PAU Dramatic Literature (Extremadura) study plan
PAU Dramatic Literature (Extremadura) · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Set reading list: Spanish dramatic works of the 20th and 21st centuries & Historical and literary context of the prescribed works (Generation of '98, '27, post-war theatre, contemporary theatre)
Build a one-page timeline of the Spanish stage from 1898 to the present, placing Generation of '98, Generation of '27, the immediate post-war period, the 1960s-70s renewal, and contemporary writing on it, with two representative authors per period.
Read the first prescribed work in full and write a 200-word plot-and-character summary from memory, then correct it against the text.
List the prescribed reading list explicitly and mark, for each title, its genre label (tragedy, tragicomedy, historical drama, grotesque, metatheatre) and its approximate premiere or publication date.
Define in your own words five period-specific terms (esperpento, auto sacramental, teatro de evasión, teatro testimonial, teatro posdramático) with one example each.
Your checkpoint
A dated one-page literary timeline plus a reading-list table with genre label and date for every prescribed title.
Set reading list: Spanish dramatic works of the 20th and 21st centuries & Historical and literary context of the prescribed works (Generation of '98, '27, post-war theatre, contemporary theatre)
Read the second prescribed work in full, annotating each act or scene with its dramatic function in one line.
Compare the two works read so far on treatment of conflict, social critique, and stage space, writing at least 300 words.
Identify the historical events and social debates each work responds to and note where the text alludes to them explicitly.
Memorise ten short quotable passages (no more than two lines each) that could anchor a commentary.
Your checkpoint
A comparative 400-word note on the first two works plus a list of ten memorised short quotations with act and scene references.
Set reading list: Spanish dramatic works of the 20th and 21st centuries & Text commentary and analysis of dramatic excerpts (structure, characters, conflict, space and time)
Read the third prescribed work and map its internal structure (acts, scenes, turning points) on a diagram.
Practise the standard commentary method on a passage from that work: locate it, describe content, analyse structure, characters, conflict, space and time, then conclude on meaning.
Draft one full commentary of about 600 words under timed conditions (75 minutes).
Self-assess the draft against a checklist of the six analysis categories and mark every category you omitted.
Your checkpoint
One timed 600-word commentary with a completed self-assessment checklist listing omissions and fixes.
Set reading list: Spanish dramatic works of the 20th and 21st centuries & Text commentary and analysis of dramatic excerpts (structure, characters, conflict, space and time) & Historical and literary context of the prescribed works (Generation of '98, '27, post-war theatre, contemporary theatre)
Complete a first full read of every remaining prescribed work, noting genre, characters, conflict and setting for each in a single grid.
Write two additional timed commentaries of about 600 words on passages from different works and different periods.
Explain in writing how the historical context of each work shapes its conflict, giving one concrete textual example per work.
Reduce your commentary planning time to ten minutes by practising skeleton outlines only.
Your checkpoint
Two timed commentaries plus a completed comparison grid covering all prescribed works.
Text commentary and analysis of dramatic excerpts (structure, characters, conflict, space and time) & Dramatic genres, subgenres and theatrical conventions
Classify each prescribed work by genre and subgenre and justify each classification with two textual features.
Analyse how space and time are constructed in three different works (simultaneous setting, offstage space, temporal ellipsis, flashback) and write 150 words per work.
Identify and define eight theatrical conventions (aside, soliloquy, chorus, play-within-a-play, direct address, tableau, deus ex machina, breaking the fourth wall) and find one instance of each in your reading.
Write a 500-word essay arguing whether one prescribed work belongs to tragedy or tragicomedy, using textual evidence.
Your checkpoint
A genre-classification table for all works with two justifying features each, plus the 500-word genre essay.
Dramatic genres, subgenres and theatrical conventions & Theatrical language: dialogue, monologue, stage directions, dramatic irony, metatheatre
Analyse the function of stage directions in two works, distinguishing scenic description, character indication and lighting or sound cues, and write 200 words per work.
Explain how dialogue versus monologue changes the information the audience receives, using three short examples.
Locate and explain four instances of dramatic irony and two of metatheatre across your reading, quoting briefly.
Rewrite one short passage from a secondary character's point of view to test your grasp of perspective and information control.
Your checkpoint
A 700-word analysis of theatrical language covering stage directions, monologue, dramatic irony and metatheatre with quotations.
Text commentary and analysis of dramatic excerpts (structure, characters, conflict, space and time) & Theatrical language: dialogue, monologue, stage directions, dramatic irony, metatheatre & Written expression, coherence, cohesion and correctness in the target language
Write three full commentaries of about 600 words on unseen excerpts from the prescribed works, each within 75 minutes.
Edit each commentary for coherence and cohesion, checking paragraph order, connectors and pronoun reference, and log every correction type.
Verify formal correctness: accentuation, punctuation, verb agreement and tense consistency, underlining errors in a printed copy.
Build a personal error list of your ten most frequent mistakes and write the corrected form beside each.
Your checkpoint
Three edited commentaries plus a personal top-ten error list with corrections.
Set reading list: Spanish dramatic works of the 20th and 21st centuries & Text commentary and analysis of dramatic excerpts (structure, characters, conflict, space and time) & Dramatic genres, subgenres and theatrical conventions & Historical and literary context of the prescribed works (Generation of '98, '27, post-war theatre, contemporary theatre) & Theatrical language: dialogue, monologue, stage directions, dramatic irony, metatheatre & Written expression, coherence, cohesion and correctness in the target language
Re-read your notes and grids for all prescribed works and recite each work's genre, conflict, characters and context from memory.
Sit two full mock exams under real timing, including the commentary and the contextual or genre question.
Mark both mocks against the official weighting of the domains and identify the two weakest domains.
Drill only those two weak domains with targeted exercises in the final days.
Your checkpoint
Two completed mock exams with self-marking sheets and a final two-day revision list.
Milestones
Week 2: You can summarise the first two prescribed works from memory, name their genre and period, and quote ten short passages with act and scene references.
Week 4: You have read every prescribed work at least once, filled the comparison grid, and produced three timed commentaries of about 600 words.
Week 6: You can classify every work by genre with two textual justifications and explain stage directions, monologue, dramatic irony and metatheatre with quoted examples.
Week 8: You have completed two full timed mock exams, self-marked them against the domain weighting, and closed the two weakest domains with targeted practice.