Three Plays: Philoctetes / The Horatian / Mauser

by Mueller, Heiner

• ISBN13: 9781906497828
• ISBN10: 1906497826
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-09-15
• Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr

Summary

Despite being widely acknowledged as one of the most important German dramatists since Bertolt Brecht, Heiner Muller (192995) still remains relatively unknown in the English-speaking world. This collection of plays aims to change that, presenting new translations and opening up his work to a larger audience. Collected here are three of his playsPhiloctetes,The Horatian, andMauserwhose poetic texts evidence the influence of Shakespeare, classical Greek tragedy, and avant-garde political theater on his works. Together they constitute what Muller called an "experimental series," which both develops and critiques Brecht's theory of theLehrstuck, or "learning play." Based on a tragedy by Sophocles,Philoctetesdramatizes the confrontation between politics, morality, and the desire for revenge.The Horatianuses an incident from ancient Rome as an example of ways of approaching the moral ambiguity of the past. Finally,Mauser, set during the Russian civil war, examines the nature and ethics of revolutionary violence. The plays are accompanied by supporting materials written by Muller himself, as well as an introduction by Uwe Schutte that contextualizes the plays and speaks of their continued relevance today.