Realism in modern drama Or Look Back in Anger is a realistic drama

Realism in modern drama

The literature of the twentieth century is exclusively marked by realism and drama is no exception in this respect. The drama  of the early twentieth century being influenced by Ibsen, Shaw, Galsworthy  was too realistic  and too involved with the contemporary social problems. Ibsen,  the Norwegian  dramatists , who popularised the theme  of realism in modern drama, dealt with the problems  of life in realistic way. In England  also realism gained popularity with the works of Robertson, Jones,  Pinero,  Shaw, Granville Barker,  Galsworthy and number of other dramatists who dealt with real life and problems that the modern society  faced in their in their plays, These playwrights dealt in their works with the current problems of society such as problems  of marriage, Justice, law, administration and strife between capital and labour.

Shaw produced his first play with a view to carrying the serious drama over into the field of social, domestic or personal problems. The problem plays expose the cant and hypocrisy of the modern times. They aim at revealing the horrid realities behind the sacred ideals and romantic common places cherished and upheld by the middle-class society. In this sense Look Back in Anger is a realistic drama of our time.