The Dynamics of Role-playing in Jacobean Tragedy
Author | : Joan Lord Hall |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : 260 |
Release | : 1991 |
ISBN-10 | : UCSC:32106010396627 |
ISBN-13 | : |
Rating | : 4/5 (27 Downloads) |
Download or read book The Dynamics of Role-playing in Jacobean Tragedy written by Joan Lord Hall and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jacobean actors fascinated audiences with their convincingly mimetic performances; often they appeared to assume the identities of the fictional characters they impersonated. A similar dynamic emerges in several tragedies of the period, where dramatic characters are frequently changed--for better or worse--by the roles they adopt within the play illusion. This study discusses how certain plays of Jonson and Middleton reveal the destructive consequences of assuming new personae; how three of Shakespeare's tragedies explore the ambivalent results of characters' experimentation with roles; and how Webster and Ford treat role-playing (including ceremonial behavior) creatively, as a vehicle for expressing and consolidating the dramatic self.