In this Book

summary

The idea that actors are hypocrites and fakes and therefore dangerous to society was widespread in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Fangs of Malice examines the equation between the vice of hypocrisy and the craft of acting as it appears in antitheatrical tracts, in popular and high culture, and especially in plays of the period. Rousseau and others argue that actors, expert at seeming other than they are, pose a threat to society; yet dissembling seems also to be an inevitable consequence of human social intercourse. The “antitheatrical prejudice” offers a unique perspective on the high value that modern western culture places on sincerity, on being true to one's own self.

Taking a cue from the antitheatrical critics themselves, Matthew Wikander structures his book in acts and scenes, each based on a particular slander against actors. A prologue introduces his main issues. Act One deals with the proposition “They Dress Up”: foppish slavery to fashion, cross-dressing, and dressing as clergy. Act Two treats the proposition “They Lie” by focusing on social dissembling and the phenomenon of the self-deceiving hypocrite and the public, princely hypocrite. Act Three, “They Drink,” examines a wide range of antisocial behavior ascribed to actors, such as drinking, gambling, and whoring. An epilogue ties the ancient ideas of possession and the panic that actors inspire to contemporary anxieties about representation not only in theatre but also in the visual and literary arts.

Fangs of Malice will be of great interest to scholars and students of drama as well as to theatre professionals and buffs.

Table of Contents

restricted access Download Full Book
  1. Cover
  2. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. FM
  2. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Contents
  2. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Acknowledgments
  2. pp. ix-x
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Prologue. The Actor as Hypocrite
  2. pp. xi-xxii
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Act One. They Dress Up
  2. pp. 1-3
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene One. As Secret As Madenhead
  2. pp. 4-23
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Two. Putting on The Cloth
  2. pp. 24-45
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Three. Humanizing The Fop
  2. pp. 46-66
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Act Two. They Lie
  2. pp. 67-69
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene One. Rousseau and the Cult of Sincerity
  2. pp. 70-78
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Two. Playing Joseph Surface
  2. pp. 79-89
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Three. Ibsen's Small Stage of Fools
  2. pp. 90-99
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Four. Princely Hypocrite
  2. pp. 100-124
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Act Three. They Drink
  2. pp. 125-129
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene One. The Tavern
  2. pp. 130-145
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Two. Liberty Hall
  2. pp. 146-157
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Three. Harry Hope's Saloon
  2. pp. 158-180
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Scene Four. Contested Sites
  2. pp. 181-193
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Epilogue
  2. pp. 194-200
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Notes
  2. pp. 201-230
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Index
  2. pp. 231-238
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Studies in Theatre History and Culture
  2. pp. 239-240
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
Back To Top

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Without cookies your experience may not be seamless.