This thesis will investigate and examine how August Wilson incorporated African storytelling ceremonials inside of Gem of the Ocean and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. By studying the mannerisms and characteristics of Aunt Ester (Gem of the Ocean) and Bynum Walker (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), this paper will help educators to understand that Wilson created these characters to preserve African griots inside his Pittsburgh Cycle. This paper will link how theatre educators in the 21st century can capture the spirit of the African griots. The socially responsible theatre practice is a teaching method that theatre teachers can incorporate into their classroom that replicates the early objective of African storytelling. This thesis will demonstrate that the ritual of African storytelling and social responsible theatre practice aim to heal the individual.
","abstract_html":"<p>This thesis will investigate and examine how August Wilson incorporated African storytelling ceremonials inside of <em>Gem of the Ocean</em> and Joe Turner’s <em>Come and Gone</em>. By studying the mannerisms and characteristics of Aunt Ester (<em>Gem of the Ocean</em>) and Bynum Walker (Joe Turner’s <em>Come and Gone</em>), this paper will help educators to understand that Wilson created these characters to preserve African griots inside his Pittsburgh Cycle. This paper will link how theatre educators in the 21st century can capture the spirit of the African griots. The socially responsible theatre practice is a teaching method that theatre teachers can incorporate into their classroom that replicates the early objective of African storytelling. This thesis will demonstrate that the ritual of African storytelling and social responsible theatre practice aim to heal the individual.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Reeves, Elizabeth L"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Education","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Theatre Department","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Brenda May Ito","Dr. Larry Dooley","David Turner"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:44:55Z","subjects":["August Wilson","African Storytelling","Pittsburgh Cycle","Playwriting","Theatre and Performance Studies"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/292","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Brenda May Ito","Dr. Larry Dooley","David Turner"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Reeves, Elizabeth L"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-08-20T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Theatre Department"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Education"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["August Wilson","African Storytelling","Pittsburgh Cycle","Playwriting","Theatre and Performance Studies"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/292"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This thesis will investigate and examine how August Wilson incorporated African storytelling ceremonials inside of Gem of the Ocean and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. By studying the mannerisms and characteristics of Aunt Ester (Gem of the Ocean) and Bynum Walker (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), this paper will help educators to understand that Wilson created these characters to preserve African griots inside his Pittsburgh Cycle. This paper will link how theatre educators in the 21st century can capture the spirit of the African griots. The socially responsible theatre practice is a teaching method that theatre teachers can incorporate into their classroom that replicates the early objective of African storytelling. This thesis will demonstrate that the ritual of African storytelling and social responsible theatre practice aim to heal the individual.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Preserving the Spirit of African Storytelling in the Pittsburgh Cycle"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Brenda May Ito","Dr. Larry Dooley","David Turner"],"dc:creator":["Reeves, Elizabeth L"],"dc:date.available":["2018-08-20T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This thesis will investigate and examine how August Wilson incorporated African storytelling ceremonials inside of Gem of the Ocean and Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. By studying the mannerisms and characteristics of Aunt Ester (Gem of the Ocean) and Bynum Walker (Joe Turner’s Come and Gone), this paper will help educators to understand that Wilson created these characters to preserve African griots inside his Pittsburgh Cycle. This paper will link how theatre educators in the 21st century can capture the spirit of the African griots. The socially responsible theatre practice is a teaching method that theatre teachers can incorporate into their classroom that replicates the early objective of African storytelling. This thesis will demonstrate that the ritual of African storytelling and social responsible theatre practice aim to heal the individual.
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