Abstract Sophocles and Brecht were playwrights separated not only by millennia of time but also by the radically different cultural and social contexts of classical Greece and 20th century Europe. This being said, the paper shows that one of the striking elements of a comparison and contrast of Sophocles' "Antigone" and Bertolt Brecht's "The Good Woman of Setzuan" is how similarly they depict the forces that constrict and define women's identities in society. The paper argues that while the primary focus of both works is not specifically related to issues of gender and women's identities, both plays represent challenges to social codes.
Abstract In this paper, two idealistic heroines are examined from Brecht's "The Good Woman of Setzuan" and Shaw's "Saint Joan."
From the Paper "The German Bertold Brecht and the Englishman George Bernard Shaw were both innovative and controversial writers who were most active during the first half of the Twentieth Century. Brecht adopted communism and Shaw espoused socialism and free love. Both were radical gadflies and social critics who shocked their contemporaries with the activist philosophies and unpopular but progressive ideas of their plays and other writings."
Abstract This paper examines how the theatre of Brecht and Naturalist theatre are very different approaches to performance. It looks at how Brecht's theatre was centred on a political agenda and designed to convey messages on that agenda whereas Naturalism is about the art itself and bringing realism to acting, not much to do with politics at all. It studies the working conventions of both Naturalism and Brecht's Epic theatre and considers whether Naturalism can fulfil some of the functions of Brecht's theatre.
From the Paper "However, in a far more subtle way, Naturalism can also make points which promote comment on the social and political status of the time, and cause reaction within an audience fuelled by these. For example, a great part of "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen is a comment on the social status of the protagonist, Nora Helmer. In a contemporary society, her situation would be considered completely normal, in that she is portrayed as a housewife and mother with little or no rights independently of her husband, and before her marriage, her father. As a woman, she was a second class citizen; whilst having just as much intelligence and common sense as her male counterparts this is smothered and repressed so that she fits the mould of the "good little wife"."
Abstract The paper discusses Bertolt Brecht's political opera, "The Threepenny Opera" which was first performed in 1928. The paper shows that during this period of time, three distinct and separate political and economical philosophies were on a collision course in Germany: fascism, socialism and communism. It shows that while Brecht was struggling to write this opera, Hitler's first attempt attempt to grab control of the government occurred in 1923 and communism was becoming popular. The paper discusses how communism is reflected in two ways: Brecht mocks both class differences and belief in God.
From the Paper "Brecht reflects elements of both socialism and communism in some points in the play, such as when Peachum is giving out licenses to beg. That the needs of the poor could be so easily corrupted seems to be a condemnation of a government that would allow people to survive by begging. Peachum uses Filch's need to be allowed to bed as a platform to criticize society's apathy toward the poor. He describes five types of human misery. Each example is a beggar harmed by something the middle and upper classes view as progress in one way or another: one is in an auto accident while another is wounded in war."
Abstract This paper examines how in his play, "Life of Galileo", Bertolt Brecht describes the ordeal the famous scientist was forced to undergo as he juggled his personal values and views against those of the mainstream society in which he lived. The paper provides a scene-by-scene examination of Brecht's original play to identify these religious and scientific conflicts, as well as Brecht's treatment of the scientist's response to these conditions.
Outline:
Review and Discussion
Conclusion
From the Paper "Scene I. Here Galileo introduces his concept of a new age of enlightened learning, where even "fishwives" will enthusiastically attend school and study advanced topics such as astronomy. Galileo states he first became aware that the Old Guard's days were numbered came when, as a young man in Siena, he watched "a group of building workers argue for five minutes, then abandon a thousand-year old method of shifting granite blocks in favour of a new and more efficient arrangement of the ropes. Then and there I knew, the old days are over and this is a new time" (7)."
Abstract An analysis of Bertolt Brecht's "Mother Courage and Her Children", this book report delves into the themes of motherly love, sacrifice, survival, courage and heroism. A close analysis of the book, the relations between the characters, and the messages that author Brecht is sending the reader, this report in particular emphasizes the strength and admirable qualities of the main protagonists.
From the Paper "Nothing tests our mettle better than adversity, and there is no adversity greater and more trying than war. This appears to underlie Bertolt Brecht's Mother Courage and Her Children, which is sharply and precisely set against the Thirty Years? War in certain parts of Sweden in 1624 and thereafter. Mother Courage's valor and grit in nurturing her children and sustaining them by keeping her selling business hefty or surviving have been told and re-told, but the undertones never wear out and continue to reverberate how this brave mother- woman- person's instinct to survive leads her to be more than herself in each stroke of tragedy. I view Brecht as proposing that the survival instinct will move a person to go quite far and do quite everything ? and anything in any way -- for those he or she loves and for himself or herself, or perish. I view Brecht's characters Mother Courage and son Eilif as standing firmly for this life as if it is all there is, and with Swiss Cheese and Kattrin doing something else out-of-time and out-of-this-world but more heroic and more memorable."
Tags: Sweden, history, Thirty Years' War, literature
Abstract This paper discusses how Bertolt Brecht is justifiably famous as one of the greatest political dramatists and whose self-contradictory Marxist didactics have made him the subject of a love-hate relationship on both sides of the Marxist divide. It explores how a detailed scrutiny of his earliest works betrays a startling cognizance of his future developments and how, despite the fact that much of his later work was a direct response to world events, one finds that their nature, and, to some degree, the events that inspired them, can be found foretold in the umbra of his origins. In particular, it looks at how the metaphors and mythologies of Brecht's first play, "Baal", both predict, foreshadow, and, to some degree, determine the political atmosphere and ramifications of his future life and body of work.
From the Paper "BAAL has also been heralded by many as a nigh-prophetic work in terms of its discussion of the logical extensions of decadence, of revolution, and of the artistic individual within the proletariat mass. This play addresses issues that would not be entirely raised until after the 2nd World War and not fully understood until well into the Cold Wars. Some insight into the way in which Brecht's earliest work addresses issues budding at the time of his death can be seen by comparing the original BAAL to a latter-day reworking of the play called The Dream Engine (a radical anarchist piece released at Amherst College in 1969 and heralded by some as the first true rock opera)."
Bertolt Brecht's 'The Good Woman of Setzuan' portrays the struggle to be good while living in a corrupt society and the delicate balance needed to survive within it.
Abstract An analysis of Bertolt Brecht's play 'The Good Woman of Setzuan'. Throughout the play Shen Te juggles her promise to be good with the necessity to be bad. The author finds through the protagonist and the creation of her doppelganger, 'The Good Woman of Setzuan' portrays the struggle to be good while living in a corrupt society, and the delicate balance needed to survive within it as seen in Shen Te's struggle as a good woman leading the life of a prostitute.
From the Paper "Shen Te, a good woman, a prostitute, and the only one willing to take three gods into her home is rewarded with 1000 silver dollars, with which she is to "above all be good"(712). This mission tears her in two. Shen Te and her doppelganger Shui Ta are in a delicate balance of power. Shen Te needs to keep her promise to the gods by being a good woman, helping those around her in need. Because Shen Te is too good, those she helps threaten to ruin her own survival. To remain a good woman Shen Te must create someone to fight for her. Like parents, both Shui Ta and Shen Te make up the whole of one unit. Shen Te is a nurturing, sweet mother-type while Shui Ta becomes a strict, disciplinarian, father-type. Through the protagonist and the creation of her doppelganger, Brecht's The Good Woman of Setzuan portrays the struggle to be good while living in a corrupt society, and the delicate balance needed to survive within it."
Abstract In this essay, the writer analyzes the different forms and purposes of theater offered by Antonin Artaud and Bertolt Brecht in their works and philosophies. The writer discusses the purpose and goals of the two playwrights and their impact on audiences.
From the Paper "The theater of Antonin Artaud and Bertolt Brecht is radically different with respect to the purpose and goals of the respective playwrights with respect to the impact of their works on audiences and society. If Artaud's theater of cruelty and Brecht's epic theater are distinct then so are their goals for audience impact. Artaud hoped by showing images of man's cruelty to man, audience members would experience a form of delirium whereby they would experience trances and inspiration leading to personal change ... "
Tags: Epic Theater, theater of cruelty, individual, society, truth, psyche, illusion, social change, revolution, interaction, audience
Abstract This paper explains that "The Monster" by Bertolt Brecht tells an important story about human nature through the use of elements such as plot and relationships. The author points out that the plot is important as the impact of the story is heavily dependent upon its structure and, in particular, upon its conclusion. The paper relates that, in a similar way, it is the relationships between the characters in the story that, reinforced by plot, convey the story's theme about human nature.
From the Paper "The short story "The Monster" tells an important story about human nature through the use of elements such as plot and relationships. As this answer shows, plot is important as the impact of the story is heavily dependent upon its structure and, in particular, upon its conclusion. In a similar way, it is the relationships between the characters in the story that, reinforced by plot, convey the story's theme about human nature. In outline, the story tells of an event at a Russian film studio where a film is being made of a horrible event in Russia's past in which a bloodthirsty governor - the "monster" of the story's title - was responsible for the deaths of many Russian Jews."
Abstract In this article, the writer discusses Bertolt Brecht's play 'Life of Galileo', which presents the life of the famous astronomer, Galileo Galilei. The writer maintains that Brecht's play displays the negative results of Galileo's recantation by revealing personal, political, and economic effects. The writer argues that Galileo made the wrong decision when he recanted his teachings. The writer believes that had Galileo maintained his views, science would have gained an important precedent of upholding ethical standards. The writer agrees with Brecht and further believes that Galileo's recantation dealt a serious blow to the cause of science.
From the Paper "Galileo's discoveries completely flip the worldview of the day. Up to now, people have believed in the old books of Aristotle without questioning their validity. But with the discovery of the earth's motion, everything and anything that can be doubted is doubted. Truths that were universally accepted as true are being brought into question, while a search for new truths has begun. When he says that people are moving along with the earth, he is also saying that people can now be free from the oppression of the church. He ends the speech by claiming that these new ideas are the beginning of a new era. These radical new ideas and ways of thinking bring with them a sense of hope for mankind."
Abstract In this article, the writer looks at the issue of realism in drama, according to Gertrude Stein and Bertolt Brecht, in relation to Stein's play "Dr. Faustus Lights the Light" and August Strindberg's "The Ghost Sonata". The writer focuses on their views regarding realism and concludes that perhaps both Stein and Brecht are advocating alienation as a way of bridging the initial gap between the stage and the spectator in order to bring realism into sharper focus. The writer maintains that Brecht did it epically, while Stein did it psychologically.
From the Paper "Since there is an unavoidable gap between what one experiences in real life and what one anticipates on the stage, the actual present can never be really done on stage. Therefore realism isn't really real, only a fiction of reality. What one sees in the realism of "The Ghost Sonata" is a staid, set environment rather than an acting platform. The plot is very well set out, it leads us on without giving anything away, there are expected and logical reversals (and vice versa), the characters conform to the dress and modes of the period, the characters evoke our empathy or revulsion, and there is usually a social or moral message implicit in the play. We recognize those emotions and values to which we can relate or have experienced."
Abstract This paper shows how the key to understanding Brecht's "Der gute Mensch von Sezuan" and its place in the development of Epic Theatre is to understand the way in which he uses songs and poetic language throughout the action of the play. At certain significant moments, the actors break into song, or speak in blank verse, a style vastly different from their characteristic mode of expression. The essay's discussion of these moments, and explanation of their function within Brecht's dramatic theory, will enable the reader to fully understand the play and its importance. The essay concentrates fully on the text of the work rather than reworking critical literature on the subject.
From the Paper "As well as the five songs, on around twenty-five occasions the play is "interrupted" by excerpts of free verse, lacking rhyme and meter but distinct in style and vocabulary from the character's normal speech. These interludes form a framework of comment and reflection embracing the action of the play and are usually directed to the audience rather than to the other characters. This commentary intertwined with the action of the play force the audience to consider it immediately whilst still under the direct influence of the playwright instead of reflecting on it later and at a distance. The characters are more perceptive in this altered mood and provide the audience with insight into their behavior, and for this reason as well as because the action of the play is interrupted, the songs and heightened lyrical passages are also an important part of Brecht's Verfremdungeffekt (estrangement effect). The fact that several of the characters break into song at different points in the play is an anti-naturalistic device and the elevated language is also clearly not spontaneous or believable dialogue. Some of the dialogue and songs also have a persuasive function, serving Brechts interests. Many of them could stand alone, indeed some did before Brecht appropriated them for his work, and are simple and memorable excerpts that the audience could take home from the theatre."
Examines National Socialism's effect on ordinary life in Germany during the rise of Hitler to power, using Brecht's "Fear and Misery of the Third Reich" as a reference.
2,150 words (approx. 8.6 pages), 7 sources, 2002, $ 80.95
Abstract "Fear and Misery of the Third Reich" was written by Brecht in the late 1930's and completed shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War. In a series of twenty-four self-contained scenes or 'playlets', he purported to chronicle the period between Hitler's installation as German Chancellor in January 1933 and the Nazi entry into Vienna following the Anschluss with Austria in 1938. Brecht's aim was to demonstrate how deeply and disastrously National Socialism had effected ordinary life in Germany during this period. As he himself described it, this play is, "...a catalogue of attitudes, the attitudes of keeping silent, looking over one's shoulder, feeling frightened etc. - behavior in a dictatorship".
This paper compares two anti-war authors: German playwright Bertolt Brecht in "Mother Courage and Her Children" and English poet Wilfred Owen's "Anthem for Doomed Youth".
Abstract This paper explains that German playwright Bertolt Brecht and English poet Wilfred Owen were both deeply personally impacted by war and both felt the need to express their anti-war sentiments and beliefs in their work. The author points out that, in Owen's anti-war poetry, war has destroyed an age of innocence; he express frustration about (1) innocent soldiers hardened by war and eventually killed in many cases, (2) the attitudes of civilians back home and (3) the way many simply ignored the tragic nightmare of the war. The paper relates that Brecht's perspective on war is similar to Owen's in that he is very anti-war; however, his perspective differs because he does not view civilians as ignorant but rather as interested in prolonging the war for their profit.
From the Paper "Owen's poem appears to be inspired by the many deaths of soldiers he saw each day in the trenches of war. He starts the poem off, describing innocent young men being sent to war like cattle are sent to slaughter. He abandons his original views of war as heroic and glorious, and describes it as one large funeral where young soldiers are not given a proper goodbye. Instead of the typical church bells that are sounded when someone dies under ordinary circumstances, there are only the sounds of gunshots when a soldier dies, he writes."
