Brecht Quotes

IB THEATER QUOTES ON BRECHT & EPIC THEATER

BRECHT ON BEING A WRITER

“I am a playwright. I would actually like to have been a cabinetmaker, but of course you don’t earn enough doing that.”

Brecht is trying to imply that in the past he wanted to be a cabinetmaker, since maybe at the time they made more ‘money’ than I playwright did. However, now he realizes that because he is a playwright a cabinetmaker does not earn ‘enough’, materialistically in terms of money yes, but not in the case of being a playwright where you write and direct plays that make the audience question and think instead of it being an entertainment.

BRECHT ON THEATRE

"Human beings go to the theatre in order to be swept away, captivated, impressed, uplifted, horrified, moved, kept in suspense, released, diverted, set free, set going, transplanted from their own time, and supplied with illusions. It is not an art at all unless it does so." “There is nothing so interesting on stage as a man trying to get a knot out of his shoelaces.”

Brecht quotes that most humans go to theatre expecting to be entertained and be blown away by performances, but Brecht believes that this is not real art. He thinks that a lot comes from just a man trying to get a knot out of his shoelaces, meaning Brecht uses a different style than most playwrights who usually hope to make the audience engage and get emotionally attached with the actors, however in Brecht’s case this is not what he tries to accomplish. He wants people to question the actions of the actors on stage, why they do certain things a specific way etc, because behind every action it symbolizes an important message that Brecht tries to convey through his actors and usually what he despises or recent events that occurred during that time ex. Capitalism.

BRECHT ON EPIC THEATRE

“The epic theatre is chiefly interested in the attitudes which people adopt towards one another, wherever they are socio-historically significant. It works out scenes where people adopt attitudes of such a sort that the social laws under which they are acting spring into sight. The concern of the epic theatre is thus eminently practical."

Brecht states that epic theatre is highly about the actors working together to portray a significant message to the audience to make them realize an issue that’s taking place and how serious it is, who it affects and how it affects them and what they can do about it, without getting emotionally attached to the actors, but changing the audience attitudes towards things. Brecht’s goal was to make the audience leave the room with them still thinking about the significance of the play, the purpose most of the time were social issues and how they can contribute to make it better.

BRECHT ON EMPATHY

“If in art an appeal is made to the emotions it means reason has to be switched off.”

Since Brecht did epic theatre which was different to dramatic theatre, in epic theatre the actors were not allowed to get expressively attached to their characters otherwise this will then enable the audience to also feel emotions when watching the performance which then leads to entertainment, this Brecht did not want. This quote refers to the actors and how art is made to be seen and the emotions are still present but sometimes have to get detached and not get too involved by playing the character that’s assigned.

BRECHT ON ART

“Art is not a mirror with which to reflect reality, but a hammer with which to shape it.”

Brecht uses art to symbolize his directing of a play. The art being the performance which does not always reflect about reality but rather uses the hammer being the actors and act as an ensemble to demonstrate the matter that is ongoing, all the things on stage helps to depict and form the vital message across to the audience.

BRECHT ON ACTORS

“Epic Theatre is an extremely artistic affair hardly thinkable without artists of virtuosity, imagination, humor and fellow-feeling.”

In epic theatre actors are not allowed to play their character in great depth that they get attached to it, but rather have characters with intelligence and imagination that can take on the challenge of them being this character that they have to be drawn away from most of the time and using gestures to portray what they want to depict rather than facial expressions, the actors have to use alienation devices to make a fourth wall between them and the audience in order for them not to engage too much.