Paradox Of Acting

The Paradox of Acting (1773-8) is an essay written by French philosopher Denis Diderot (1713-1784). Much of his acclaim comes from his translation and supplements to Ephraim Chambers' five-volume Cyclopaedia: Or, Universal Dictionary of the Arts and Sciences (1728). Conservative opponents condemned the project, noting it "was not an innocent compilation of existing knowledge. In its pages, nature replaced Providence and determinism superseded God's will as the guiding forces of the world" (Rosenblum, par. 7). By 1758, co-editor d'Alembert was frightened enough by the official reaction and resigned, leaving Diderot with the sole responsibility for writing and contributing to complete the project. During this time, Diderot wrote two plays, and
Diderot wanted to express his opinion on the latter. This essay consists of a dialogue between two speakers, with the first speaker supporting Diderot's argument that a great actor does not experience the emotions they present and instead has the illusion of feeling. Historians refer to Enlightenment France as the "century of theatre" because it brought a surge in theatre spectatorship and a range of dramatic works in a variety of genres. Playhouses drew the attention of artists and intellectuals: "Plans, sections, and perspective views of real and imagined playhouses. . .appeared in Diderot and d'Alembert's Encyclopedia and on the walls of the Salon carré at the Louvre" (Camp 1). Theatre was becoming increasingly important to French culture, and the playhouse was the foundation for its growth. Evolution in architecture allowed perspective in the theatre to make a comeback, and the concept of illusion in the theatre was updated. In the second half of the eighteenth-century, Diderot and other dramatists offered a transparent concept of theatrical framing, from which "the physical science of optics began to make its way
These touching emotions are arranged in chords and discords, must fit the exact tone of the real emotion, and must be practiced for years for proper mimicry. An actor's talent depends on perfectly executing the outer signs of feeling, so the audience "falls into the trap" (200). A great actor decides on an exact point in the script to deliver the emotion, leaving the actor's mind free of needless, draining, and distracting emotion, only exerting their bodily strength. The actor knows they are not the character, but the audience has that