Trolls, trills, and tofu: Ibsen, Verdi, and Kabuki

Article Abstract:

Western civilization is based on Greco-Judeo-Christian tradition consisting of Platonic idealism, Aristotelian realism, Judaic monotheism, Cartesian rationalism and Newtonian mechanism. According to one of Ibsen's plays, if these ideas are not taken care of, they start haunting people just as ghosts do. Verdi and Ibsen are the two select post-Cartesian dramatists who give an indication of a world which is more important than the real world of social problems. Unlike the former, the sensuous appeal of Kabuki overshadows its inherent critical features.

Analysis, Theater, Verdi, Giuseppe, Kabuki

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'An Enemy of the People': Ibsen's reluctant comedy

Article Abstract:

Henrik Ibsen's play 'An Enemy of the People' was written as a comedy. It is considered a serious political drama of a lone doctor standing against a town which wants to build a health resort spa on a site with polluted water. While the story is a serious tale of social pressure, the tone which Ibsen intended was comedic. Performers interpret the doctor as a noble hero, but Ibsen wrote him with an inflated ego, and included elements of self-parody.

Comedy, En Folkefiende (Play)

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Trolls in Ibsen's plays

Article Abstract:

Henrik Ibsen used trolls, demonic characters from Scandinavian folklore, to suggest human tendencies for evil or irrational behavior in several of his plays. Five of Ibsen's last seven plays, including 'Rosmersholm,' 'The Lady from the Sea,' 'Hedda Gabler,' 'The Master Builder,' and 'Little Eyolf,' portrays trolls taking either supernatural or human form. They can, however, be conquered through repentance or by taming perverse emotions.

Scandinavia, Portrayals, 19th century AD, Myths and legends, Devil

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