ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD

By the end of this unit, students will be able to: explain why the play is existential, addressing major motifs (the focus is on the concrete world, existence precedes essence, people are free and freedom results in angst, reason is an illusion, people are isolated and alienated from one another, absurdity is the natural state of existence); analyze how puns work and explain how their use contributes to a theme in the play; examine how stage directions help reveal the tone and intention of a line; determine the conventions used to establish the setting and framework for the play’s action; explain how comedy is created in the play; identify and explain the function of various literary devices in the text, including allusion, simile, and metaphor; and analyze the way dramatic irony heightens the level of suspense in the play. 69 pages. ©2009.