Performance and Femininity in Eighteenth-Century German Women's Writing: The Impossible Act (Palgrave Studies in Theatre and Performance History)

In Performance and Femininity, Arons examines a series of texts by eighteenth-century German women in order to illuminate how women writers of the time used theater and performance both to investigate female subjectivity and to intervene in the dominant cultural discourse of femininity. Arons's study focuses on works featuring heroines who, for the most part--like their authors--lead lives with public dimensions, primarily by working as actresses. The texts she chooses all call attention to the difficulties that the eighteenth-century conception of the self as sincere and antitheatrical presented for women. By highlighting the fact that the social audience that determines a woman's reputation is almost always a fickle and untrustworthy "reader" of female subjectivity, these works expose the untenable position into which the discourse of sincerity placed women, paradoxically requiring them to perform the very naivet? that was, by definition, not supposed to be performable. Arons's original argument takes an interdisciplinary approach, drawing from the fields of literary criticism, cultural studies, theatre history, and performance studies, and reveals how these women writers exposed ideal femininity as an impossible act, even as they attempted to reproduce that act in their writing and in their lives. In Performance And Femininity, Arons Examines A Series Of Texts By Eighteenth-century German Women In Order To Illuminate How Women Writers Of The Time Used Theater And Performance Both To Investigate Female Subjectivity And To Intervene In The Dominant Cultural Discourse Of Femininity. Arons's Study Focuses On Works Featuring Heroines Who, For The Most Part?like Their Authors?lead Lives With Public Dimensions, Primarily By Working As Actresses. The Texts She Chooses All Call Attention To The Difficulties That The Eighteenth-century Conception Of The Self As Sincere And Antitheatrical Presented For Women. By Highlighting The Fact That The Social Audience That Determines A Woman's Reputation Is Almost Always A Fickle And Untrustworthy Reader Of Female Subjectivity, These Works Expose The Untenable Position Into Which The Discourse Of Sincerity Placed Women, Paradoxically Requiring Them To Perform The Very Naiveť That Was, By Definition, Not Supposed To Be Performable. Arons's Original Argument Takes An Interdisciplinary Approach, Drawing From The Fields Of Literary Criticism, Cultural Studies, Theatre History, And Performance Studies, And Reveals How These Women Writers Exposed Ideal Femininity As An Impossible Act, Even As They Attempted To Reproduce That Act In Their Writing And In Their Lives. Sophie And The Theater -- Performance As Power: The History Of Lady Von Sternheim -- The Performance Of A Lifetime: Karoline Schulze-kummerfeld -- Antitheatricality And The Public Woman: Marianne Ehrmann's Amalie: A True Story In Letters -- The Eye Of The Beholder: Elise Burger's Aglaja And F.h. Unger's Melanie, The Foundling -- Play's The Thing: Sophie Mereau's Marie And Flight To The City. Wendy Arons. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [239]-261) And Index. In this book, Wendy Arons examines how women writers used theater and performance to investigate the problem of female subjectivity and to intervene in the dominant discourse about ideal femininity. Arons shows how contemporary demands for sincerity and authenticity placed a peculiar burden on women in the public sphere, especially on actresses, who - like professional writers - overstepped the boundaries of what was considered proper behavior for women. Paradoxically, in their representations of ideal women engaged in performance, these writers expose ideal femininity as an impossible act, even as they attempt to perform it in their writing and in their lives. "In Performance and Femininity, Wendy Arons examines a series of texts by eighteenth-century German women in order to illuminate how women writers of the time used theater and performance both to investigate female subjectivity and to intervene in the dominant cultural discourse of femininity."--BOOK JACKET