The essay explores the role of play, understood as Spiel (game and performance), in Franz Grillparzer’s Die Jüdin von Toledo, where Alphons’ passion for Rahel, a young Jewish woman, shakes the equilibrium of the kingdom. Grillparzer draws primarily from the baroque theatrical tradition of theatrum mundi, but also recovers an even more ancient sense of play as physicality, bodily presence, excess energy, and unrestrained movement. Rahel thus becomes a symbol of vital energy, embodying the childhood and authenticity that Alphons has never experienced. Moreover, the focus on the multiple meanings of play highlights the deeper mechanisms of power.
Das Spiel in der Tragödie: Die Jüdin von Toledo von Franz Grillparzer
Jelena Ulrike Reinhardt
2024
Abstract
The essay explores the role of play, understood as Spiel (game and performance), in Franz Grillparzer’s Die Jüdin von Toledo, where Alphons’ passion for Rahel, a young Jewish woman, shakes the equilibrium of the kingdom. Grillparzer draws primarily from the baroque theatrical tradition of theatrum mundi, but also recovers an even more ancient sense of play as physicality, bodily presence, excess energy, and unrestrained movement. Rahel thus becomes a symbol of vital energy, embodying the childhood and authenticity that Alphons has never experienced. Moreover, the focus on the multiple meanings of play highlights the deeper mechanisms of power.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
