"Secret, Black, and Midnight Hags": The Conception, Presentation and Functions of Witches in English Renaissance DramaThe present dissertation analyses the conception, depiction and functions of witch figures in English Elizabethan and Jacobean drama including their relevant predecessors and successors until the closing of the theatres in 1642. The focus is on malevolent female figures who are linked to black magic and partly prove their supernatural powers on the stage. The applied methodology of analysis has been developed from Manfred Pfister's set of criteria in Das Drama. In the first part of the investigation, the field of witchcraft is essentially described in its cultural and historical context. After a close examination of the witch figures in the main part it becomes evident that figures based on real-life models are generally conceived as more individual, complex and dynamic than those who are partly derived from classical and literary sources. Figures in drama without any connection with real-life trials generally represent the archetypal and universally valid idea of evil that could have never been communicated with the same intensity by old, lonely and isolated women in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century England. In conclusion it should be noted that witch figures in less-known plays deserve more critical attention than they received in the past, and the majority of figures in well-known plays merit reconsideration and reveal new approaches to their interpretation. |
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Página 132
148 – 56 ) Sir Arthur is here reminded of his shameful and sinful behaviour , and
he leaves in distress and fear of further discoveries made by Mother Sawyer . It is
a psychologically highly interesting sequence because it shows how Sir Arthur ...
148 – 56 ) Sir Arthur is here reminded of his shameful and sinful behaviour , and
he leaves in distress and fear of further discoveries made by Mother Sawyer . It is
a psychologically highly interesting sequence because it shows how Sir Arthur ...
Página 139
The Conception, Presentation and Functions of Witches in English Renaissance
Drama Dietmar Tatzl. Mother Sawyer projects her anger on an old adversary who
wronged her in the past . The effect of Dog ' s action becomes evident , since ...
The Conception, Presentation and Functions of Witches in English Renaissance
Drama Dietmar Tatzl. Mother Sawyer projects her anger on an old adversary who
wronged her in the past . The effect of Dog ' s action becomes evident , since ...
Página 344
This selection of terms implies a radical contempt for Mother Sawyer and does
not only relate her to witchcraft but also to lechery . In view of the moral condition
of society , it is revealing that the diabolical lust which is shown in the first act is ...
This selection of terms implies a radical contempt for Mother Sawyer and does
not only relate her to witchcraft but also to lechery . In view of the moral condition
of society , it is revealing that the diabolical lust which is shown in the first act is ...
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Índice
Introduction | 1 |
Witchcraft in the European Context | 13 |
Malevolent Witches in English Renaissance Drama | 55 |
Direitos de autor | |
Palavras e frases frequentes
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