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Originally published in 1973 and 1977 respectively, these two
volumes, now available together for the first time examine the
history of French drama. The first traces tragedy, from its origins
in the sixteenth century through to the last years of Louis XVI's
reign. The second covers comedy, from the Renaissance, extending
beyond Louis XVI into the eighteenth century and right up to the
eve of the Revolution. Accessible to the general reader they would
also be particularly useful for students of French drama.
In tracing the course of French comedy from the Renaissance,
through the age of Louis XIV and the eighteenth century, to the eve
of the Revolution, originally published in 1977, Geoffrey Brereton
shows how it evolved from the crude farces and experimental plays
of the sixteenth century to become a rich and highly sophisticated
dramatic genre. The main emphasis is on the work of the principal
dramatists, notably Moliere (whose plays and career are given a
detailed and enlightening treatment), Corneille, Scarron, Marivaux
and Beaumarchais, with some space devoted to the more neglected
writers, such as the 'cynical generation' of Dancourt, Regnard,
Lesage and others; and all the plays are seen in the context of the
theatrical conventions that helped to shape them. Different types
of comedy are analysed, including comedy of character and of
manners, as well as the romantic, burlesque and bourgeois forms and
the development of the opera-comique. At the same time Dr Brereton
examines the influences on French comedy - influences as varied as
those of the farce, the Italian commedia dell'arte, the Spanish
comedia and the eighteenth century drame - and the way in which
these were absorbed and exploited by French comic dramatists. Since
comedy, more than any other kind of drama, reflects the
contemporary social scene, attention is drawn to social conditions
and attitudes, and some of the more striking parallels with modern
social preoccupations are pointed out. Written in a very lively and
readable style, and containing much stimulating and original
comment, as well as providing the basic facts, it gives a
considerable insight into the nature of French comedy during its
most formative and fruitful period. A substantial bibliography and
other reference material increase the usefulness of this book to
the student of French drama.
Originally published in 1973, the history of French tragedy and
tragicomedy from their origins in the sixteenth century to the last
years of Louis XIV's reign is here surveyed in a single volume.
Beginning with a brief account of the development of drama from the
Middle Ages to the Renaissance, Dr Brereton examines the plays as
types of drama, the circumstances in which they were produced and
their reception by contemporaries. The traditionally great figures
of Corneille and Racine are treated at some length, but their work
is seen in perspective against the plays of their predecessors and
of their own time. Garnier and Montchrestien are discussed, among
others, as notable writers of Renaissance humanist tragedy.
Sections are devoted to secondary but still important dramatists
such as Mairet, Rotrou, Du Ryer, Tristan L'Hermite, Thomas
Corneille and Quinault. A long chapter on Alexandre Hardy reviews
the work of this neglected author and stresses his interest as a
transitional link between the two centuries and as a vigorous
pioneer of a type of drama which flourished for several decades
after him concurrently with French 'classical' tragedy. The main
currents of critical theory, social attitudes and stage history are
described in their relation to the development of the drama. Well
over a hundred plays are discussed or summarized; and the author
has constantly referred back to the original material and has
avoided an over-simplification of a vast subject which contains
more exceptions and anomalies than has generally been recognized in
the past. Chronological tables of the works of major dramatists,
summaries of numerous plays and a bibliography containing modern
editions of plays are included.
Racine the practising dramatist had been in some danger of being
crowded out from the numerous books on his psychology and style. In
this critical study of the man and his work, first published in
1951 and this slightly revised edition originally in 1973, Dr
Brereton's guiding principle has been to make the factual basis as
accurate as it can be in the light of modern research. The result
is the portrait of a sensitive and attractive figure which is none
the worse for being shorn of certain legends.
What is tragedy? What does the term imply? The word had outgrown
its original context of literature and art and acquired wider and
looser meanings. Originally published in 1968, Dr Brereton seeks to
establish the basis of a definition which will hold good on various
planes and over a wide range of dramatic and other literature.
Various theories are examined, beginning with Aristotle and taking
in the Marxist interpretation and the two main religious theories
of the sacrificial hero and the built-in conflict in fallen human
nature. These theories are tested out on representative works by
Sophocles, Shakespeare, Racine, Ibsen, Beckett and others, and the
findings which emerge are developed in the course of the book. This
is conceived as a re-exploration of a widely debated subject in the
light of a few clear basic principles. The result is a lucid study
which will be especially valuable for students of literature and
drama.
The French poetry of some five centuries is here surveyed in a
series of studies of the work and personality of individual poets
from Villon to the present day. Each chapter is primarily concerned
with establishing the 'literary identity' of the poet or poets with
whom it deals: the work of each is outlined and related to the
historical and biographical circumstances in which it was written;
and its characteristics are then examined critically in terms
relevant to the modern reader. Comparisons are made between
different poets, and more general topics - such as the concepts of
'classic' and 'baroque' - are discussed. This book, first published
in 1956, had become a standard introductory work for students of
French poetry and general readers alike. For this revised edition,
originally published in 1973, new chapters have been added on
'irregular' seventeenth-century poets and on various modern poets
whose work now enables the Surrealist movement to be seen in
clearer perspective. The bibliography has been revised extensively.
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Chronicles (Paperback)
Jean Froissart; Edited by Geoffrey Brereton; Translated by Geoffrey Brereton
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R408
R334
Discovery Miles 3 340
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This selection from Froissart’s Chronicles forms a vast panorama of Europe, from the deposition of Edward II to the downfall of Richard II.
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