Dramatic Disgust: Aesthetic Theory and Practice from Sophocles to Sarah Kane

by Sarah J Ablett

Aesthetic disgust is a key component of most classic works of drama because it has much more potential than to simply shock the audience. This first extensive study on dramatic disgust places this sensation among pity and fear as one of the core emotions that can achieve katharsis in drama. The book sets out in antiquity and traces the history of dramatic disgust through Kant, Freud, and Kristeva to Sarah Kane's in-yer-face theatre. It establishes a framework to analyze forms and functions of disgust in drama by investigating its different cognates (miasma, abjection, etc.). Providing a concise argument against critics who have discredited aesthetic disgust as juvenile attention-grabbing, Sarah J. Ablett explains how this repulsive emotion allows theatre to dig deeper into what it means to be human.

204 pages, Paperback

Published September 15, 2020

Reviews

[A N N A · Rating 5 out of 5]

And just like that, it is here.

The Bible I think I will go back to the rest of my career.

To read this was a joy, a shameless feast of empathy and aesthetics.

[Caitlin Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Obviously thesis reading. At times fascinating and at other times, clawing for relevancy and connection. Also completely dropped disgust by the close reading - if you wanna talk about abjection, just do that my dude.

[Erin Mahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good for plot summary but lacking in conversation