El. knyga: Schiller the Dramatist: A Study of Gesture in the Plays

Guthrie (German literature and language, U. of Cambridge) begins by examining the origins and contexts of the many gestures that German playwright Freidrich Schiller (1759-1805) includes in his stage directions, considering his upbringing, his early essays, and his education at the Hohe Karls-schule as well as the music and performing art of his time that he would have been exposed to. Then he focuses in turn on the nine plays, looking at its genesis and earliest productions, and the meaning of specified gestures within the context of the work itself. The study could be useful both to practitioners in theater and to scholars of drama. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

In examining Schiller's often-neglected use of gesture, this study treats his dramas as written to be performed - not merely read.

Many aspects of the works of Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) have attracted attention. His work as a philosopher and pioneering thinker in poetics and aesthetics and as a historian have recently been the focus of much attention. But Schiller's dramas have always held the most interest, and they continue to be performed regularly both in German-speaking lands and around the world. Schiller is a dramatist of psychological conflict rather than of abstract ideas, and he had a unique grasp of how to use the stage to that end. This study of Schiller's use of gesture begins with a discussion of the origins of the gestures he employs, viewing them in relation to his medical writings, his literary influences, theories of the theater and acting, and Enlightenment thinking in general. The study then considers the use of gesture and related aspects of stagecraft in Schiller's nine completed dramas, highlighting elements of continuity and development. It is concerned with the interpretation of gesture, often marginalized in studies of Schiller's works, and with the interrelationship between gesture and verbal text. It also considers Schiller's relationship to the theater of his day, and discusses the first performances of his plays as well as their more recent stage history in both Germany and Great Britain. Appearing in the 250th anniversary of Schiller's birth, this study treats his dramas as plays written to be performed -- as works that reach their fullest potential in the theater. John Guthrie teaches modern German literature and language at the University of Cambridge, where he is fellow and director of studies at Murray Edwards College.