I was surprised at the fact that there were so many Canadian playwrights. This is probably because all through junior high and high school (when I was first exposed to plays) I only read American playwrights or European ones (Shakespeare). Due to this fact, our culture might be induced with the idea that there are not many "good" Canadian playwrights. Our culture judges which playwright is good by the amount of media recognition they get. I think that's why people have such a high opinion on Shakespeare, it is the only playwright most people honor. I don't think Shakespeare is all that great because I thought his literature is hard to understand. I don't like it when I don't understand, especially Shakespeare because it was for school and it was worth lots of marks.

When studying American literature, I notice that it has a great deal of influence on Canada since America is our neighboring country and is so powerful worldwide. A conflicting ideology is that since we are Canadians we have our own individual identity. However American imposes their value on us to such a degree that we do not have our own identity any longer. Canadians are constantly bombarded with American stuff i.e. shows on TV, books, etc. People from Canada go to the U.S. to make careers because they know they'll have a better chance to succeed. Personally, I strongly believe this is true because if this weren't, Canadian television stations and radio stations wouldn't try to regulate the amount of American shows and songs.

The government of Canada has put standards on TV and radio programs where you have to put a certain percentage of Canadian content to protect the Canadian identity. This shows that as Canadians we have to defend our identity. The ideology that you have to defend your own culture. This comes back to defending your team. When watching sports you have to cheer for the team where your city is. If you don't then you are considered an outcast or a traitor. In our culture there is a belief that everyone wants to belong to something; belonging to a gang, a family, or a group. I think this is true because I was taught that belonging is a human need. If you belong to a group, this group would help you; gang members "back up" one another (see Figure 1), family members help one another. These are unwritten rules or ideologies our culture has. This reflects our culture really places emphasis on loyalty. We shouldn't cheat on our marriage partners, or steal money from family. According to the Catholic and Christian faith, it is wrong to do such acts as their religion states. It is wrong to steal, but why is it even more wrong to steal from your friends and family. In our culture, friends and family are supposed to be people you can trust.

Figure 1: The two gansta rappers [2 Pac(left) and Ice Cube(right)] are showing the "westside" symbol.  This shows alliances and a sense of being a part of something.  In this case a gang.  For example when 2 Pac (represents westside)was murdered the Notorious B.I.G (represents the eastside) was murdered a couple months later...probably in response to the 2 Pac murder. In fact, Suge Knight (Death Row C.E.O...record label of 2 Pac) has been linked to the murder of Biggie.

I have always assumed that playwrights just write plays for a living. If this were true then playwrights would have to write a lot of plays in order to support themselves. I think that this ideology comes mostly from school and the media. In school, all the projects that I have ever done on authors and playwright have always been very famous and successful ones. Then, when I think of playwrights I assume that it is their only job. The media also only covers the very successful playwrights, and thus, most of our exposure to playwrights are ones that can support themselves solely on writing.

The reason why schools choose to teach plays with well-known playwrights in the curriculum is because the are considered "good." The dominant culture assumes that the best way to learn is from the "good" writers. The way that the dominant culture decides what is good is unfairly determined. When you ask people if they think Shakespeare is good, I guarantee that the majority will say "no way Jose".

We Were Surprised How Old the Playwright Was

I think this was mostly because drama is regarded as a "youthful thing". We hear people talk about how as children they wanted to act or write, but then they grow up and realize that they need a real job.

What defines old? Is it a physical description. A wrinkled, crouched over, cane using person? Or is it something to do with how long you have been in the world? If so what age is considered to be old? And does this in anyway relate to the amount of experience and wisdom one has?

The media's presentation of "old" has to do with physical appearance. Although there are many grandmothers out there whom are ver young looking, the media continues to show them as old, gray haired, retired people. The dominant culture has a love hate relation with age. As a youth you always wish you could be older so "you can do whatever you want to do" but as an adult you miss you childhood and the carefree living, wishing that once again you could be a child.

According to the dominant culture mayor age to reach according to this culture is 40. The age 40 is known as "being over the hill". By this time if a person is not married or has a good job, they are considered by most as failures.

There is also a proper etiquette that goes with age. The first and foremost being, never ask anyone how old they are. I especially see this in women they are very protective of their age. This is probably because of societies out look if how women are to be. The are to have a toned figure and always look great. Since getting old has to do with many physical changes, women feel that they are no longer a desirable part of society. Even men dislike letting people know about their age. Becoming old is also known as the switch from independence to dependence. Since men are portrayed in this society as strong, protective, and independent individuals, men find it hard to cope with, and because society teaches boys from a very young age that you must be strong, their pride wont let them take this dependence.