An introduction to the social and political philosophy of Bertolt Brecht : revolution and aesthetics / Anthony Squiers.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Squiers, Anthony, author.

Series:

Consciousness, Literature and the Arts 44.

Consciousness, literature & the arts, 1573-2193 ; 44

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Brecht, Bertolt, 1898-1956--Criticism and interpretation.

Brecht, Bertolt.

Brecht, Bertolt, 1898-1956.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (187 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Amsterdam, [Netherlands] ; New York, New York : Rodopi, 2014.

Summary:

Bertolt Brecht is widely considered one of the most important figures in Twentieth Century literature. While there is a broad corpus of scholarship which analyzes the formalistic elements of Brecht’s work, much of this has been limited by formalistic approaches and has neglected his unique contributions to Marxist philosophy. This book serves to remedy this by reconstructing Brecht’s social and political philosophy into a single theoretical framework for the first time. It presents Brecht’s thought in context of a revolutionary Marxist aesthetic and explores his vision of consciousness as it relates to historical materialism, the dialectic of enlightenment, social ontology, epistemology and ethics. This is accomplished by meticulous readings of his theoretical writings and close analysis of three important plays, The Good Woman of Setzuan , Life of Galileo , and his adaption of Coriolanus . In doing so, this book reveals Brecht’s relevance today for anyone interested in politics and aesthetics.

Contents:

Preliminary material

Introduction

Brecht’s Ethics of Praxis

Consciousness, Cognition and the Altering of Socio-temporal Order

Eidetic Reduction and Contradiction

Rethinking Brecht’s Split Character: Dialectics, Social Ontology and Literary Technique

Brecht’s Dialectics of Enlightenment

Primary and Secondary Contradictions

Conclusion

Bibliography

Index of Names

Index of Brecht’s Works and Characters

Index of Terms

Brecht Chronology.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (ebrary, viewed May 19, 2016).

ISBN:

9789401211819 (e-book)

OCLC:

893872176

Publisher Number:

10.1163/9789401211819 DOI