DNA: Context (AQA GCSE English Literature)

DNA historical context

Dennis Kelly’s play, DNA, was commissioned in 2007 for an annual British youth festival called the Connections project, which is managed by National Theatre Education, and was first performed at the National Theatre in 2008. While stage directions do not indicate a specific time or place, the play is influenced by realist and naturalistic dramatic styles, typical of this time period, and its focus is a group of teenagers. 

• The play offers a realistic depiction of disaffected teenagers in a modern world

• The play is considered to be an example of in-yer-face theatre, a style that emerged in Britain in the 1990s, influenced by playwrights like Winsome Pinnock and Mark Ravenhill

• This type of drama often uses crude or taboo language, and shows explicit violence

• Sam Holland, Director of the 2016 National Youth Theatre production of the play, also suggested that its style is influenced by Bertolt Brecht (a revolutionary German playwright):

  • Brecht’s style offers the audience a chance to critically reflect on the play’s events, rather than form an emotional connections with the characters

DNA political context

Dennis Kelly says that the play examines how individuals respond to a threat to their personal security and was written in response to contemporary Western foreign policy. Kelly intended to explore how fear can lead to groupthink, which, in turn, can lead to dangerous consequences. 

• Kelly has said that the play was written in response to the growing threat of attacks on the West, so it can be seen as a commentary on Western society:

  • At the time the play was written, there had been attacks in London and New York

  • On September 11th 2001, the Twin Towers in America were bombed (9/11) and in 2005, the London Underground was bombed

  • DNA aims to reflect the extreme responses that fear or insecurity may bring 

• In addition, a world banking crisis brought about financial instability in 2008 

• There was growing concern about environmental disasters like Hurricane Katrina, with academics describing a growing sense of disillusionment and insecurity internationally 

DNA social context

The play portrays the responses of each individual to bullying and casual violence in key moments. In this way, the characters, as a group, represent society as a whole. Thus the play is a microcosm of modern society and its key themes reflect concerns in contemporary society. 

• At the time of the play, scientific advancements in forensics had become a popular topic of television programmes and true crime documentaries:

  • The title DNA speaks to society’s reliance on scientific methods

  • This is contrasted by Kelly’s references to religion, which suggests a conflict between a scientific and a morally good society

• The play’s presentation of mob mentality may refer to the philosophies of Nietzsche, as Kelly alludes to Nietzshe’s ideas about the dangers of pack mentality: 

  • Many of the characters try to find meaning and truth in science

  • As Leah points out, this leads to the sacrifice of values and common sense

• The play explores the idea of human genetics as well, often presented via Leah’s monologues about the nature of humanity: 

  • She refers to DNA in terms of the genetic make-up of different species (humans, chimps, bonobos) 

  • She wonders if DNA is responsible for the capacity for violence, or the ability to show compassion 

Nihilism in DNA 

• The play portrays the power struggles of a group of nihilistic teenagers who appear to find little meaning in life:

  • The play’s settings add to the sense of banality: “a street, a field and a wood”

  • The characters use crude language and mock compassion and fairness

• The play presents the perspectives of teenagers who react dramatically to their personal confusion or sense of isolation

• The play’s characters are difficult to sympathise with though, as they either lack a clear moral code, or behave extremely and erratically:

  • Leah, the only character who searches for meaning in each of her monologues, is, at times, lured towards the numb detachment Phil exudes

  • For example, Leah is generally compassionate, but in some scenes, such as when she casually shows Phil a pet she has killed, she appears detached 

• The cyclical resolution of Kelly’s play is bleak, and suggests that almost all of the characters remain without clear purpose in their life:

  • John Tate is said to have “found God” (perhaps looking for redemption) and Brian is on strong medication and “drooling” towards the end of the play

  • Leah’s departure offers some sense of hope (that she has escaped the cycle), however the last words of the play leave Phil disturbingly detached without her 

DNA literary context

DNA has been likened to a Greek tragedy in its portrayal of psychological turmoil, its violence and its cynical depiction of society. It is always worth considering the structure of a play in your answer as the plot really drives home the playwright’s ideas. 

For example, Kelly blurs the dark themes in the play with comedic scenes. Frequent shifts from tragedy to comedy mean that tension is repeatedly built and then released. The play has also been constructed with a cyclical narrative that repeats itself as it shifts between locations in a regular sequence in each act. Jan and Mark are sometimes described as being like a Greek chorus, opening each section or act of the play, and providing the audience with important information. 

Critics have also commented that the play is influenced by the Theatre of the Absurd (Delijani), where characters are trapped in a pointless human existence — absurd because it is comfortless — and overwhelmed by fear or failure. Certainly, the play presents the perspectives of teenagers who react dramatically to their personal confusion or sense of isolation.

Kelly has also referenced the influence of the celebrated novel Lord of the Flies on the play, where bullying by a group of children similarly escalates to torture and murder. The play has also been compared with JD Salinger’s novel Catcher in the Rye, Simon Stephens’ plays and Chatroom by Enda Walsh. 

The dramatic structure of DNA

How do you get marks for context in DNA?

In your AQA GCSE English Literature exam, for the DNA essay there will be 6 marks available (out of a total of 30 marks) for context. The best way to get these marks is in your essay is to integrate contextual factors that are relevant to your analysis all the way through your essay. 

One thing that examiners repeatedly say they don’t want to see is “bolt-on” context, which is irrelevant historical or biographical information that doesn’t add anything to your discussion of Kelly’s intentions. So don’t write a paragraph of contextual or biographical information, or refer to context in your introduction but never refer to it again! 

AQA-specific exam tips

AQA examiners love to see what they call an “organic response”. They suggest that the question itself will “steer” you towards the type of contextual information the question requires. This means that the theme is closely connected to how you will discuss the social, political and historical context of DNA. Overall, they say, they want you to keep a close focus on the question. 

Some things you could discuss that would come under “literary context” include:

• Understanding that context relates to ideas such as: 

  • Good and bad leadership (and accountability for your actions)   

  • Power and peer pressure

  • Nihilism, doubt and certainty 

  • Genetics and science

• Understanding that DNA is a play, so is performed on stage and has an audience:

  • Knowing that audience response is key to understanding scenes and context 

  • Thinking about staging and dramatic styles, like naturalism

  • Commenting on stage directions, or what events may occur off-stage

• Acknowledging that DNA is a cyclical narrative:

  • Mentioning the relevance of scene patterns or sequences in terms of conveying the meaninglessness of repetitive cycles 

  • Understanding that the resolution conveys ideas about the problems existing in society 

Sources 

Kelly, D. (2021). DNA. Bloomsbury Publishing (edited by Clare Delijani).

Kelly, D. (n.d.). DNA. In GCSE Drama.