre was used as a tool to assist in the freeing of millions of enslaved people, as well as a way to mock an entire race. It is important to search for the inspiration behind any theatrical style and determine what the motivation was in developing it into a staged production. From the extremely racist motives behind minstrel shows, to the noble cause of the slave narrative, by determining the motivation behind each theatrical movement, we can attain a more comprehensive understanding of the