Stages of Evil: Occultism in Western Theater and DramaUniversity Press of Kentucky, 2005 M12 23 - 344 pages ÒThe evil that men doÓ has been chronicled for thousands of years on the European stage, and perhaps nowhere else is human fear of our own evil more detailed than in its personifications in theater. Early writers used theater to communicate human experiences and to display reverence for the gods governing daily life. Playwrights from Euripides onward sought inspiration from this interplay between the worldly and the occult, using human belief in the divine to govern charactersÕ actions within a dramatic arena. The constant adherence to the supernatural, despite changing religious ideologies over the centuries, testifies to a deep and continuing belief in the ability of a higher power to interfere in human life. Stages of Evil is the first book to examine the representation and relationship of evil and the occult from the prehistoric origins of drama through to the present day. Drawing on examples of magic, astronomy, demonology, possession, exorcism, fairies, vampires, witchcraft, hauntings, and voodoo, author Robert Lima explores how theater shaped American and European perceptions of the occult and how the dramatic works studied here reflect society back upon itself at different points in history. From representations of Dionysian rites in ancient Greece, to the Mouth of Hell in the Middle Ages, to the mystical cabalistic life of the Hasidic Jews, to the witchcraft and magic of the Elizabethan and Jacobean stage, Lima traces the recurrence of supernatural motifs in pivotal plays and performance works of the Western tradition. Considering numerous myths and cultural artifacts, such as the Òwild man,Ó he describes the evolution and continual representation of supernatural archetypes on the modern stage. He also discusses the sociohistorical implications of Christian and pagan representations of evil and the theatrical creativity that occultism has engendered. Delving into his own theatrical, literary, folkloric, and travel experiences to enhance his observations, Lima assays the complex world of occultism and examines diverse works of Western theater and drama. A unique and comprehensive bibliography of European and American plays concludes the study and facilitates further research into the realm of the social and literary impact of the occult. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 19
Page
... Jones 137 7. Satan in Salem: Sex as Grimoire in Arthur Miller's The Crucible 147 8. A Matter of Habit: The Politics of Demonic Hysteria in John Whiting's The Devils 159 9. The Prey of the Vampire: Malign Decadence in Francisco Nieva's ...
... Jones 137 7. Satan in Salem: Sex as Grimoire in Arthur Miller's The Crucible 147 8. A Matter of Habit: The Politics of Demonic Hysteria in John Whiting's The Devils 159 9. The Prey of the Vampire: Malign Decadence in Francisco Nieva's ...
Page 5
... Jones in the psychological web of Carib- bean Voodoo and a primordial African god who demands human sacri- fice; and Miller eschews the Devil altogether when he interprets the killing ways of Salem Village and surrounding communities as ...
... Jones in the psychological web of Carib- bean Voodoo and a primordial African god who demands human sacri- fice; and Miller eschews the Devil altogether when he interprets the killing ways of Salem Village and surrounding communities as ...
Page 7
... Jones, in which the protagonist is about to be deposed by the natives of a Caribbean island. Brutus Jones, the brutal self-styled emperor, enters the nearby forest with confidence at the start of his prepared escape. But he is soon ...
... Jones, in which the protagonist is about to be deposed by the natives of a Caribbean island. Brutus Jones, the brutal self-styled emperor, enters the nearby forest with confidence at the start of his prepared escape. But he is soon ...
Page 37
... - scribed by Montague Rhodes James (Oxford: Roxburghe Club, 1922); (6) Biblia pauperum—Apocalypsis: The Weimar Manuscript, trans. George Baurley and Leonard A. Jones (New York: Hacker Art Books, 1978); (7) Biblia The Mouth of Hell / 37.
... - scribed by Montague Rhodes James (Oxford: Roxburghe Club, 1922); (6) Biblia pauperum—Apocalypsis: The Weimar Manuscript, trans. George Baurley and Leonard A. Jones (New York: Hacker Art Books, 1978); (7) Biblia The Mouth of Hell / 37.
Page 38
Occultism in Western Theater and Drama Robert Lima. A. Jones (New York: Hacker Art Books, 1978); (7) Biblia pauperum, 51, “Codices e Vaticanis selecti quam simillima expressi iussu Ioannis Pauli PP II concilio et opera curatorum ...
Occultism in Western Theater and Drama Robert Lima. A. Jones (New York: Hacker Art Books, 1978); (7) Biblia pauperum, 51, “Codices e Vaticanis selecti quam simillima expressi iussu Ioannis Pauli PP II concilio et opera curatorum ...
Contents
13 | |
47 | |
3 The Pagan Pluto | 83 |
4 The Primal Spirit | 101 |
5 Rites of Passage | 117 |
6 The Savaged Mind | 137 |
7 Satan in Salem | 147 |
8 A Matter of Habit | 159 |
9 The Prey of the Vampire | 177 |
10 Witherd and Wild | 197 |
11 The Cave and the Magician | 225 |
Appendix | 271 |
Index | 315 |
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Common terms and phrases
Abigail ancient anonymous Arlecchino Bacchae belief cabalistic Calixto y Melibea cave Celestina century Channon Christian church classical collaboration commedia dell’arte conjuration context cueva dark death deity demonic pact Der Vampyr Devil Dionysus Dracula dragon Drama Dybbuk English Euripides evil exorcism Fairy Faust Fileno France Friar Germany Ghost God’s Grandier Greek Hades Harlequin Hecate Hellekin Hellequin human Ireland Italy John England Jones King Leah Lord Lucifer Macbeth magic magician manifest marqués de Villena mask Masque Medea medieval Mother motif Mouth of Hell mystère Mystery play myth Nieva Nosferatu occult pagan Passion play Pentheus Pluto possession priest punishment religious rites ritual Saint Salamanca Salem Satan scene serpent sexual Sister Jeanne soul spirit stage supernatural symbolic theater Thomas England tion Tituba tradition Tragedy Tragicomedia de Calixto Translated underworld United Urbain Grandier vampire France Wild William William Rowley Witch of Edmonton witchcraft witches York