Bertolt Brechts View on the Function of Theatre

Bertolt Brechts View on the Function of Theatre Bertolt Brechts view on the function of theatre was that it should provoke its audience to change. The epic theatre, Karl Marx and German directors Max Reinhardt and Erwin Piscator were all inspiration for Brechts theory on the social function of theatre. (2004: 709) Brechts essays Theatre for Pleasure or Theatre for Instruction and The Modern Theatre is the Epic Theatre clearly outline his understanding of what epic theatre is and how it should be used in practice. In both essays, Brecht explains what makes the epic theatre different from modern and dramatic theatre and discusses the techniques available with epic theatre and the effects they can have on the audience. When comparing his play Mother Courage and Her Children to the two essays, it is clear that Brecht has used the essays almost as guidelines to write the play and put his theories on epic theatre into practice. Mother Courage and Her Children is an extremely typical Brechtian play as it contains all the elements that Brecht wanted to include in his plays in order to present his new form of theatre which he believed had a greater social function. One of the most obvious examples of Brechts essays being put into practice in Mother Courage and Her Children is Brechts use of narrative instead of the plot. Each scene begins with a narrative description of what will happen in that scene, and the play itself starts with a prologue which introduces the central character (Mother Courage) and reveals what the play is about. Despite the fact that there is a storyline running through the play, the narrative style ties in with Brechts aim of not giving the audience the chance to become emotionally attached to the characters. The way in which the play jumps with each scene keeps the storyline general and tied more to the greater social events running throughout the play rather than single, individual events in a particular scene. Having spent much of his life in Germany and experiencing two world wars, it should come as no surprise that many of Brechts plays, including Mother Courage and Her Children, feature war as the overriding theme of the play. Brecht believed that war was a continuation of business by other means. †¦ Brechts theory on theatre meant that he did not want his audience to emotionally empathise with the characters on stage. In fact, Brecht deliberately created characters which would be subject to criticism from the audience. In order to invite this active rather than passive response from the audience, to provoke a reaction, Brecht instils traits in his characters which tend to make the audience not identify with them, but criticise them. Mother Courage is portrayed as a strong, witty, formidable woman whose sole purpose is to provide a living for both herself and her children. She is a sacrificial character and her love for her children draws an audience to like her. What prevents the audience from empathising with her is her extremely contradictory nature. Whilst pulling out a knife at the Sergeant and Recruiting Officer to protect her children, Courage calls refers to herself and her children as peaceable sorts. The Sergeants cool reply of your knife shows the sort you are further displays Courages contradictions. (Brecht 2004: 715) When sending her daughter Kattrin into town with the Clerk, Courage tells her not to worry and that nothing will happen, but upon Kattrins return where she is wounded, Courage claims she should never have let her go. When arguing with the Cook over a possible move to Utrecht, Courage tries to end the conversation with thats enough, only to continue it herself moments later. In the same scene, Courage encourages Kattrin for the two to go with the Cook to run his pub in Utrecht because life on the road is no sort of life, but after she sees Kattrin trying to run away she quickly turns on the Cook and questions what she and Kattrin would ever do in a pub. Of course the greatest contradiction of all throughout the play is Courages constant criticism of the war off of which she makes her living. It is this contradictory nature of Courages which constantly reminds the audience to view the character from a distance, analyse her so to spe ak, and not empathise with her situation. Had Mother Courage been presented as a fully-rounded character, the audience would have been tempted to empathise; but her presentation as a paradoxical character helps to jolt the audience into some kind of reaction. (Leach 1994: 136) Mother Courage is not the only character in the play that is given a specific trait to keep the audience empathising and becoming emotionally involved with her. Her sons Eilif and Swiss Cheese are both killed in the play, and it is because of their flaws that they are killed. Her eldest son, Eilif, is strong and intelligent, but his boldness costs him his life. Her younger son, Swiss Cheese, is simple and honest, but he too is led to his death because of his stupidity. The audience are constantly reminded throughout the play by Mother Courage that her children have these traits. I have another who is foolish but honest is just one example of Brecht giving Mother Courage a specific line for two reasons: both to remind the audience of the paradoxes each character possesses, to stop them from being empathised with, and to support the epic idea of the play that each scene should be its own. It is frequently seen in Brechts plays for an off-stage characters absence to be explained throu gh an on-stage characters dialogue. (ref) Robert Leach argues that for Brecht, character is only of interest in so far as it illuminates the fleeting event which provides the writer, or the actor, with a usable gesture. What Leach is saying is that for Brecht, the character is only a function to the greater social and economical forces which control and shape the world (within the constructed reality that are his plays), and that the actors, whilst portraying characters, can use them as tools to show the effect of these greater social implications. This can be linked to Brechts observation in the essay Theatre for Pleasure or Theatre for Instruction that actors too refrained from going over wholly into their role in the sense that not only did actors do so to invite criticism from the audience of their characters, not only to draw attention away from the individual and place it on the social, but to also show that the characters are simply functional to the social. Another one of Brechts main aims was to not focus on the individual emotions of the character, but to explore and show the importance of the greater social implications. In Mother Courage and Her Children, emphasis is not put on the decisions the characters make but the social events which dictate the action of the play. War, religion and family are three main themes which run through Mother Courage and Her Children, and ultimately the fate of each character is determined by these themes. Unlike naturalistic plays where emphasis is usually placed on the individual, in Mother Courage and Her Children Brecht focuses on the relationship between the social implications and the characters of the play. All of the characters in the play are linked together by these themes, and their inability to change their individual (or in the case of Courage and her children, combined) situations. (Examples) Brecht has created Mother Courage as the central character of the play, but because it is not on ly her, but all the characters that are affected by the war, the spectators focus is neither on the central character Mother Courage nor any of the character. The spectators focus is drawn, by linking the characters and making them unable to change their situations, to the superseding social themes presented in the play. Brecht liked the notion that epic theatre allowed for jumps in time, and this is reflected in Mother Courage and Her Children. There is a jump in time between each scene of the play, usually a year or two, and the constant curves and jumps in the play the dialectic approach allow for Brecht to show a process and effects over time rather than one particular point of time and its individual effect on characters. (Brooker 1994: 189) These jumps in time also allow the play to be epic in the sense that they allow each scene to stand independently. The jumps in time also go hand-in-hand with Brechts idea that with epic theatre, the audience should be looking with eyes on the course rather than eyes on the finish. Swiss Cheeses death and Mother Courages refusal to admit the body is his is one of the most intense moments of the entire play, but it comes as early as Scene Three. Also, the jumps in time show man as a process rather than man as a fixed point. Rather than focusing on the centr al character (Mother Courage) at one particular point, Brecht draws out the play so that the audience view Courages process and development as a character subject to the social and political circumstances. The end of the play sees Mother Courage, now completely alone; walk with soldiers who are singing the same song that is sung in the prologue, reminding the audience of the process that has begun from the very beginning of the play and the effect it has had throughout. The jumps in time between each scene of Mother Courage and Her Children are typical of Brechts aim to get the audience to look at the events that have taken place from a more general period of time rather than a specific point. One of the key parts of Brechts theory on theatre was that the audience should constantly know that what they are watching is not reality but a construction being presented on stage. By doing so, Brecht could show to his audience that what they were watching was not reality but a presented image of reality, and that could inspire change. To this end Brecht used several techniques in many of his plays (including Mother Courage and Her Children) which allowed him to reveal that the play was indeed a construction. A typical Brechtian technique used in the play is the use of stage directions at the start of each scene, which then reveal what is going to happen in that scene. By using these stage directions (either spoken aloud or displayed with placards on stage) Brecht is able to both remind his audience that what they are watching is a construction. Also, by telling the audience what will happen before it happens, Brecht can eliminate the shock factor, thus keeping the audience away fr om having an experience and focused on learning from the action on stage. Openly revealing that the play is not real allows Brecht to prevent any sense of emotional attachment to the piece. This can be linked to Brechts essay The Modern Theatre is The Epic Theatre where he says: †¦once illusion is sacrificed to free discussion, and once the spectator, instead of being enabled to have an experience, is forced as it were to cast his vote; then a change has been launched which goes far beyond formal matters and begins for the first time to affect the theatres social function. Brecht states in his essay The Modern Theatre is Epic Theatre that words, music and setting must become more independent of one another. (reference) This statement is echoed in Mother Courage and Her Children as Brecht uses not only dialogue and stage directions but songs and music in the play, and makes sure that the songs used are seen on an equal level to the other elements such as words. In fact, Scene Ten of the play is constructed entirely of only a few stage directions and song. By giving the songs such importance in the play, on the same level as stage directions and dialogue, Brecht implements his idea into practice, showing that he has used his two essays almost as guidelines for writing Mother Courage and Her Children. Songs are also used in the play to fit in with Brechts theory that plays should not be presented to the audience as reality, but as a construction. The direct delivery of a song from a character to the audience, thus breaking the fourth wall, is one of the w ays in which the audience is reminded that they are indeed watching a play. The songs also tend to reflect the social and political themes of the play and inspire the audience to think about what they are watching. Looking at Theatre for Pleasure or Theatre for Instruction and The Modern Theatre is the Epic Theatre in comparison with Mother Courage and Her Children, it is clear to see that the play falls into all of the categories that Brecht lists in his two essays for his theory on the function of theatre. Throughout the play the focus is taken away from the characters individual emotions and drawn to the greater social and political forces which affect the characters. The play is used as a discussion forum of sorts for some of the common Brechtian themes such as war, religion and family. The use of non-naturalist techniques such as placards and songs helps to break the illusion that the audience creates and prevents them from developing empathy for and emotional attachment to the characters. The jumps in time between each scene of the play keep the audiences focus on the process over time and not at a fixed point. Mother Courage and Her Children is without question of Brechts most typical pl ays and it is clear to see his essays Theatre for Pleasure or Theatre for Instruction and The Modern Theatre is the Epic Theatre have been put into practice to create the play and inspire the audience to change, rather than experience.

Free Essays on Crime and Punishment - Suffering, Death, and Resurrectio

Crime and Punishment -   Suffering, Death, and Resurrection Fyodor Dostoevsky wrote the novel, Crime and Punishment, during a turbulent time in Russian history. Yet his work will speaks to any age. Dostoevsky   wrote to warn against what he considered the negative effects of the trend of nihilism and rational egoism. He advances this objective by employing themes of suffering, resurrection, and death--all of these currents running through a surprisingly benevolent universe.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If Dostoevsky's fellow Russian Marx was correct in stating that religion is the opiate of the people, then suffering is the proverbial needle that injects it into a person. Suffering is the dominant theme of this work. It twists and contorts itself into so many aspects of the story, that any other classification of it would simply not do it justice. Immediately following Raskolnikov's crime, he begins to suffer. The inadvertent death of Lizaveta is a crushing blow to his conscience. Dostoevsky is conveying his message: a wanton act will lead to a deluge of suffering. A theory is no protection fro...

Training Evaluation

Employee training programs in an organization are very important, they provide a focused training to employees who are either one time basis or a recurring basis. Training programs in an organization can either be developed in-house or the organization can opt to attend programs which are more generic such as colleges, universities or attend training centers, (Sims, 2002). Ryan door should come up with a training program which is whole and looks to all the details of the company. The first step that Ryan should take is to ensure that training provides employees with skills and knowledge necessary for succeeding in their jobs. This should entail provision of training manuals which show all the requirements for the position that the person is about to take and the manuals are up to date with current required knowledge for the position since they keep on changing from time to time. According (Lawson, 2002), new employees should receive a formal training method which is either in-house or from external sources where they an attend seminars because they are more professional and informed. The person leaving the position should not train the new employee because the same mistakes which the person was committing will probably be passed on. Also read: Training and Development of KFC Employees who had help the position before do not have enough knowledge about the position therefore they should also not be used. Second step is to improvise a well structured plan which starts by reviewing company's objectives and evaluating whether the existing training program covers the objectives and if not, decide on the additional training needed to match company needs and employee needs and close the gap. In this case therefore, it is clear that the employees of Ryan door lack enough skills in their jobs and additional training should be provided to employees in the door-design department. This can be done by taking them on step by step door production process, encouraging them to work with the architects and clearly be taught on the specifications and proportions which they need to used so that wastage of resources can be minimized and losses avoided. Ryan should also come up with a simpler way of preparing customers orders, this can be done by ensuring that the orders are clear and the employees knows the different customers available as well what should be filled in the form. New employees on the job should be provided with good training from a formal source which either in built or external. According to (Sims, 2002), the training should not only be based on the position which the person is taking in the organization but rather, they should be diverged to a variety of topics which are associated to the entire work environment. These diverse topics should address cases such as communication. This is where the employees are trained on how well they can communicate either with their co-workers, immediate supervisors or the upper management about issues affecting them. Ryan door should therefore provide efficient and effective communication systems so that instead of employees doing their work contrary to what the president wants, they can communicate their problems and therefore ease the arguments which occur between the president, supervisors and employees. Another topic to be trained on is on quality initiatives and customer service initiative. Ryan employees should be trained on how to come up with quality products for the customers so that they can get quality service for their money. Other topics should include safety, sexual harassment and computer skills among others, (Noe, 1998). Third is to ensure that employees should be trained differently depending on the position and the work which he/she is going to do. Ryan should come up with a training procedure which focuses on independent persons and requirements for their posts. For example, persons working with the machines should be given training which is practical and shows them how to run the machines, for secretaries, they should be shown how to attend to the president and the visitors and does not necessarily need to be practical. This therefore shows that the employees need to be trained differently because the job requirements are different. After all this is provided in the training, Ryan should develop a training rollout plan for the organization. This is meant to ensure that the training program is effective and efficient and can be used in future training of employees. The rollout plan should include project planning, project commencement, implementation and its control. It is clear from the training program in Ryan that the training does not meet the needs for the position that is given to them. Ryan therefore should evaluate their training program to check whether it has been effective, this can be done by giving the trainees some chores related to the training which they have undertaken and check whether they are able to carry them out. If yes, the training program will be good and should be adopted otherwise any problem should be looked into and the style changed to ensure good results. The trainees should then be provided with a certificate of participation which is meant to recognize their efforts they have applied during training. In conclusion, Ryan needs to evaluate their training program timely and severally and the employees should also be evaluated by comparing the newly acquired skills with the skills defined in the objectives. Any discrepancies noted should be adjusted so that the program can meet the organization's goals. The president of Ryan should know that any training program fails to accomplish expectations due to failure of evaluating the process. Timely evaluation prevents training from straying from the organizations objectives and goals.

In The Second Treatise Of Government, John Locke Offers

In the Second Treatise of Government, John Locke offers a theory of human beings as owners of their own persons and labor, and of a natural right to property, which is the function of civil society to protect. In the Discourse on the Origin of Inequality, Rousseau argues that â€Å"private property is an artificial creation and the source of crimes, wars, miseries, and horrors† (Rousseau. p. 62). Locke and Rousseau have radically different conclusions after beginning from seemingly similar views on labor, property, and political power. While both provide clear views on issues of property with relation to political power, I believe that Rousseau makes a better argument because he argues for equality; he is against the privatization of property,†¦show more content†¦Part One. p. 38). There was no inequality because humans traveled to search for what they needed for survival. Unlike Locke, Rousseau criticizes Locke’s notion of the state of nature because it is dif ficult to understand the primitive state because we are so far detached from it. Rousseau understands the state of nature as being dynamic; we can only guess what the state of nature could have been like. Humans have been around institutions for so long that we do not know what it is like to be in a state of nature anymore (Rousseau. Preface. p. 33). Rousseau and Locke had different notions of the state of nature but there were some overlapping agreement on particular issues. They both agree that the land belongs to everyone but Locke introduces a theory of property being owned by man if he mixed his labor with the land. Locke believed that God gave everyone the land and that it was not to be owned by a single person but he did believe that once labor was mixed with the land, the land belonged to the person. Locke stated â€Å"†¦ he hath mixed his labor with, and joined to it something that is his own, and thereby makes it his property† (Locke. Ch. V. p. 19), meaning that he believed that labor created value which is why the land belonged to the person once someone had worked on it; it gave a right of property to those who worked the land. While he believed that worked land belonged to a person, he did notShow MoreRelatedJohn Locke s Two Treatises Of Government1345 Words   |  6 PagesInstructor: JC Boucher Date: 24 November 2016 Assignment John Locke’s Two Treatises Of Government Most scholarship that links John Locke’s ideas with eighteenth- century representations of childhood approaches children as Lockean pedagogic subjects ready for moral and intellectual education. 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