IMC 2006: Sessions
Session 1603: Early Modern Fools: Gestures and Emotions
Thursday 13 July 2006, 11.15-12.45
| Sponsor: | Université de Lausanne / Oswald von Wolkenstein-Gesellschaft |
|---|---|
| Organiser: | Alexander Schwarz, Section d'Allemand, Université de Lausanne |
| Moderator/Chair: | Sieglinde Hartmann, Oswald von Wolkenstein-Gesellschaft, Frankfurt am Main |
| Paper 1603-a | Sebastian Brant: The Fool in the Woodcut (Language: English) Index terms: Art History - Decorative Arts, Language and Literature - German |
| Paper 1603-b | To Fool the Fools: Piero of Leiden and the Dutch Lottery Festivals in Early Modern Times (Language: English) Index terms: Daily Life, Language and Literature - Dutch |
| Paper 1603-c | Wicked Joker and Natural Fool: Literary Interests in Early Modern Comical Tales (Language: English) Index terms: Language and Literature - German, Mentalities |
| Paper 1603-d | Nasreddin and Eulenspiegel: The Fools' Contest (Language: English) Index terms: Language and Literature - Comparative, Language and Literature - German |
| Abstract | Medieval fools are recognised either by their nakedness or by their colourful costumes with ass’s ears and cock’s comb, jangling with bells. In both cases they swing their marotte, whether it be a weapon of attack or defence, threateningly. Their body language and their gestures both express and provoke emotions. Their attacks are both physical and psychological. Psychological because the marotte is a perverted sceptre and the fool’s body language transgresses all rules of good behaviour, deriding our mores. The evolution from medieval to early modern fools and from ‘natural’ to artificial fools merits special interest. These papers consider both the representation of fools and their performances in texts and images and responses to ‘foolish’ gestures and behaviour. |