Introduction

Abstract

In “Meritocracy” (1997), David Mamet writes that “advancement, subsistence, friendship, regard, in the theatre, is priceless to me and has been, after the love of my family, frankly, the guiding desire of my life: to win and keep a place in our culturally despised profession through merit” (126). At the beginning of the twenty-first century, few knowledgeable people would deny that Mamet has won his place as one of the most respected, talented, and provocative of American dramatists through merit, though they might argue vehemently about how audiences should understand his plays, filmscripts and films, novels, poetry, and essays, especially as that understanding relates to matters of gender and matters of genre.