Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame

The paper analyses film adaptations of the play Der Besuch der alten Dame written by the Swiss author Friedrich Dürrenmatt with special focus on how they thematise love. Dürrenmatt’s play is in its essence a tragic comedy that deals with the issue of greed and the distortion of basic moral values su...

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Main Author: Sonja Novak
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Zadar 2017-06-01
Series:[sic]
Online Access:http://www.sic-journal.org/ArticleView.aspx?aid=460
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author Sonja Novak
author_facet Sonja Novak
author_sort Sonja Novak
collection DOAJ
description The paper analyses film adaptations of the play Der Besuch der alten Dame written by the Swiss author Friedrich Dürrenmatt with special focus on how they thematise love. Dürrenmatt’s play is in its essence a tragic comedy that deals with the issue of greed and the distortion of basic moral values such as honesty and sincerity that are then also turned into greed, culminating in the justification of violence and murder for profit. The film adaptations that are analysed in the paper are the German version from 1959, the American version from 1964, and the newest German version from 2008. The analysis shows that the American and the newest German version do not adhere to the original pattern in terms of representing the love and relationship between the two main characters, Claire and Alfred. It is important to stress that love is the trigger that directs the plot to its end. The role that love plays in the film adaptations is the key factor that influences whether the end is tragic or not, which depends also on the historic, social, and cultural context in which the adaptations were filmed. Furthermore, the paper includes an analysis of the metamorphosis of a love that cannot die into a love that cannot be sustained: Eros, powered by the libido of the main characters Claire and Alfred in the past, slowly progresses until it turns into the destructive death drive of Thanatos. The analysis simultaneously explores to what extent each film adaptation imitates the original destructive discourse of love present in Dürrenmatt’s play.
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spelling doaj.art-39da5f2a7d494fa3a5cd2439393271c02023-12-23T21:42:24ZengUniversity of Zadar[sic]1847-77552017-06-017210.15291/sic/2.7.lc.4460Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dameSonja NovakThe paper analyses film adaptations of the play Der Besuch der alten Dame written by the Swiss author Friedrich Dürrenmatt with special focus on how they thematise love. Dürrenmatt’s play is in its essence a tragic comedy that deals with the issue of greed and the distortion of basic moral values such as honesty and sincerity that are then also turned into greed, culminating in the justification of violence and murder for profit. The film adaptations that are analysed in the paper are the German version from 1959, the American version from 1964, and the newest German version from 2008. The analysis shows that the American and the newest German version do not adhere to the original pattern in terms of representing the love and relationship between the two main characters, Claire and Alfred. It is important to stress that love is the trigger that directs the plot to its end. The role that love plays in the film adaptations is the key factor that influences whether the end is tragic or not, which depends also on the historic, social, and cultural context in which the adaptations were filmed. Furthermore, the paper includes an analysis of the metamorphosis of a love that cannot die into a love that cannot be sustained: Eros, powered by the libido of the main characters Claire and Alfred in the past, slowly progresses until it turns into the destructive death drive of Thanatos. The analysis simultaneously explores to what extent each film adaptation imitates the original destructive discourse of love present in Dürrenmatt’s play.http://www.sic-journal.org/ArticleView.aspx?aid=460
spellingShingle Sonja Novak
Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame
[sic]
title Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame
title_full Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame
title_fullStr Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame
title_full_unstemmed Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame
title_short Kad ljubav ne može umrijeti... Ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame Friedricha Dürrenmatta Posjet stare dame
title_sort kad ljubav ne moze umrijeti ljubav i destruktivni diskurs u filmskim adaptacijama drame friedricha durrenmatta posjet stare dame
url http://www.sic-journal.org/ArticleView.aspx?aid=460
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