This study aims to investigate and directorially apply Antonin Artaud's concept
of The Absolute in order to destabilise the victim/perpetrator binary between
the characters Beth and Jake in Sam Shepard's play text, A lie of the mind
(1986). Previous theoretical analyses of Beth and Jake in A lie of the mind
frame them as victims of their circumstances and as victims and perpetrators
of violence (Bottoms 1998:16). I will explore the violent relationship between
them in the context of the victim/perpetrator binary set up in the original play
and re-imagine this binary by creating a radical reinterpretation of the
relationship between the characters in a theatre production titled ? (2015). I
argue that a directorial treatment of The Absolute assists in destabilising the
victim/perpetrator binary present in Beth and Jake's relationship.
To reinterpret Beth and Jake's relationship, I explore René Girard's notions of
violence, victimisation, and scapegoating, as well as the Artaudian notions of
Cruelty, The Absolute, and the Theatre of Cruelty. I apply the Girardian
concepts and vocabulary to a reading of the relationship between Beth and
Jake. I also discuss the ways in which Artaud and Girard conceptually relate
to one another. I then provide a practical exploration within the framework of
the Theatre of Cruelty by creating an original production, ? (2015), in which
The Absolute facilitates the destabilisation of the victim/perpetrator binary that
exists between Beth and Jake. In ? (2015), the relationship between Beth and
Jake is reconceptualised and reinterpreted through taking cognisance of the
Artaudian-Girardian framework.
This dissertation concludes that Artaud's Theatre of Cruelty and the notion of
The Absolute are able to destabilise the victim/perpetrator binary between
Beth and Jake by replacing sexual desire in their relationship with
transcendental love, and reconstructing and reimagining their relationship
accordingly. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Drama / MA / Unrestricted
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:up/oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/60354 |
| Date | January 2016 |
| Creators | De Wet, Micia |
| Contributors | Coetzee, Marie-Heleen, miciadw@gmail.com, Broodryk, Chris Willem |
| Publisher | University of Pretoria |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Rights | © 2017 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. |
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