25 Most Significant Inventions In Human History

25. Theatre And Drama

One of the main things that separates humans from lesser beings is our ability to express ourselves in many different ways. Not content to use our language for only one purpose, our ancestors devised ways to communicate more creatively and for more esoteric purposes. Thus, the concepts of theatre and drama were created.

Aside from the earliest of paintings, these were some of the first examples of human creativity. From the early forefathers like Aristotle and the early theatres of Ancient Greece, to renaissance artists like Chaucer, Shakespeare and Voltaire, the concept of drama and its affiliation with creative expression has become a timeless component of human inventiveness.

Throughout history, theatre was used as a form of social commentary, using subtle imagery, symbolism and allegory to tell a second story beneath the main one. Elsewhere, different civilizations used theatre to tell a myriad of different stories, from tributes to deities, to expressions of love or anger, to teaching viewers lessons about life and the world around them. In the 21st century, traditional drama and theatre still exists, but it has been overtaken by the film industry in terms of popularity.

Though modern cinema has its own elements, the central storytelling elements and tributes to the original drama still remain. This is what makes humanity such an impressive species: we can create countless different stories that demonstrate the limitless creativity that exists as part of our species.