A dialogue on The Caucasian Chalk Circle
A Dialogue
Son : Father, what do you mean by Epic Theatre?
Father : It is the new type of theatre, introduced by Bertolt Brecht, a German dramatist in the 1940s. It is also called the Dialectical Theatre.
Son : Dialectical? What does that mean?
Father : You don’t know what Dialectic means? It is an art of investigating truth by discussion and logical argument. Socrates started it in the fifth century Before Christ, in Athens. Here again it has been used by Brecht in his dramas, especially in “The Caucasian Chalk Circle”.
Son : I still don’t understand.
Father : My son, Dialectic is a process whereby contradictions merge to form a higher truth.
Son : How do contradictions merge like that?
Father : In any situation or discussion, when opposite ideas are juxtaposed, a conflict arises. Truth comes out as a result of this conflict.
Son : It’s highly abstract. Can you explain with an example?
Father : Now, in the theory of Marxist Materialism, they say that, political and historical events occur due to the conflict of social forces arising from economic conditions.
Son : Father, your knowledge of politics and philosophy amazes me. Is Brecht a Marxist too?
Father : Yes. His main purpose seems to be driving in Marxist Ideology to those who watch his drama.
Son : Then isn’t it political propaganda?
Father : May be. And Brecht never hides that he has such a purpose.
Son : But, in any part of ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’, Brecht has never mentioned the terms, “Marxism” or “Communism”.
Father : Yes, But Marxist ideals have been introduced at the very beginning, in the prologue. For Example, in the case of the disputed valley, it is given to those who deserve it most. Again in the Drama proper, the child is given to the mother who deserves it most. Both these incidents
Son : Father, what do you mean by Epic Theatre?
Father : It is the new type of theatre, introduced by Bertolt Brecht, a German dramatist in the 1940s. It is also called the Dialectical Theatre.
Son : Dialectical? What does that mean?
Father : You don’t know what Dialectic means? It is an art of investigating truth by discussion and logical argument. Socrates started it in the fifth century Before Christ, in Athens. Here again it has been used by Brecht in his dramas, especially in “The Caucasian Chalk Circle”.
Son : I still don’t understand.
Father : My son, Dialectic is a process whereby contradictions merge to form a higher truth.
Son : How do contradictions merge like that?
Father : In any situation or discussion, when opposite ideas are juxtaposed, a conflict arises. Truth comes out as a result of this conflict.
Son : It’s highly abstract. Can you explain with an example?
Father : Now, in the theory of Marxist Materialism, they say that, political and historical events occur due to the conflict of social forces arising from economic conditions.
Son : Father, your knowledge of politics and philosophy amazes me. Is Brecht a Marxist too?
Father : Yes. His main purpose seems to be driving in Marxist Ideology to those who watch his drama.
Son : Then isn’t it political propaganda?
Father : May be. And Brecht never hides that he has such a purpose.
Son : But, in any part of ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’, Brecht has never mentioned the terms, “Marxism” or “Communism”.
Father : Yes, But Marxist ideals have been introduced at the very beginning, in the prologue. For Example, in the case of the disputed valley, it is given to those who deserve it most. Again in the Drama proper, the child is given to the mother who deserves it most. Both these incidents