Martin McDonagh and the Possibility of Cathharsis

The main focus of this thesis is examining the key arguments used in the ethical criticism debate found in the aesthetic branch of philosophy through the key characteristic of the In-Yer-Face theatre movement, with the main focus being on Martin McDonagh’s Leenane Trilogy, comprised of three plays set in Connemara, Ireland: The Beauty Queen of Leenane, A Skull in Connemara and The Lonesome West. In the first part of the thesis, I provide an overview of the philosophical debate regarding ethics and aesthetics and supply arguments form the most noticeable supporters of the array of positions that have emerged from the debate. Secondly, I present the key characteristics and concepts of the In-Yer-Face theatre and movement as it challenges the arguments provided in the debate of the role which ethics should play in our aesthetic experience. Lastly, I show direct examples found in the plays of Martin McDonagh, a playwright that with his specific background creates a universally accepted feeling in an environment driven to the edge of the absurd to bring to the audience a sense of a contemporary catharsis