What Rousseau Teaches Us about Live Theatrical Performance

In his survey article, "Art and Ethical Criticism: in some way affected by this consideration, An Overview of Recent Directions of while moderate autonomists will resist such a Research," Noel Carroll points out that although view. philosophers from Plato to Kant have engaged When discussing the recent attempts at ethin ethical criticism of art, Anglo-American ical criticism, as well as recent attempts at philosophers in the twentieth century have, until understanding the relationship between the recently, neglected this practice (even though moral and the aesthetic, Carroll mentions work art critics during the same period have not).' on literature, cinema, and television. Some Recent attempts at ethical criticism have stage plays are mentioned as well, but these are occurred within the context of a debate about given much less focus than other narrative art the viability, and proper orientation, of that forms. Yet of all the arts, the one with the richpractice. The two sides of the debate are dubbed est history of conflict with the defenders of moralism and autonomism.2 The conflict morality, both theological and philosophical, is between the two rests on the question of the theater. Despite the uneasiness moralists whether moral considerations bear in any way have historically felt with regard to art, some on the aesthetic evaluation of a work. Radical arts, and even some general aesthetic concepts moralists argue that moral considerations are all such as beauty and harmony, often enjoy the that is relevant to aesthetic evaluation, and privilege of becoming moral metaphors. But moderate moralists argue that moral considerwhen it comes to theater, the conflict with ations bear in some ways on the aesthetic evalumorality comes into sharp, unmitigated relief. ations of certain (usually narrative) works. In his monumental work, The Antitheatrical Autonomists deny the relevance of moral conPrejudice, Jonas Barish reminds us that this siderations to aesthetic evaluation, but whereas conflict is embedded in our very language. He radical autonomists completely deny the tenabilasks us to consider that, whereas most epithets ity of ethical criticism, moderate autonomists derived from the arts are laudatory ("musical," acknowledge that some art can and should be "poetic," "graphic," "picturesque," "sculpturevaluated on ethical terms-they merely deny esque," etc.), those derived from the theater are that ethical evaluation bears on the aesthetic almost always condemnatory ("melodramatic," evaluation of a given work. So, to take a com"stagey," "making a scene," "acting the part," mon example from the literature, while both and, of course, "theatrical"). Barish points out moderate moralists and moderate autonomists that theater, far more than any other art, has can agree that Triumph of the Will (1934) puts been subject to censure, disapproval, opproforward a reprehensible, fascist point of view brium, and general defamation, and that this that must be challenged, moderate moralists state of affairs is not confined to the Englishmay argue that the movie's value as a movie is speaking world, or even to Europe, or even to