English Language and Literature ETDs

Publication Date

7-26-1966

Abstract

The earliest conceptions I had of The Ceremony of Innocence were almost purely structural and centered around the desire to create a completely autonomous experience, dependent on its own specific laws, and not a derivation from, or a representation of, psychological reality. At the same time, I wanted to design a theatrical spectacle which would be as amusing and enjoyable as a puppet show. Both of these concerns led far from the usual concerns of similitude and psychological realism. I wanted to create not only an atmosphere of isolation and disassociation which would ease the audience’s usual strain for interpretation, but also to place the entire action in a remote physical, philosophical, and psychological reality. Once these general laws of time, space, dimension, and action were grasped, there would be no need for further struggle in relating one’s own reality to the curious spectacle taking place on the stage.

Degree Name

English

Level of Degree

Masters

Department Name

English

First Committee Member (Chair)

Morris Freedman

Second Committee Member

Franklin Miller Dickey

Third Committee Member

James Llewellyn Thorson

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

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