Cost of Living

Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 2016

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Summary

Act Summaries & Analyses

Prologue-Scene 4

Scene 5-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

How would you describe the play’s structure? Why do you think Majok decided to disrupt the chronological narrative? How do you think the play would function differently if it were told in linear order?

What is the play about? Don’t summarize the narrative; articulate what you think is the purpose of the play. What do you think it’s saying? How does it speak to contemporary audiences?

Cost of Living won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, beating the two runners-up: Everybody by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and The Minutes by Tracy Letts. Read one of these two plays and compare and contrast. Why do you think Cost of Living won? Do you agree with the committee’s choice? Why or why not?