The purpose of theater, like magic, like religion . . . is to inspire cleansing awe. What makes good drama? And why does drama matter in an age that is awash in information and entertainment? David Mamet, one of our greatest living playwrights, tackles these questions with bracing directness and aphoristic authority. He believes that the tendency to dramatize is essential to human nature, that we create drama out of everything from today’s weather to next year’s elections. But the highest expression of this drive remains the theater.戏剧的目的，就像魔法，就像宗教。是为了激发净化的敬畏。什么是好的戏剧？在一个充斥着信息和娱乐的时代，为什么戏剧很重要？大卫·马梅特，我们现存最伟大的剧作家之一，以令人振奋的直截了当和格言权威来处理这些问题。他相信戏剧化的倾向对人性是至关重要的，从今天的天气到明年的选举，我们用一切创造戏剧。但这种动力的最高表现仍然是戏剧。