The social, cultural and historical context of a set play, including when and why it was written, its original conditions of performance, and how context informs both analysis and staging for a contemporary audience.

What this dot point is asking

AQA wants you to understand the social, cultural and historical context of your set plays (when and why each was written and how it was originally staged) and to use that context to inform both your analysis in Section A and your staging choices in Section B. Context is a tool for interpretation, not a separate body of facts to recite.

When and why the play was written

Know the period, the playwright's purpose and the issues of the time. A play may respond to war, class tension, shifting gender roles, religion or political change, and that purpose shapes its meaning. A protest play written under censorship will code its argument differently from one written in freedom; a comedy written for a court audience targets different anxieties from one written for a public playhouse. Pin down what the playwright wanted this audience, at this moment, to think or feel.

Original conditions of performance

Consider how and where the play was first staged: the type of theatre and staging configuration, the acting conventions, the make-up and behaviour of the audience, and the available technology. These conditions shaped how the play was written. A text for an open-air thrust stage in daylight with a standing audience builds in direct address, asides and rapid scene shifts; a text for a candlelit indoor house exploits darkness and intimacy. Performance conditions are part of the context, not an afterthought.

Using context in analysis

Context explains meaning. A line that seems mild today may have been provocative or even dangerous when first performed; a marriage plot or an act of defiance carried weight specific to its time. Understanding the original values lets you read the play accurately and avoid imposing modern assumptions on a moment that meant something different to its first audience.

Context and contemporary staging

When interpreting the play for today, decide how to handle its context. You can stage it in period to preserve its original force and let the audience feel the distance; you can update the setting to draw out a parallel with the present; or you can deliberately clash period and modern elements to estrange the audience and make them notice the issue. Each choice must be justified through the text and its themes, never made for novelty.