Poetics of the Comic in the Dramaturgy of Matei Vișniec

Abstract

The article addresses two pieces by Matei Vișniec, written in different years (“The Last Godot” (1987) and “The Story of the Panda Bears Told by a Saxophonist Who Had a Girlfriend in Frankfurt” (1995)), from the point of view of the poetics of the comic. The analysis is based on theoretical constructions of Bohdan Dziemidok reflected in his work “On the Comic” (“O Komizmie”) (1974). It is proved that in the forementioned plays by Vișniec the main techniques singled out by Dziemidok (modification and deformation of phenomena, unexpected effects and striking juxtapositions, imaginary unification of different phenomena, deviations from praxeological or logical norms) occur. In addition, it is argued that the plays inherit the theater of the absurd in terms of the ways of the comic (absence of action, misleading title, repetitions, pseudo-logic, quantitative growth of objects, acceleration of tempo, open ending, doppelgangers, loss of memory, etc.), and that the themes of loneliness, decay and death significant for the absurdists are developed. The main function of the comic in Vișniec’s work is protective, reducing dramatic pathos through laughter. Grotesque, irony and humor are necessary to exalt oneself over circumstances.

Received: 12.03.2024.
Revised: 19.03.2024.
Accepted: 24.09.2024.

Citation
Usacheva A. V. Poetics of the Comic in the Dramaturgy of Matei Vișniec // Slavic Almanac. 2024. No 3–4. P. 254–265 (in Russian). DOI: 10.31168/2073-5731.2024.3-4.13