French Drama Research Articles

ჟან რასინის „ესთერის“ პოეტიკის ბიბლიური მოტივები

The article presents a literary and philosophical analysis of the biblical motifs of the play “Esther” by Jean-Baptiste Racine, a pro­minent representa­tive of European classicism, an outstanding French playwright of the 17th century. Despite the fact that in the era of classicism, the representation of antiquity was considered the standard and norm, Racine was able to convey biblical passages in his drama "Esther" with high artistic skill and introduced innovative ideas both in terms of content and form. The work discusses the poetic language and vocabulary of Jean Racine, excerpts of biblical passages from the text of the tragedy "Esther" and expressions that echo the theological thought from the Old Testament book of Esther. In this play, the author conveys biblical passages without breaking the content against the back­ground of his contemporary 17th century era of absolutism, poli­tical-social tension. The Old Testament source of Racine's tragedy "Esther" is seen as an alle­gory representing the relationship between the church and God accor­ding to some Christian biblical scholars. The nuances of the text of the book of Esther, which are taken from the Old Testa­ment, as well as all the actions of the main character of Racine's drama, Esther, are loaded with biblical symbolism, the verses are filled with the spirit of the Bible with tropical thinking. This play is recognized as the culmination of Racine's theatrical art, because the author manages to combine the ancient legacy of tragedy in poetry, with the magical melody of opera and the strictest religious morality, and all this in full compliance with Aristotle's precepts. The scientific novelty of the article is the intertextual and comparative analysis of the poetics of Racine's play "Esther" with the works of famous Georgian writers (For example: “The Knight in Tiger Skin” by the greatest Georgian world-class poet Shota Rusta­veli, “Didmouraviani” by Joseph Tfile­li (XVII century), King of Imereti Archil, Teimuraz I King of Kakheti etc.), which will be im­por­tant for a better understanding biblical aspects of the poetics of Racine's "Esther" and in this regard, for presenting the similarities between European classicism and the common problems of the Georgian classics of the same era. The article discusses and evaluates the literary-religious re-understan­ding of history based on Old Testament motifs by Jean Racine, which he perfectly presented in his drama "Esther" with the elements of ancient theo­ries of classicism and an amazing synthesis of biblical passages. He intro­duced innovative ideas in both the form and content of this work and added new life to the tragedies of the era of European classicism.

La cruelle fatalité de l’existence, ou la représentation du mal dans La Possession d’Henry Bataille

SummaryHenry Bataille’s name is often classified among authors who are fond of the poetics of “boulevard theater”, which seems to perpetuate the canonical form of drama. However, at the turn of the twentieth century, this theater underwent an undeniable crisis that undermined the very foundations of Aristotelian aesthetics, particularly those of action. The questioning of tradition is manifested primarily through a new approach to conflict, the origin of any dramatic intrigue, which evolves from a dispute between antagonists into a resolute intrapersonal confrontation unfolding within the troubled souls of characters grappling with acute suffering. While delving into evil and its scenic representation, Henry Bataille approaches this issue in an unusual manner for a French playwright of the late nineteenth century. In the play La Possession, we witness, on one hand, the expression of cruelty fueled by animosity between characters, and on the other hand, we observe metapsychological violence descending upon the poor, defenseless creatures facing the irrevocability of fate. If the first conflict (interpersonal) physically pits adversaries against each other—with physical violence being replaced by a battle unfolding on moral and psychological levels, the second one (intrapersonal) takes place within the heart and psyche of the hero, who, paralyzed by existential anguish, is torn between his fantasies and his relationship with reality.

„Комедията без смях“ на Пиер Корней и нейната роля за развитието на класицистичната комедия във Франция

The emerging neoclassical dramaturgy in France (1720s and 1730s) explicitly sought its aesthetic foundations in ancient poetics and practices. Inspired by a rather radical interpretative development of these by Heinsius, the French playwright Pierre Corneille pursued the ambitious goal of creating an entirely new classical comedy that would not need any laughter. This article contextualizes and analyses his conception, elucidates its aesthetic underpinnings, and traces its practical realizations in order to situate this seemingly quirky aesthetic experiment in the development of comedy through the century and beyond and to affirm its value to that development. It concludes by outlining the aesthetic and dramaturgical stakes of the concept of “comedy without laughter”, designed primarily to differentiate the emerging neoclassical comedy from any old comic theatrical forms, but also to seek out and experiment with new and diverse techniques for creating comedy and generating laughter within it. The hybrid methodology of the work combines global analyses of dramatic and theoretical texts by Pierre Corneille and Heinsius, respectively, with some general statements and analytical reflections and conclusions on the establishment of the neoclassical aesthetics of comedy and the assertion and development of laughter strategies in it. The conclusion establishes the “comedy without laughter” as a non-negligible stage in the development of comedy and comic laughter in the century, which has culminated later in the works of Molière. Recognizing, understanding, and enlightening its role is important and necessary for a deeper understanding of the aesthetics of modern comedy, which have been developed since the seventeenth century and underlie contemporary comic theatrical forms as well.

Nora Helmer and Thora Helmer: Henrik Ibsen at Play with the Vaudeville

ABSTRACT This article gives evidence for considering the vaudeville genre as a factor that complicates our received understanding of the plays of Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen. It situates Ibsen’s activity as a theater practitioner in relation to both the prolific French dramatist Eugène Scribe and the Danish theater director and dramatist Johan Ludvig Heiberg, explores Ibsen’s own critical writing about the popular theater, and then traces intertextual resonances with the work of yet another Danish dramatist, Erik Bøgh. In particular, the author links Bøgh’s all-but-forgotten 1853 vaudeville, Et enfoldigt Pigebarn (A Guileless Girl) with Ibsen’s universally acclaimed modern dramas, Et Dukkehjem (1879; A Doll’s House) and Hedda Gabler (1890; Hedda Gabler). What this re-contextualization reveals, is an Ibsen who was far more oriented toward and influenced by transnational popular theater genres than previous scholarship has recognized.

Мольер на татарской сцене

In the process of the formation of the Tatar national dramatic art and the formation of the Tatar theatre, Russian and foreign classics played a significant role. The Tatar theatre turned to Western drama from the first years of its existence. Of the vast world dramatic heritage, the plays of Shakespeare, Schiller and Moliere have proven to be in particular demand. In terms of the number of appeals in this triad of the greats, Moliere is in third place, however, he is not inferior to the English and German playwrights in terms of importance for the development of the Tatar theatrical culture. Moliere stood at its origins; his plays were staged in three pre-revolutionary troupes “Sayar”, “Nur” and “Shirkat”. The French playwright made a significant influence on the formation of the comedy genre line of the young Tatar theatre. Moliere's plays remain on his posters to this day. The article examines the reception of Moliere's dramaturgy by the Tatar theatre at various stages of its development.

The concept of "absurd world" in the works of outstanding French playwrights of the first half of the 20th century. Towards the statement of the question

This article is devoted to the work of two luminaries of the French drama of the absurd – Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. It reveals the theory of the absurd by Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. The article has a plan of content and a plan of expression. The first one is mainly represented by former Soviet criticism, which, as follows from the materials of the work, proceeded from the primacy of an allegedly cheap and primitive plot. In them, the paradox itself was analyzed as something alien to great and real art. The second plan is more sober and rational. Throughout the course of the study, it was shown that the theory of the absurd by Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco cannot be indisputably understood as not requiring explanation and well-known reservations. The playwrights themselves did not abandon logic at all, they only sought it throughout their creative activity precisely in anti-logic. Hence the paradox of the French playwrights. The relevance of the chosen topic consists of several problems. Firstly, in the world philological science, it is on the material of the dramaturgy of these two writers that there are still many "white spots" that require further scientific research. Secondly, it attracts modern scientists with its unusual architectonics. The article highlights the main constituent elements of these dramas. That is, it was primarily about mixing the base with the sublime, the comic with the tragic, dividing the dramas of two writers into many diverse episodes. The dynamics of parallel actions in antidramas is noticeable, which unfold as side effects to the main thread of the plot development. Certain textual layers are derived, directly based on the quotations of the cited scientists. A clash of different points of view is given. At the same time, it is obvious that the dramas of the absurdity of these writers were aimed at modernity with their sharp edge. The relevance of the chosen topic consists of several problems. Firstly, in the world philological science, it is on the material of the dramaturgy of these two writers that there are still many "white spots" that require further scientific research. Secondly, it attracts modern scientists with its unusual architectonics. The article highlights the main constituent elements of these dramas. That is, it was primarily about mixing the base with the sublime, the comic with the tragic, dividing the dramas of two writers into many diverse episodes. The dynamics of parallel actions in anti-dramas is noticeable, which unfold as side effects to the main thread of the plot development. Certain textual layers are derived, directly based on the quotations of the cited scientists. A clash of different points of view is given. At the same time, it is obvious that the dramas of the absurdity of these writers were aimed at modernity with their sharp edge.

Translation as Metonymy: Bijan Elahi’s Persian Variation on Cyrano de Bergerac

In this article, I develop a model for world literature as a patchwork comprised of translations that cross boundaries of language, genre, style and culture. Through a close reading of the modernist Iranian poet Bijan Elahi’s (d. 2010) translations of a poem by the Sufi martyr and poet al-Ḥallāj (d. 922) and the play Cyrano de Bergerac by the French playwright Edmond Rostand (1868–1918), I demonstrate how translation can be used as a comparative method to conjoin, constellate and patch texts and ideas together regardless of their similarities or differences.

On the intertextuality of Paria [The Pariah] by Chęciński and Moniuszko

Stanisław Moniuszko’s opera about Pariah which was based on Casimire Delavigne’s tragedy from 1821, expressed the composer’s dream of creating a cosmopolitan and ‘European’ work with universal message. Usually, the researchers review this aspect from the perspective of music and culture studies, e.g. searching for a relationship between The Pariahand Moniuszko’s contemporary opera music or focusing on the 19th-century views on the effect of class inequalities and social exclusion. However, equally interesting are the diverse and complex relationships of The Pariah’s libretto with 19th-century literature, rarely taken up and investigated in the research into Moniuszko’s legacy. Jan Chęciński’s text, apart from the obvious dependence of the story and playwriting on the French playwright’s tragedy, has its theme and linguistic style deeply rooted in Polish and European 19th-century literary tradition created, among others, by Mickiewicz, Malczewski, Byron and Scribe. Given Moniuszko’s desired cosmopolitanism and universality of The Pariah, this is an issue which is undoubtedly very important.

What is a protagonist?

AbstractEarly modern French dramas c.1550–1660 stage a multitude of female figures. Two of the most popular were the Greek‐Egyptian ruler Cleopatra and the Carthaginian noblewoman Sophonisbe who all in all appear in no less than 13 French tragedies from this period including some of the period's most important ones. In this article we undertake the first comparative and structural investigation of both figures' importance within the corpus by combining computationally assisted social network analysis and traditional close reading. By defining importance quantitatively based on four centrality measurements, we substantiate recent scholarship's highlighting of early modern dramatists' gendered interest and question traditional scholarly notions of protagonism.

Theatrical Affordances to Stage the Perceived-Experienced Reality of People with Dementia: Florian Zeller’s Dramaturgy of Porosity in The Father

This article investigates how French playwright Florian Zeller positions his writing with respect to realism in his play The Father (Le Père, 2012) and what his dramaturgy of porosity adds to the representation of dementia in contemporary theatre. Through an analysis of the text of The Father and its West End theatre production (2015), this article demonstrates the ways in which this play challenges the dominant perspective in theatre that depicts dementia from the perspective of the outsiders – i.e., those who do not have dementia. On stage, the perceived reality of persons living with dementia has often been portrayed as an illusion, in contrast to the ‘true’ reality perceived by neurotypical people. This article examines how Zeller’s dramaturgy of porosity, by making the audience see the reality from the perspective of the protagonist living with dementia, generates encounters with alternative ways of perceiving and relating to the world. While drawing on theoretical discussions on neurodivergent aesthetics, this paper argues that contemporary theatre can evoke divergent consciousnesses of persons with dementia by using dramaturgical and theatrical strategies.

Colin Buchanan Radford (1931–2022)

Colin Buchanan Radford was raised by his grandparents in a modest Nottingham household. His love for French, drama, and performance was instilled by a housemaster at the school where he was educated from the age of seven, and where he became a keen cricketer and county shot-putter. He was commissioned into the Royal Artillery, and was stationed in what was known then as British Malaya. His PhD thesis, on ‘The Role of Woman in Twentieth-Century French Drama’, was completed in 1970 at Queen’s University Belfast, and he delivered his inaugural lecture, ‘A Dramatist in Search of His Public’, on Armand Salacrou, in QUB in 1975. He published a number of pieces on French theatre, and co-authored, with Christopher Shorley and Mary Hossain, Signposts to French Literature (London: Hutchinson, 1988), a wide-ranging introduction to the canonical authors of French literature, and a staple of the A-level classroom for many years. Colleagues in Queen’s remember Colin first and foremost for the major part he played in shaping French studies at Queen’s in the 1970s and 1980s, as Professor and Head of the Department of French, as Head of the newly formed School of Modern Languages in the early 1990s, and as Dean of the Faculty of Arts. He was a specialist in French drama, ahead of his time in examining the role and representation of women in French theatre, and also a pioneer in teaching twentieth-century and, in some cases, living authors. For Colin, French drama was not just an academic pursuit: he was synonymous with, and widely remembered for, the ‘French play’ — produced in the Group Theatre, Belfast, and elsewhere. He spearheaded the production of plays by experimental writers such as Jean Anouilh, Jean Cocteau, and Eugène Ionesco. He is particularly fondly remembered as an inspiring director who instinctively understood how theatre worked: he was able to nurture the talents of even reserved students, and knew how to captivate an audience confronted with challenging, and even uncomfortable, dramatic materials.

Jak przekładać „wielkich”? Polscy tłumacze wobec mistrzów francuskiego klasycyzmu

How to Translate“the Great”? Polish Translators and the Masters of French Classicism: A Review of Michał Bajer’s Klasycyzm. Przekład. Prestiż (2020) Michał Bajer’s book offers an interesting approach to older translations. The author discusses Polish renderings of Corneille’s and Racine’s tragedies in the broadly defined Enlightenment (1740–1830). He looks at the translations from three perspectives: analysing changes at the level of rhetoric, at the level of poetics, and examining the paratextual influences, i.e., the critics’ statements with regard to both original texts and translations. The discourse is set in a historical, literary, and social context, in which the French playwrights appear as models of the classicist perfection of style, an object of imitation, which, however, undergoes constant negotiation on the part of the translators. The book proposes an interesting combination of literary, philological, and sociological tools to create a multi-layered picture of the Polish reception of the two authors.

Российское литературоведение ХХ века о комедии Мольера «Мизантроп»

The article addresses the reception of J.-B. Moliere’s comedy “The Misanthrope” (1666) by the Russian literary critics of the 20th century, reflected in monographs, academic publications, textbook, articles and the scientific apparatus to the complete works of the great French playwright. The reason of this persistent interest to this play is determined by two essential factors: its ambiguity and its influence on A. S. Griboyedov’s comedy “Woe from Wit”. The author of the article traces the transformation of the researchers’ evaluations, ranging from the pre-revolutionary period and up to the latest reviews. It is stated that the reception of “The Misanthrope” can be generally traced back to the ideas of A. N. Veselovsky, the founder of the Russian studies of Moliere. Having been perceived controversially by the closest followers of the scientist, they became ideological in the works of the Soviet researchers of the 1930–1940s, then they were in the focus of attention of the literary critics of the middle of the century and were further developed in the studies of the turn of the 20th – 21st centuries. Addressing “The Misanthrope”, the Russian researchers of the French literature of the 17th century focus on the distinguishing features of the comic, on the biographical basis of the play, on the system of images, prototypes of the main character and the essence of his conflict with the society. They invariably concentrate on the issue of the author’s viewpoint, and on the question of who Moliere sides with – Alceste or Philinte. The carried-out analysis shows that the research thought has changed from the biographical, social and political interpretation of the comedy “The Misanthrope” to refocusing on ethical issues. It appears that, despite the importance of all of these aspects, clearly significant for the comprehension of the play, a cultural studies approach, characteristic for the French literary studies and based on the most recent studies of the gallant epoch, will facilitate a more sensible perception of the play.

Themes of Christian Spirituality, New Plastic Forms and Perception of Visual Formulas in the XXth Century French Musical and Theatrical Works

For the first time, the author of this article considered a set of themes related to Christian spirituality in the works by P. Claudel, A. Honegger and O. Messiaen which were created for the XXth century French synthetic theater and offered a new reading into the holiness and Christian behavior. New plastic forms of stage movement and dance, which depicted modern ways of organizing stage space, have been defined as an integral part of French works for musical theatre. What has also been found is the results of perceiving visual formulas in some of the XIIIth and XVth cenury paintings. Special plastic forms, which are subject to the laws of dance, shaped about a concept of "dancing form" in the XXth century French musical and theatrical works. In synthetic musical and theatrical works, a game of form, proportions, light and color was designed. Some XXth century French playwrights and musicians perceiving visual formulas in the XIIIth and XVth century paintings led to expanding the range of interacting elements pertaining to various arts in several musical and theatrical works. Those by P. Claudel, A. Honegger and O. Messiaen play a significant role on the stage and reveal both a “considerate attitude towards the past” and “mediation with modern life”, as H. G. Gadamer said.

The Commonplacing of Professional Plays Revisited: Print, Theater, and Early Modern Institutional Exchange

In early 1600, William Holme would have seemed unlikely to be the stationer who would soon transform the publication of early modern drama. Over the course of a ten-year career, through 1599, he had sold just thirteen titles, none of which he reprinted and none of which was a play. But that would soon change. On April 8, 1600, Holme entered Ben Jonson’s Every Man Out of His Humour in the Stationers’ Register, and published the first edition shortly thereafter.1 This playbook changed the way in which the book trade printed and sold early modern drama, and not only because the claim on its title page that it contained “more than hath been Publickely Spoken or Acted” was unprecedented among the era’s professional vernacular playbooks.2Every Man Out also inaugurated the practice of publishing professional vernacular drama with printed commonplace markers, the full-line font change or marginal commas (sometimes inverted) used to signal aphoristic, extractable wisdom. Prior to 1600, commonplace markers had appeared in translations of classical and French drama and in vernacular nonprofessional plays and nondramatic literature. But no professional vernacular playbook featured printed commonplace markers until Every Man Out’s first quarto. It was thus Holme who published what was, in the spring of 1600, one of early modern London’s most innovative playbooks.

Looking In and Shouting Out: Gendered Perspectives on the Convent in Gouges, Diderot, and Théron

This article argues that the gendered differences present in eighteenth-century French convent literature are put forth by two interconnected factors: (1) the ways in which the author understands and critiques the structure and function of monastic confinement and (2) the mechanism that drives the text forward, namely voice, gaze, or embodiment. Close readings of Olympe de Gouges’s Le Couvent ou les voeux forcés and Denis Diderot’s La Religieuse serve to demonstrate that the authors’ critiques of the convent space are not only present in their plots, but also replicated in the very form of their writing. These Enlightenment texts are juxtaposed with a 2012 theatrical adaptation of Diderot’s La Religieuse staged by French playwright Anne Théron, allowing for an investigation of how the mechanism propelling the work develops or persists when the authorial voice is altered across time and gender.

The image of Joan of Arc in the play “The Lark” by Jean Anouy

The subject of the analysis in this article is the play “The Lark” by the French playwright Jean Anouilh. This play is one of the most striking attempts of the French writer to draw the ideal of a person. The object of the study is the originality of the presentation of the image of Joan of Arc. Techniques and ways of creating a positive character in a dramatic work are being clarified. The author shows the transformation of the image of the main character in world literature. The author analyzes the originality of artistic solutions and the role of tradition in the structure of this tragedy. The scientific novelty of this article consists in the fact that the play "The Lark" was practically not subjected to serious analysis. The author of the article comes to the conclusion that the originality of the image of the main character has put Jean Anouilh in front of a difficult problem of understanding the image not just as a national ideal, but also as a human ideal in general. The French playwright creates an original interpretation of the life and deeds of Joan of Arc. To do this, on the one hand, he turns to the tradition of the ancient Greek theater, essentially recreating the ancient choir on the stage, on the other hand, he actively uses discoveries in the field of literature of the twentieth century: violation of the chronotope, ambivalence of heroes, etc. A special contribution of the author to the study is the analysis of the image of Joan of Arc as a positive heroine of universal scale.

B-M. Koltès’in Batı Rıhtımı oyununda zıt örgenler

Bernard-Marie Koltès, 20. yüzyılın son çeyreğine damgasını vuran, eski ile yeniyi harmanlayarak kendine özgü biçemiyle, kendi orijinal tiyatro dilini oluşturan, dünyada en çok gösterimi yapılan Fransız oyun yazarıdır. Eski ve yeni bileşiminde olduğu gibi zıt yapıları aynı bünyede taşıyan niteliğinden dolayı çağdaş bir klasik olarak kabul edilen Koltès’in tiyatrosunun en önemli özelliklerinden biri zıtlıkların sergilendiği diyalektik yapısıdır. En kolay yazdığı şeyin diyalektik tarz olduğunu kendi de dile getiren yazar, olguları somuttan soyuta, soyuttan somuta gelgitli biçimde oluştururken, sanatın görevinin cevap vermek değil, soru sordurmak olduğu düşünce ediminden hareketle zıt kutupların aynı anda konuşlandırılmasının ortaya çıkardığı açıklık/kapalılık kontrastının çift etkisinden yararlanarak bir tür farkındalık oluşturur. Böylece kendi değer yargılarını dayatmadan izleyicinin veya okuyucunun kendi çıkarımını kendinin yapmasına aracılık ettiği bir tiyatro evreni sunar. B-M. Koltès’in Batı Rıhtımı adlı oyununun da ortaya koyduğu bu karışık ve çelişik evrendeki zıtlıkları incelediğimiz bu çalışmada, karşıtların birliği olarak tanımlanan, bir şeyin hem kendisi hem de kendisinden başka bir şey olması durumuyla açıklanan, tez-antitez-sentez uğraklarından oluşan diyalektik yöntem kullanılmıştır. Öncelikle ilk çağdan günümüze kadar değişik anlam evrelerinden geçen diyalektik felsefe kuramından bahsedilmiş, sonra da oyunun örgüsünde ön plana çıkan düalist örgenler negatif ve pozitif yönsemeleriyle ele alınarak alımlama-yorumsama-çıkarsama bakış açısıyla değerlendirilmiştir.

Shaw’s Criticism and Philosophy Dramatized

Shaw’s Criticism and Philosophy Dramatized

Angoisse(s) salacrienne(s). Réappropriation de motifs expressionnistes dans L’Archipel Lenoir et Histoire de rire d’Armand Salacrou

Salacrou’s anguish. Reappropriation of some expressionist motifs in L’Archipel Lenoir and Histoire de rire by Armand Salacrou This paper aims to highlight the exploitation of some expressionist motifs in two plays by the French playwright Armand Salacrou (1899-1989), L’Archipel Lenoir and Histoire de rire throughout the painting of a metaphysical anxiety. In those pieces we can see realisation of such expressionist concepts as the war of brains (bataille des cerveaux), irradiation of the author’s I which conditions an antinaturalistic and caricatured expression of anxiety in an axiologically misstructured world. We can also appreciate elaboration of the expressionist motif of psychological murder which is an illustration of empoisoned relations between man and woman who do seek to destruct and moulder each other.