Brecht was a great German dramatist, but it is worth noting that his theory of "defamiliarization effect" drama has had a profound impact on the development of Chinese and Western theater. His theatrical works focus on his theory of drama.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Brecht's creative journey</h1>
Brecht was a well-known German poet and theater theorist, and his theory of narrative drama had a major impact on Western theater.
The period from 1919 to 1927 was the first phase of Brecht's literary creation, during which time he completed his first theatrical work, Barr. The protagonist of Barr is a wandering poet who is cynical and dismissive of morality and law, and he shows a strong pursuit of enjoyment and happiness. He carries brechant's shadow, which also shows a certain mental state of the young Generation in Germany after the First World War.
Barr
Brecht's 1922 play The Midnight Drums made him famous. The story of "Midnight Drums" takes place in a time of social unrest, and the protagonist has just returned from the battlefield to find that his fiancé has been engaged to a rich man. Frustrated, the protagonist chooses to join the revolution, but the protagonist's fiancée changes his mind, and the protagonist is faced with a choice between love and revolution. The protagonist's wavering attitude before and after the revolution reflects the general psychological condition of many young people at that time.
From Brecht's early theatrical works, we can already see that Brecht has begun to adopt several narrative drama models. The storyline of "Barr" changes greatly in time and place, and the internal connection of the script lies mainly in the events and characters. In Midnight Drums, Brecht uses the voice-over technique, which inspires the audience to think and breaks the resonance that traditional theatre seeks.
The sound of drums in the middle of the night
The period from 1928 to 1933 was the second phase of Brecht's literary creation, which at this time was mainly living in Berlin, which was the center of European theater at that time. Brecht absorbed the characteristics of various artistic schools in Berlin, while also embracing the ideas of dialectical materialism. Therefore, in the creation of drama, more emphasis is placed on the social and educational function of drama.
During this period, he created the most educational dramas, which were characterized by distinct themes and short and concise. Brecht often raises certain phenomena in life to the height of philosophy, and the layout of the drama is different from ordinary drama, and the events are not real enough, but this often causes the audience to think.
At the same time, he created "The Rise and Fall of Mahagoni City" and "St. Johnna of the Slaughterhouse", which are the products of his collaboration with the theatrical innovators. He applied the science and technology of modern society, such as lighting, subtitles, photos, etc., to theatrical performances, and at the same time used the chorus and prologue techniques of traditional drama to achieve the effect of enriching the performance of the stage.
The rise and fall of The City of Mahagoni
The year 1933 was Brecht's last stage of creation. During this period, German fascists came to power, and under the persecution of reactionary forces, Brecht had to start a life of exile. Brecht's life was turbulent, and when he fled to the United States, he was also interrogated by the "Commission of Inquiry into Non-American Activities". But this also exposed him to the vast social life, his theatrical creation has become mature, and Brecht began to make a comprehensive and systematic summary of his theory of theater.
In the third period, Brecht's theatrical works consisted mainly of historical dramas, allegorical plays, and dramatic treatises. Brecht believes that the use of historical themes can illustrate some social problems while also creating a certain sense of distance for the audience. And achieve the effect of defamiliarization, so that the audience can think more calmly.
Brecht
Allegorical dramas can enable the audience to exert a rich imagination, not to be bound by the real environment and characters, and to make abstract thinking more concrete. Allegory often captures the essence, thus reflecting a more universal philosophy of life and triggering the viewer's thinking.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > Brecht's theory of "defamiliarization effects" drama</h1>
In 1924, Brecht was in Berlin as a consultant for the Drama Theatre. In 1933, after the Nazis came to power, he had to go into exile. He went to Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and other countries. In 1948, after the end of World War II, Brecht returned to East Berlin. After returning to East Berlin, he formed the "BerlinErstad" with his wife Weigel, who died in 1956.
Berlin Theatre Company
Brecht created the theory of narrative drama, which differed from traditional theater theory and had an important influence on the development of Western theater. In his lifetime, he wrote more than forty plays, in addition to many theories and poems, as well as some prose and short stories.
Traditional drama is structured in the order of brewing conflicts, unfolding events, developing conflicts, dramatic climaxes, and resolving contradictions. This type of drama also has the characteristics of plot concentration or mutual restraint, and the actors must go deep into the role when performing, and strive for realism.
This kind of drama can often impress the audience, and it can also bring the audience into the plot of the play, so the audience is very much looking forward to the end of the play. But in Brecht's view, these effects put the audience into a state of illusion, resulting in the audience's ability to think and be unable to make rational judgments about what happens on the stage.
In order to prevent this illusion from affecting the audience's mind, Brecht proposed the theory of "defamiliarization effect" drama. "Defamiliarization effect" is a theatrical term coined by Brecht, which is also the core point of his narrative drama theory.
The English word for "defamiliarization effect" is Verfremdungseffekt, or V-Effekt for short. In China, there is not only a translation method of "defamiliarization effect", also known as "dissociation effect", "inter-situation method", etc., but the number of users is the largest, and the most appropriate translation is the "defamiliarization effect".
The "defamiliarization effect" refers to displaying familiar events on the stage in front of the audience in another style, so that the audience can feel surprised and induce the audience to think. In order to achieve the purpose of defamiliarization, Brecht proposed to writers, directors, actors and others that it was different from traditional drama.
Narrative drama
Brecht also pointed out that with the development of technology, narrative factors may also be included in the scope of theatrical performance. His theatrical works are often divided into scenes without scenes, and each scene can exist independently, but it is related to the whole in terms of ending and characters.
Brecht pointed out that when performing, actors should maintain a certain distance from the role, can not fully integrate themselves into the role, but should show the role they understand to the audience, only in this way can the audience keep a clear head.
Brecht believes that if the actor's performance is too realistic, it will resonate with the audience and resonate strongly with the characters in the play as the plot develops. This situation will cause the audience to lose the ability to think and remain in a state of hallucination.
In terms of stage art, Brecht pointed out that props that have nothing to do with the plot should be removed. But for those props such as costumes and daily necessities that can illustrate the characteristics of the times and characters, Brecht requires subtle and real. In terms of set, Brecht advocated that "the scene should be used for drama", the set should serve the content of the script, and if the set is too real, it will distract the audience's attention and thus affect the audience's thinking.
Brecht pointed out that when the audience watches the play, it is necessary to clearly feel that they are watching the play. Therefore, he also advocated that actors can wear masks when performing, and they can also change their costumes directly in front of the audience on the stage.
For the use of light, he advocated the use of white light to highlight the character, and the white light will be more layered and sculptural. He believes that if the atmosphere is created by using half-light and half-dark lights, it will make the audience sleepy, and the audience will affect their judgment when watching the play in such an environment.
In terms of music, he disapproves of using beautiful music because he is afraid that the music is too beautiful and will affect the audience's judgment. In order to keep the audience in a cool head, he invented the half-cut screen. That is, before the start of each scene, the audience will be told the number of scenes, titles, and content.
During theatrical performances, Brecht also equipped the performance with a narrator, and even the actors could have a dialogue with the audience. The purpose of these acts mentioned above is to prevent the audience from hallucinating and maintain a clear mind. Brecht uses all kinds of means to make the audience comment and think about everything on stage.
Brecht's theatrical works
Brecht's theory of narrative drama took a long time to develop before it was fully matured. But the theory of "defamiliarization effect" is not a theory written by Brecht alone, he has drawn a lot of nutrients from ancient Greek drama and Western drama.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Brecht's most important theatrical work</h1>
The Biography of Galileo is a historical drama written by Brecht in the late period, which mainly tells the relationship between scientists and politics, showing the conflict between spirit and flesh in Galileo. Galileo galilei in the play has a rich personality and is known as the Hamlet of the 20th century.
Biography of Galileo
Bold Mama and Her Children is another important historical drama whose storyline takes place primarily during the Religious Wars in 17th-century Germany. The protagonist is a female trader nicknamed "Bold Mother". She was a believer in war, and she thought war was her source of livelihood, but it was also war that took the lives of his children.
Brecht has shown a stark anti-war stance through the story of Bold Mom. Through the dialogue of the characters, Brecht dissects the nature of war and warns of an impending world war. Although the bold mother in the play does not wake up, it can inspire the audience to think.
Conclusion: Brecht's narrative drama is very different from traditional drama. Traditional drama pays attention to touching the audience and resonating with the audience's feelings. Brecht pointed out that such a situation will affect the audience's judgment, and the audience should be soberly aware that this is a drama when performing.
Reference Books:
Wei Zhi's Compendium of Foreign Literature