The Fool and the Clown in Western Culture and Literature

Homo Insipiens
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-1-041-00148-5
Verlag: Taylor & Francis

Buch, Englisch, 214 Seiten, Format (B × H): 152 mm x 229 mm, Gewicht: 454 g

Reihe: Literary Criticism and Cultural Theory

The Fool and the Clown in Western Culture and Literature: Homo Insipiens is a fascinating description of these two perennial figures in European and North American history, folklore, theater, literature, arts, and popular culture. The first part of the book separates them into ten different subcategories and recounts the most vivid and influential manifestations of different kinds of fools and clowns in cultural history. The second part singles out three European writers who have made a significant contribution to the elucidation of the concept of folly. William Shakespeare, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Samuel Beckett have painted an entire gallery of fools, clowns, and buffoons, created not only to entertain but also to explore the meaning of human life. The most important concepts in the book are illustrated by captivating characters and tales that have made people both laugh and arrive at a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them.

Zielgruppe

Postgraduate

Autoren/Hrsg.

Postic, Svetozar

Poštic, Svetozar

Fachgebiete

• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft | Kulturwissenschaften Populärkultur
• Geisteswissenschaften Literaturwissenschaft Literarische Gattungen
• Sozialwissenschaften Sport | Tourismus | Freizeit Humor
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Freizeitsoziologie, Konsumsoziologie, Alltagssoziologie, Populärkultur
• Geisteswissenschaften Literaturwissenschaft Vergleichende Literaturwissenschaft

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Brief Literature Review

Scope and Aim of this Book

Part I. Folly in History and Culture

1. The Fool The Meaning and Origin of the Fool

The Silly Fool

The Serendipitous Fool

The Wise Fool

The Jester

The Holy Fool

A Note on the Link between Creativity and Madness

2. The Clown

Definition and Origin of Clowns

Clowns in Modern Performances

The Circus Clown

The Happy Clown and the Sad Clown

The Evil Clown

The Buffoon

The Trickster or the Prankster

Collective Clowning

A Note on Humor and Comedic Performance

II. Folly in Literature and Drama

From Panurge to Félicité

The Grotesque and Absurd Fool

3. Shakespearean Fool

Communal Practices, Popular Entertainment, and Shakespeare’s Jovial Players

From the Rustic Clown to the Wise Fool

Shakespeare’s Ship of Fools and the Death of the Fool

4. Dostoevsky’s Buffoons and Pranksters

Russian Folly and Dostoevsky

Humor and Satire in Dostoevsky’s Works

Buffoons and Pranksters in The Possessed

5. Beckett’s Pitiful Clowns

The Absurd Theatre Clown

Humor and Comedy in Beckett’s Work

Vladimir and Estragon as a Consummate Pseudocouple

6. Fictional Fools from Shakespeare to Beckett

Conclusion: The Transcendent Role of the Fool and the Clown

Index

Über Autor(innen)

Svetozar Poštic is Associate Professor of Philology at Vilnius University in Lithuania. He is the author of books about Bakhtin, Montaigne, American culture, and the Russian Revolution in Serbian, as well as Seven Russian Archetypes: Recurring Types in Russian History and Culture (Wipf and Stock, 2023).