The power of the modern drama as an interpreter of the pressing
questions of our time is perhaps nowhere evident as clearly as it is in
England to-day.
Indeed, while other countries have come almost to a standstill in
dramatic art, England is the most productive at the present time. Nor
can it be said that quantity has been achieved at the expense of
quality, which is only too often the case.
The most prolific English dramatist, John Galsworthy, is at the same
time a great artist whose dramatic quality can be compared with that of
only one other living writer, namely, Gerhart Hauptmann. Galsworthy,
even as Hauptmann, is neither a propagandist nor a moralist. His
background is life, "that palpitating life," which is the root of all
sorrow and joy.
His attitude toward dramatic art is given in the following words:
"I look upon the stage as the great beacon light of civilization, but
the drama should lead the social thought of the time and not direct or
dictate it.
"The great duty of the dramatist is to present life as it really is. A
true story, if told sincerely, is the strongest moral argument that can
be put on the stage. It is the business of the dramatist so to present
the characters in his picture of life that the inherent moral is brought
to light without any lecturing on his part.
"Moral codes in themselves are, after all, not lasting, but a true
picture of life is. A man may preach a strong lesson in a play which may
exist for a day, but if he succeeds in presenting real life itself in
such a manner as to carry with it a certain moral inspiration, the force
of the message need never be lost, for a new interpretation to fit the
spirit of the time can renew its vigor and power."
John Galsworthy has undoubtedly succeeded in presenting real life. It is
this that makes him so thoroughly human and universal.