Masterpieces of Dramatic Literature is an introductory course designed to provide a historical perspective on the literary record of human interactions with nature, the supernatural, and other humans. Utilizing dramatic texts selected from a range of cultures, genres, and time periods (including core readings from Greek or Roman classical literature, the Bible, Shakespeare, non-Western literature, literature by women, and literature by writers of color), students will devise strategies for reading, discussing, and writing about dramatic literature. These strategies will include consideration of biographical materials, cultural contexts and analysis of the functions of drama and theatre, in particular historical and geographical circumstances. Students will also be asked to consider how texts come to be valued as masterpieces, and the politics involved in such valuation.