This essay analyses escape artistry and its relation to body and mind. Drawing mainly from Finnish escape artist Uno Sunell’s life and advertisements for circus and vaudeville, escape artistry is analysed in relation to two themes: body – mind, and disenchantment – sense of wonder. The theoretical framework consists of modern performance theory influenced by Asian cultural traditions, combined with Deleuze’s and Guattari’s concept Body without Organs. The analysis is divided into two main parts. The first part shows how escape artistry incorporates spiritualistic and exotic elements in the performance, how it addresses contemporary ideals of masculinity, and how it makes use of pain to inspire a sense of wonder in the audience. The second part is a reflection on escape artistry in relation to its historical context, focusing on the biography of escape artist Uno Sunell. Here, the relationship between individual and stage persona is discussed in relation to mental and physical illness, authorities and disciplinary institutions, and the economic strains on the travelling entertainer.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:sh-48466 |
| Date | January 2021 |
| Creators | Hiort af Ornäs, Alice |
| Publisher | Södertörns högskola, Institutionen för historia och samtidsstudier |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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