Trials and Tribunals in the Dramas of Heinrich Von KleistWhat makes the trial so appealing as dramatic form? Why do we watch? Is it simply the quest for truth and justice? Or is it much more than that? From the time of Sophocles, the court has fascinated audiences and dramatists alike. Kleist is no exception, as each of his dramas and many of his stories and anecdotes contain a trial of some sort from its most primitive form of hand-to-hand combat in the duel to more conventional legal proceedings in secular, military and ecclesiastical courts. At trial, we desire, whether consciously or unconsciously, to have our own system of beliefs and behaviours affirmed rather than to attempt to achieve justice: self interest prevails at the expense of truth and equity. The focus of this book is the tension between the restoration of dike, the balance of natural order, and the pursuit of truth and justice as impetus behind the trial. With recourse to the concept of legal instrumentalism, which underscores this preference for order over justice in both the law and literature, the author examines Kleist's dramas to determine the extent to which those individuals in positions of power are able to manipulate the proceedings, seeking not justice and truth, but rather the validation of their own particular version of order. The trial, a tool generally thought to be designed to discover truth and to mete out justice, is used instead, in the hands of the powerful, as an instrument of control and degradation. |
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Page 17
... Crime upsets the balance of society . As Northrop Frye observes , " The word " crime " is social and secular in context : murder and theft are crimes because they are disturbances of the social order ' ( 5 ) . To use the image of a ...
... Crime upsets the balance of society . As Northrop Frye observes , " The word " crime " is social and secular in context : murder and theft are crimes because they are disturbances of the social order ' ( 5 ) . To use the image of a ...
Page 18
... crime takes that away . ' Jedes Verbrechen richtet sich gegen die Ordnung , die allein dem Menschen ein geregeltes Leben in relativer Sicherheit zu verbürgen vermag ' ( Reinert 26 ) . Recalling Rudolf's words from Ein Bruderzwist ...
... crime takes that away . ' Jedes Verbrechen richtet sich gegen die Ordnung , die allein dem Menschen ein geregeltes Leben in relativer Sicherheit zu verbürgen vermag ' ( Reinert 26 ) . Recalling Rudolf's words from Ein Bruderzwist ...
Page 20
... crime . Legal instrumentalism presents the theory that order is upheld , not only as justice but also at the cost of justice . Luban defines this concept as ' the view that sees legality as an instrument of dispute resolution or social ...
... crime . Legal instrumentalism presents the theory that order is upheld , not only as justice but also at the cost of justice . Luban defines this concept as ' the view that sees legality as an instrument of dispute resolution or social ...
Contents
Acknowledgements | 7 |
Die Familie Schroffenstein | 25 |
Der zerbrochne Krug and Oedipus the King | 41 |
Copyright | |
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accused Achilles actions Adam's Alkmene Alkmene's Amazon Amazonian Amphitryon argues argument Aristan attempt audience behaviour believe Bruzzi chaos court courtroom Creon crime defend degradation ceremony demonstrates Der zerbrochne Krug deus ex machina Die Familie Schroffenstein Die Hermannsschlacht divine drama duel elector Erinyes erst evidence fact Frau Marthe Gericht Gerichtsrat German gleich goal Gott guilty party Heinrich von Kleist Hermann Hermannsschlacht Herr high priestess Hohenzollern Homburg honour Huisum identity Jeronimus Jeronimus's jetzt Judge Adam judgement Jupiter Käthchen Kirchenvogt Kleist's emphasis Kottwitz Licht Luban manipulation Merkur motives murder muß Natalie natural order Oedipus Oedipus the King Oedipus's Ordnung Ottokar Penthesilea prince punishment question Recht Reeve reveal role Rupert Ruprecht Sache schon Schroffenstein seeks Septimius servant social order society soll Sosias Sosias's Strahl Sylvester tactics Theobald Thusnelda Tiresias trial situations truth and justice understanding Varus Wahrheit Walter weiß Welt willst witness wohl words Wort zerbrochne Krug