The Fool and the Clown in Western Culture and Literature: Homo Sapiens is a fascinating description of these two perennial figures in European and North American history, folklore, theatre, literature, arts, and popular culture. The first part of the books separates them into ten different subcategories and recounts the most vivid and influential manifestations of different kinds of fools and clowns in cultural history. The second part singles out three European writers who have made a significant contribution to the elucidation of the concept of folly. William Shakespeare, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and Samuel Beckett have painted an entire gallery of fools, clowns, and buffoons, created not only to entertain, but also to explore the meaning of human life. The most important concepts in the book are illustrated by captivating characters and tales that have made people both laugh and arrive at a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them.
The Fool and the Clown in Western Culture and Literature: Homo Sapiens is a fascinating description of these two perennial figures in European and North American history, folklore, theatre, literature, arts, and popular culture.
Acknowledgement
Introduction
Brief Literature Review
Scope and Aim of this Book
Part I. Folly in History and Culture
1. The Fool The Meaning and Origin of the Fool
The Silly Fool
The Serendipitous Fool
The Wise Fool
The Jester
The Holy Fool
A Note on the Link between Creativity and Madness
2. The Clown
Definition and Origin of Clowns
Clowns in Modern Performances
The Circus Clown
The Happy Clown and the Sad Clown
The Evil Clown
The Buffoon
The Trickster or the Prankster
Collective Clowning
A Note on Humor and Comedic Performance
II. Folly in Literature and Drama
From Panurge to Félicité
The Grotesque and Absurd Fool
3. Shakespearean Fool
Communal Practices, Popular Entertainment, and Shakespeares Jovial Players
From the Rustic Clown to the Wise Fool
Shakespeares Ship of Fools and the Death of the Fool
4. Dostoevskys Buffoons and Pranksters
Russian Folly and Dostoevsky
Humor and Satire in Dostoevskys Works
Buffoons and Pranksters in The Possessed
5. Becketts Pitiful Clowns
The Absurd Theatre Clown
Humor and Comedy in Becketts Work
Vladimir and Estragon as a Consummate Pseudocouple
6. Fictional Fools from Shakespeare to Beckett
Conclusion: The Transcendent Role of the Fool and the Clown
Index
Svetozar Poti is Associate Professor of Philology at Vilnius University in Lithuania. He is the author of books about Bakhtin, Montaigne, American culture, and the Russian Revolution in Serbian, as well as Seven Russian Archetypes: Recurring Types in Russian History and Culture (Wipf and Stock, 2023).
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