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COPYRIGHT 2000 www.wmich.edu/compdr
David Mamet. Three Uses of the Knife: On the Nature and Purpose of Drama. The Columbia House Lectures on American Culture. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998. Pp. 96. $19.95.
As one might expect from a book written by popular playwright and occasional agent provocateur of theater, David Mamet, Three Uses of the Knife: On the Nature and Purpose of Drama is, at various times, thought-provoking, irreverent, contentious, and conventional. Like many of Mamet's plays, this book offers some innovative approaches to its subject matter, although much of the volume embraces convention, especially when Mamet champions "true" dramatic structure, which includes a single hero pursuing a single goal through three clearly delineated acts. Although Mamet's promotion of traditional form may not hold up under the gaze of many contemporary scholars and artists or, for that matter, the modernist artist from a century earlier, the book maintains a significant amount of credibility by virtue of its author having managed to do what has eluded most late twentieth century American dramatists: make a substantial living as a critically acclaimed playwright. Thus, in spite of--or perhaps because of--the book's conservative approach to aesthetics, its three loosely organized chapters offer potentially useful advice for crafting a crowd pleasing drama. These same chapters, however, display an intolerant attitude towards drama and art that is formally innovative and/or socially engaged while, ironically,...
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