Research Article
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Year 2024, Issue: 38, 1406 - 1420, 21.02.2024
https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.1410303

Abstract

References

  • Archibald, D. (2008). “We’re just big bullies …” Gregory Burke’s Black Watch. The Drought, 26, 8-13.
  • Beck, S. (2013). Playing War: Encountering Soldiers and Navigating Ethical Responsibilities in the Creation of Black Watch. International Journal of Scottish Theatre and Screen, 6/1, 131-153.
  • Betts, J, and M. Phythian. (2020). The Iraq War and Democratic Governance: Britain and Australia go to War. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan.
  • Brantley, B. (2007, Oct. 24). To Tell These War Stories, Words Aren’t Enough. The New York Times. <https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/24/theater/reviews/24watch.html>.
  • Brown, M. (2009, Mar. 9). From Drill Hall to Olivier Glory: Acclaimed War Play Black Watch Takes Four Awards. The Guardian. <https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/mar/08/black-watch-wins-at-olivier-awards>.
  • Burke, G. (2008). Black Watch. London: Faber & Faber.
  • Bush, G. W. (2001, Sep. 20). Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People. The White House: President George W. Bush. <https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html>.
  • Cummings, L. B. (2011). Empathy, Estrangement, and Theatre for Social Change [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Cornell University.
  • Hauthal, J. (2013). Realisms in British Drama since the 1990s: Anthony Neilson’s Realism and Gregory Burke’s Black Watch. In D. Birke & S. Butter (Eds.), Realisms in Contemporary Culture: Theories, Politics, and Medial Configurations (pp. 146-177). Berlin: De Gruyter.
  • Hurley, K. (2008). Uncomfortably Spectacular. Contemporary Theatre Review, 18/2, 275.
  • Jack, I. (2008, June 14). “It’s in the Blood”. The Guardian. <https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jun/14/saturdayreviewsfeatres.guardianreview18>.
  • Kaličanin, M. (2016). Gregory Burke’s Black Watch (2006): An Illustration of Post–Verbatim Theatre. Књижевна историја, 48/160, 303-317.
  • Kalpokas, I. (2019). A Political Theory of Post-Truth. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Pivot.
  • Keyes, R. (2004). The Post-Truth Era: Dishonesty and Deception in Contemporary Life. New York: St. Martin’s Press.
  • Oliver, J, and B. Walmsley. (2011). Assessing the Value of the Arts. In B. Walmsley (Ed.), Key Issues in the Arts and Entertainment Industry (pp. 83-101). Oxford: Goodfellow Publishers.
  • Pattie, D. (2011). Gregory Burke. In M. Middeke et al (Eds.), The Methuen Drama Guide to Contemporary British Playwrights (pp. 22-41). London: Methuen Drama.
  • Pressley, N. (2011, Jan. 21). Drama with Roots in the Real World Is Burgeoning Theater Field. The Washington Post. <https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/drama-with-roots-in-the-real-world-is-burgeoning-theater-field/2011/01/21/ABGEPKR_story.html>.
  • Robinson, C. (2013). The Making of Black Watch. Words on Plays, 19/6, 11-15.
  • Robinson, R. (2012). The National Theatre of Scotland’s Black Watch. Contemporary Theatre Review, 22/3, 392-399.
  • Watson, A. (2014). Birnam Wood: Scotland, Nationalism, and Theatres of War. Theatre History Studies, 33, 226-249.
  • Word of the Year 2016. (n.d.). Oxford Languages. <https://languages.oup.com/word-of-the-year/2016/>.
  • Yelmiş, İ. (2016). “Fallen, Fallen is Babylon the Great”: The Iraq War as “The Biggest Western Foreign Policy Disaster” as Reflected in Gregory Burke’s The Black Watch. Mediterranean Journal of Humanities, 6/2, 483-500.
  • Ylä-Anttila, T. (2018). Populist Knowledge: ‘Post-Truth’ Repertoires of Contesting Epistemic Authorities. European Journal of Cultural and Political Sociology, 5/4, 356-388.

The Problematic Criticism of the Post-Truth Pro-Iraq War Discourse in Gregory Burke’s Black Watch

Year 2024, Issue: 38, 1406 - 1420, 21.02.2024
https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.1410303

Abstract

Changing parameters in people’s perception of truth have taken on a different dimension, especially in the last century. The consideration of a person’s emotional connection to an idea, instead of objective truths, in accepting an opinion as true has led to the emergence of the concept of post-truth. Before and during the 2003 Iraq War, politicians, opinion leaders, civilians and state institutions tried to guide people through emotional manipulation through post-truth discourses. In the field of art, this situation is criticized in the plays written about the war. For instance, Gregory Burke exposes the post-truth discourse of the military institution in his play Black Watch. The historical and contemporary figures he creates in the play mislead soldiers by talking about the virtue of fighting. The discourses they use for this purpose are generally shaped around dreams of heroism, fame, wealth and charisma. They persuade people to fight by making ostentatious promises, but the only things war brings are death and psychological destruction. Burke vividly depicts the dangers the soldiers face in Iraq and the disappointments they experience upon returning home. However, he also criticizes the military institution for its pro-war post-truth narratives by utilizing a post-truth discourse himself. Since he takes an anti-war stance, he is not objective in his depictions and narratives. Due to this contradiction, the playwright’s criticism has a self-contradictory structure. Based on this argument, this article first analyses how the post-truth discourse of the military institution is revealed in the play, and then how the counter-arguments are similarly imposed by the playwright, and claims that the writer’s challenge with post-truth is problematic.

References

  • Archibald, D. (2008). “We’re just big bullies …” Gregory Burke’s Black Watch. The Drought, 26, 8-13.
  • Beck, S. (2013). Playing War: Encountering Soldiers and Navigating Ethical Responsibilities in the Creation of Black Watch. International Journal of Scottish Theatre and Screen, 6/1, 131-153.
  • Betts, J, and M. Phythian. (2020). The Iraq War and Democratic Governance: Britain and Australia go to War. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan.
  • Brantley, B. (2007, Oct. 24). To Tell These War Stories, Words Aren’t Enough. The New York Times. <https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/24/theater/reviews/24watch.html>.
  • Brown, M. (2009, Mar. 9). From Drill Hall to Olivier Glory: Acclaimed War Play Black Watch Takes Four Awards. The Guardian. <https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/mar/08/black-watch-wins-at-olivier-awards>.
  • Burke, G. (2008). Black Watch. London: Faber & Faber.
  • Bush, G. W. (2001, Sep. 20). Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People. The White House: President George W. Bush. <https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html>.
  • Cummings, L. B. (2011). Empathy, Estrangement, and Theatre for Social Change [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Cornell University.
  • Hauthal, J. (2013). Realisms in British Drama since the 1990s: Anthony Neilson’s Realism and Gregory Burke’s Black Watch. In D. Birke & S. Butter (Eds.), Realisms in Contemporary Culture: Theories, Politics, and Medial Configurations (pp. 146-177). Berlin: De Gruyter.
  • Hurley, K. (2008). Uncomfortably Spectacular. Contemporary Theatre Review, 18/2, 275.
  • Jack, I. (2008, June 14). “It’s in the Blood”. The Guardian. <https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jun/14/saturdayreviewsfeatres.guardianreview18>.
  • Kaličanin, M. (2016). Gregory Burke’s Black Watch (2006): An Illustration of Post–Verbatim Theatre. Књижевна историја, 48/160, 303-317.
  • Kalpokas, I. (2019). A Political Theory of Post-Truth. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Pivot.
  • Keyes, R. (2004). The Post-Truth Era: Dishonesty and Deception in Contemporary Life. New York: St. Martin’s Press.
  • Oliver, J, and B. Walmsley. (2011). Assessing the Value of the Arts. In B. Walmsley (Ed.), Key Issues in the Arts and Entertainment Industry (pp. 83-101). Oxford: Goodfellow Publishers.
  • Pattie, D. (2011). Gregory Burke. In M. Middeke et al (Eds.), The Methuen Drama Guide to Contemporary British Playwrights (pp. 22-41). London: Methuen Drama.
  • Pressley, N. (2011, Jan. 21). Drama with Roots in the Real World Is Burgeoning Theater Field. The Washington Post. <https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/drama-with-roots-in-the-real-world-is-burgeoning-theater-field/2011/01/21/ABGEPKR_story.html>.
  • Robinson, C. (2013). The Making of Black Watch. Words on Plays, 19/6, 11-15.
  • Robinson, R. (2012). The National Theatre of Scotland’s Black Watch. Contemporary Theatre Review, 22/3, 392-399.
  • Watson, A. (2014). Birnam Wood: Scotland, Nationalism, and Theatres of War. Theatre History Studies, 33, 226-249.
  • Word of the Year 2016. (n.d.). Oxford Languages. <https://languages.oup.com/word-of-the-year/2016/>.
  • Yelmiş, İ. (2016). “Fallen, Fallen is Babylon the Great”: The Iraq War as “The Biggest Western Foreign Policy Disaster” as Reflected in Gregory Burke’s The Black Watch. Mediterranean Journal of Humanities, 6/2, 483-500.
  • Ylä-Anttila, T. (2018). Populist Knowledge: ‘Post-Truth’ Repertoires of Contesting Epistemic Authorities. European Journal of Cultural and Political Sociology, 5/4, 356-388.
There are 23 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects British and Irish Language, Literature and Culture
Journal Section World languages, cultures and litertures
Authors

Güven Çağan 0000-0001-8268-3041

Publication Date February 21, 2024
Submission Date November 23, 2023
Acceptance Date December 26, 2023
Published in Issue Year 2024 Issue: 38

Cite

APA Çağan, G. (2024). The Problematic Criticism of the Post-Truth Pro-Iraq War Discourse in Gregory Burke’s Black Watch. RumeliDE Dil Ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi(38), 1406-1420. https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.1410303

RumeliDE Journal of Language and Literature Studies is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY NC).