7/29/2019 471736

1/22

Aesthetic Distance in Garca Lorca's El Pblico: Pirandello and OrtegaAuthor(s): Wilma NewberryReviewed work(s):Source: Hispanic Review, Vol. 37, No. 2 (Apr., 1969), pp. 276-296Published by: University of Pennsylvania PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/471736 .Accessed: 07/08/2012 22:01

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .

http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of

content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms

of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

.

University of Pennsylvania Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to

Hispanic Review.

http://www.jstor.org

http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=upennhttp://www.jstor.org/stable/471736?origin=JSTOR-pdfhttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/stable/471736?origin=JSTOR-pdfhttp://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=upenn

7/29/2019 471736

2/22

AESTHETICDISTANCE N GARCfA jORCA'SEL PUBLICO PIRANDEIlIlOAND ORTEGAIn "Cuadroqmhinto"hich is the f;ffthact of E1publicohe appear-ance of spectators, conflictarnong the rnany people involved in the pro-dqhetion f a play, and the rnany levels of reality represented sqxggestthat GarczaLorca was alluding to innovatzonsassociatedwith Pirandello.lRhere re also staternents n "Cqhadrouinto"critical of techniqmheshich

destroy the aesthetic distance which shoqxld $ist between the aqxdienceandv he stage. A comparison of E1 publico with Ortepa y Gasset'sDeshumanizacionel arte qxrther eveals that sorne of the reactions ofthe two writers to new art are sirnilar. Based on these facts whichindi-cate that GarczaLorca was writing about the problerns of the theaterof his time, a new inteq*pretationf E1publicond especzallyof "Cuadroqmhinto"s established:The death of the theater,syrnboltzedby a Christ-like f;Egqxse,s caqhsed y the new techniqmheshich rnake poetic illqhsionzmpossible. Howeveq*,esqxrrections irnplicit in thts death, and at theend of the play yoqhng eople are looking for the path whsch will leadto the salsation of the theater. (WC)THE DEEPLYsigilifieant influenee of Pirandello on the Spanishl theater ean perhaps best be appreciated by studying the ex-perimental plays of Federico GareiaIJorea,Spain's leading play-wright of the 1930's. In these plays we ean see that the drama-turgie revolution neitedby Pirandello extended to even so autarkiea personality as Garcia IJoreawho transformedand poetized thisinflueneeto such an extent that its presence in his work still passesalmostunobserved.Unlike certain dramatists who obviously set out to write playsin the mode of Pirandello or who wished to experiment with histechniquesand ideas, Gareia Lloreaeertainly did not wish to beinspired by Pirandello or by anyone else. However he uncon-sciously absorbedknowledge of everything which was present inthe literary world. Angel del Rio's comment is especially ex-pressive: "1Ie had an extraordinaryfacility for assilnilatingforhis own purposeswhatever literary or artistic current was at themoment in the air: a few allusions, some conversations,or some

276

7/29/2019 471736

3/22

AestheticDistance in "El Pisblico 277cursory reading sufficed. It was almost like a sisth sense, aphysical attribute.221In spite of the fact that this characteristic of Garcla Ijoreais mentioned by almostall of his commentators, nd that it is alsowell known that Pirandellism touched almost all Spanish play-wrights of his epoeh, the names of Garcla IJorca and Pirandellohave been associated only peripherally. Eric Bentley, for es-ample, remarks that after the deaths of Garcla Ilorca and Piran-dello, Spain and Italy had to be content with the histrionics ofFranco and Mussolini.2 Francis Fergusson states: " 'After Piran-dello'-to take him symbolically rather than chronologically-theway was open for Yeats and IJorca,Cocteau and Eliot,"3 andlater affirmsthat Eliot, IJorcaand Yeats all belong to the move-ment which is a quest for a contemporarypoetry of the theater.Edwin Honig has perhaps come closest to actually pointing outthe relationship betweenthese two dramatists:If one remembershow eagerly Lorea sought freedom for his imaginationin the theatre, how he attempted to break down the barrier betweenstageand audienee, it is possible to see why surrealist devices should haveinterested him. Certainlythere has never been anything in the theatrewhieh one might call a surrealist f ortn. Lorea's e:xperiment n thisdirection,however,was not particularlyoriginal. Maeterlinek,Pirandello,O'Neill, Strindberg, and Capek had used, with both marked and indif-ferent suecess, eertain new imaginative formulas on the stage, by whieherities learned to argue new terms Expressionism, Symbolism, Con-structivism,ete. Quite as daring were the attempts of Azorm, Gomezdela Serna, Alberti, Coeteau, Breton, and a host of lesser surrealistswhocombined earlier teehnical innovations with their own fanciful projea-tions, striving for a more startling "reality" or "super-reality"on atransformedstage.4

Even Garcla IJorea'sown mention of Pirandello in a lecturedoes not reveal mueh: "A1 publieo se le puede ensenar-consteque digo publieo no puebl; se le puede ensenar, porque yo hevisto patear a Debussy y a Ravel hace anos, y he asistido despues1Angel del Rio "Lorca: Poet in New York," Neuv World Wrtttng No. 8(New York, 1955), p. 183.2Eric Bentley, The Playwright as Thinker (Cleveland, 1964), p. XVII.3Francis Fergusson, The Idea of a Theater (G#ardenCity, 1953), p. 206.4Edwin :EIonig,GarczaLorca (Norfolk, 1963), p. 135.

7/29/2019 471736

4/22

Wilwa Newberry278 ER, ZZXVII ( 1969a las elamorosasovaeiones que un publico popular haela a lasobras antes rechazadas. Estos autores fueron impuestos por unalto eriterio de autoridad superior al del publico eorriente, comoWedekind en Alemania y Pirandello en Italia, y tantos otros." 5The fact that Pirandello s actual influence on Garcla Llorcahas not been seriously considered can be easily explained: hismost beautiful and popular plays show not a trace of "Pirandell-ism". We must go to his experimental theater to find it, andonly two parts of El Publico, by far the most importantplay inthis respect, are available. In addition, these two parts, "ReinaRomana" and " Cuadro Quinto," have been neglected becausethey do not give the enjoylnent we expect from Garcla Ijorea'swritings; they are a eonfusing conglomerationof images, the sur-realist elementsseem to excuse us from really understanding,andthe homosexualovertonessomewhatobscurethe importantartisticmessageswhich are the main theme.On the wholeEl Publico has provedsomewhatembarrassing oscholars. Since it exists it must at least be mentioned in anystudy of GarclaIlorea's theater. The problem has been solved invariousways. Somehave said that the fragmentarynature of theplay makes an attempt at analysis "absurd," or that it is notimportant, although Garela Ilorea himself elearly stated that hisexperimentalplays meant much to him.6 Some authors of recentstudies of GarelaIlorea's plays limit themselvesto repeating andquoting passages from earlier commentaries,or summarizing theaction of the play. Others simply discuss Ast que pasen cincoanos and El Publico as a pair. Amid this, Jean-IlouisSchonberg'sblunt statement (with which I eannot agree) that the key to theplay is the passagewhich suggests love of two boys for each other;and his further deelarationsthat the "Desnudo" which is beingcrucified is the church,and that in this play Garela Ilorea shows

5Federico Garcia Lorea, Obras CoFrnpletas,"aharla sobre teatro" (Ma-drid: Aguilar, 1957), p. 35. All quotations from Garcia Lorca's writings aretaken from this edition.6 In an interview Garcia Lorca said: " En estas comedias imposiblesest mi verdaderoproposito" (p. 1635). Alld Angel del Rio states: "E3abemosque el mismo Lorca y 1o8 amigos que la conocen integra le concedian bas-tante importancia." " Federico Garcia Lorca ( 1899-1936 , " Reswta E"-pdntca Moderna New York, July-October, 1940; vol. VI, No. 3 and 4, p. 240.

7/29/2019 471736

5/22

AestheticDistance in "El Pqxbltco" 279his decision to make the stage a court to discuss social problems, sis at least a refreshing approach.7The conjecturehas been put forth that El Publico was intendedas a violent blast against the commereialized heater,8 and it iseven suggested that he expressed his anger and disdain towardthe public in this play, which would seem to contradict what weknow about Gareia Ilorea attitude toward the audience, asSanchez points out.9 The playwright's own statement about theimpossibility of representation and the wrath it would eause ifit were performed s frequently repeated.10

However, there have been some important contributionsto theunderstanding of this play by several critics who seem to haverealized its signifieance. Alfredo de la Guardia, in his chapterentitled " iELevolucionn el teatro," suggests its relationship toPirandello: "Por su pensamiento, si ha de busearse en el titulo,la obra podia tener una relativa filiacion pirandelliana, puesafirmaba Jorcaque se proponla la intervencion de los espectadoresen el espectaculo.''li He goes on to say that Gareia Ijorca un-derstood in time that this was not the road his theater shouldtake, although he admits that the idea of participation by specta-tors fascinated the playwright. Del Rio points out that El P?blicoseemsto have been inspired by the problemof reality and poetic"super-reality" on the stage and in real life.l2Edwin Elonig states that the fragments

7/29/2019 471736

6/22

280 Wtlma Newberry ER, :KL:ZVII (1969)escapesus are the signs, the first birth pangs, of a new dramaticlanguage, even a new dramaticorientation,based on a necessityof the imaginationto break through the impasse of sterility, al-ready so insistently documented n his last three plays." 14Maria TeresaBabin also realizes the importanceof this work,stating that Ast que pasex cinco anos and the available scenes ofEl P?iblicoconstitute the most intellectual eSort of GarciaIjorcain the theater. These plays: 'vpenetran a zona de la estetica ensu dimensionmas abstractay encarnan ideas que trasciendendela vida externaa la vida del espirituy del pensamiento." 5

In the following pages I hope to demonstrate hat El P?iblicois an extremely important document because it shows GarciaIlorca's very special reaction to Pirandello. First of all I shallpoint out the definitePirandelliancharacteristics.The second considerationwill be the problemof aesthetic dis-tance, the decrease or disappearanceof which is an importantconsequenceof the theater-within-the-theaterorm so intimatelyassociatedwith Pirandello. It will be suggested that GarciaIjorca, ealizingthat his type of lyrical theatercould not exist un-lessa certainaestheticdistancewere maintained,wrote El P?iblicotoillustrate the damagecausedby extremeforms of Pirandellism,tocriticizethese forms,and then to manifesthis rejectionof them.Third, as GarclaIlorcas commentaryon aestheticdistance,ElP?iblicoan be considereda companion-pieceo Ortegay GassetXsDesh?l,manizacionel arte. A comparisonof the ideas expressedby hese two writers will showhow GarclaIlorca'sreactionto thenewheater compares o that of Ortegay Gasset,and that the un-usual imilarity of many images suggests that GarclaIjorcamayhave een inspiredby Ortegay Gasset.Iluigi Pirandello, in the Premise to his theater-within-the-theaterrilogy explains how these three plays (Sez Personaggi incerca aautorenCiascunoa S?o modonand Questasera si recita asoggetto)are similar: 'formano come una trilogia del teatro nelteatro,on soloperchehannoespressamente zionesul palcoscenicoenella sala, in un palco o nei corridoj o nel ridotto d'un teatro,ma nche perche di tutto il complessodegli elementi d'un teatro,14 Ibid., p. 124.15 Maria Teresa Babin, El tntxndopoettco de Federtco Garcia lorca (SanJuan,954), p. 15.

7/29/2019 471736

7/22

Aesthetic Distance in "El Pqxblico" 281personaggi e attori, autore e direttore-eapocomico reeistra, criticidrammatici e spettatori alieni o interessati, rappresentano ognipossibile conflittonn 6These same words could almost be used to describe the actionof El Publico.l7 Although Garela IJoreashows most of the possi-ble conflicts suggested by Pirandello in this Premise the emphasison the intervention of the spectators in the play correspondsespe-eially to Ciascunoa suo modo. Just as in this play, in El Publicothere are differing opinions among the spectators, who are evenmore violently opposed than in Pirandello's plays to the director(they ask that he be killed), to the poet (they want him to bedragged by the horses), to the actors (they kill them after forcingthem to repeat a seene), and to the eharaeters (they kill the "ver-dadera' Julieta after stuffing her under a theater seat, still alivegagged and whining).Another essential element of Pirandellism found in El Publtcois the many levels of reality represented. In this respeet, GareiaIJoreaeould almost be said to outdo Pirandello, e2eeept or the faetthat so far as we ean tell from this fragment, all of the aetiontakes plaee on the stage. The violent aetions of the speetatorsare narrated by representative members of the audienee who ap-pear on the stage, and by allegorieal figures. Thus, to begin with,we have two planes of reality: the aetion on the stage, and theaetion whieh is narrated. The persons who appear on the stagerepresent three levels of reality: the allegorieal figures, theprompter, and the membersof the audienee. The narrated aetionalso eontains figures whieh eorrespond to these three levels: theallegorieal figures (Elena who is the personifieationof the moon,and the horses), the stage direetor, and the audienee which, swarm-ing through every possible area of the theater, is the main pro-tagonist of this narration. In the narration there are three addi-

6Luigi Pirandello, Maschere Nqzde,I (Mondadori: Verona, 1962) 51.17 Although the major part of this analysis concerns only " CuadroQuinto," I have used the title El Pqbblicobeeause it is more eharaeteristieof this seetion than it is of the less important portion "Reina Romana."I have used the word " Pirandellism" throughout this artiele when Imean the many varieties of theater-within-the-theater teehniques assoeiatedwith Pirandello. This term, of eourse, ean also be used to eonnote the am-biguity of personality theme whieh is also sueh an important part of Piran-dello 's work.

7/29/2019 471736

8/22

WtltnaNeqltberry82 HR, ZZXVII (1969)tional levels: the poet (playwright), the aetors, and Juliet (theeharaeter .Both dramatieauthors allow the audienee to see the interiormechaniesof the stage. In Pirandello's plays this is one of thebasie themes; in El Publico this is the cause of the revolution.Another intrusion of reality into the illusion of the stage isaeeomplished,as in Pirandello's plays, beeausemistakesmade bythe stagehands interrupt action. The prompter has sent thethieves onto the stage too soon, and then there is a delay becauseJose de Arimateas beard has been lost. Ilater, an intrusion intothe illusion of the stage is aeeomplishedby nature,when a nightin-gale sings (symbolizingdeath) before the seript called for it todo so, with the result that the action on the stage is governedbythis uneontrollablenatural elementof life.There is even some similarity between the stage setting in ElPublico and Ctasc?bno suo modo. Pirandellotells us that in theaneientpalace whiehis the setting for his play we have the impres-sion of being in a chapel. In the background here are arches andcolumns. In El Publico there are arches in the baekgroundandstairs whieh lead to the seats of a theater. There are columnsin'sReina Romana7"and a eathedralis mentioned n the test.Both playwrihts are eonseiousthat these theater-within-the-theater teehniqueslead to ehaos,destruetionand eonfusion. Thisis one of the mainthemesof El Publico,and Pirandelloexplainsinhis Premise: '4Ove la eommediae da fare, come nel primo, dareeitare a soggetto, come nel terzo, il eonflitto, non uguale, nesimile, anzi precisamenteopposto, impedisce che la eommediasifaeeia e ehe l'improvvisazionesia governata e regolata e giungaseguitamentea una eonelusione;ove la commediae fatta, eomenelseeondo,il conflittone mandaa monte la rappresentazione.l8The deereaseor disappearanceof aesthetic distance is one es-tremely significant result of the theater-within-the-theatereeh-niques, used by Pirandello and others, whieh inelude in theirestreme form deviees such as partieipation by membersof theaudiencewho are really actors but who seem to be speetators,in-terruptionsby aetorsor prompterswhith destroythe illusion, anddireet addressto the audienee.Stated in the simplest terms, the problemof aesthetic distanee

18 Pirandello, op. Cit. p. 51.

7/29/2019 471736

9/22

AestheticDistance in "El P?blico" 283is eoncernedwith the observer'sneed to be somewhatremotefromthe art form he is contemplating, hat is, he must be psychologicallyand physically detachedin order to view objectively the work ofart as sueh without being so distant that he is detached from iteompletely. Any dramatic technique which does not allow theplay to exist as a detached entity for aesthetic contemplation,be-cause it actually attempts to involve the spectator, destroys aes-thetie distanee. Edward Bullough, the British psychologist,pub-lished an importantstudy on aesthetic distance as a factor in artappreeiation in 1912,19and reeently Oscar Budel has distussedits implieations in the contemporary theater.20 Bullough andOrtega y Gasset have been paired in Rader's iL Modern Book ofE7sthetscsunder the caption < Theories of Psychological Detach-ment,''21 and, following his lead, P. A. Miehelis has commentedon the relationship of these two men.22Aesthetie distance is both a physieal and an intelleetual phe-nomenon. Treatments of the problem inelude everything fromthe arrangementof the theater seats to the most intimate mentalattitudes of the individual speetator whieh enable him to view aplay subjectively or objectively aeeording to his own experieneeorstate of mind.The form of Pirandello's theater-within-the-theater lays de-ereasesor destroys the aesthetie distaneebetween players and spec-tators because they feel varying degrees of almost physical con-tact with the stage. The content of these plays increasesaestheticdistanee to the utmost because the human story with which thespectators can emotionally identify has been removed to the planeof the idea-the -characters re no longer replicas of humanbeingsacting out human con:dicts-they represent abstract ideas or arefantasmt d'arte. Thus Pirandello s plays illustrate minimumphysical aesthetic distance in eombinationwith masimumideologi-

l9Edward Bullough, " 'Psychical Distance' as a Factor in Art and anAesthetic Principle," British Joqxrnaa f Psycholopy, v (June, 1912), 87-118.2Oscar Budel, "Contemporary Theater and Aesthetit Distance," PXLA(June, 1961 , 277-291.e1X hlodern Book of Esthetics, ed. Melnn M. Rader (New Tork 1935).(Only the first four chapters of La deshum&nizaco6nel arte appear here.)22 P. A. Michelis, "Aesthetic Distance and the Charm of ContemporarJrArt," lRheJournaa of Jesthetics and Xrt Crtttcwm,XYlll (03eptember, 959),1wL5.

7/29/2019 471736

10/22

284 WiltnaNewberry ER XXXVII (1969)cal distanee. Budel, who makes it clear that his artiele is con-cerned only with form uses Pirandello as one of the majorillustrations of the breakdownof distanee in the contemporarytheater. Ortegay Gasset,who is coneernedwith ideas, thinks Seipersonaggin cercad'autores the perfect e2ampleof the inereaseof distancein new art, and is, of course,referring to the increaseof intellectualdistance,the plaeing of an idea beyondthe immedi-ate grasp of lasmasas,n short, "deshumanizaeion."In El Pt'6bltcoareiaIlorea is eoneernedwith the destruetionof poetic illusion wrought by the breakdownof aesthetic distancecaused by theater-within-the-theaterechniques in their extremeform. The audience begins by intervening in the play, and, itsappetite thus whetted for full discoveryof the mystery of poeticcreation, forges ahead until it kills almost everyone involvedwith the theater, including the "true7' Juliet-a beautiful poeticcharacterwho is destroyedby the public who, like children, tearherapart as if she were a rag doll, to see what is inside her. NotevenJuliet, a name probablyused here becauseRomeoandJultetwas one of Garcia Ijorca's favorite plays, can continue to existunderthese circumstancesand suSers the great indignity of beinggaggedand stuffedunder a theater seat before she is dead. ThusGarclaIjorca dramatically illustrates the end results of the de-structionof illusion found in the contemporarytheater. Thefollowingparagraphfrom Professor Budel's article could almostbe used to summarizethe thesis of El Publtco:"Whereas theExpressionist evolutionmay have been a salutaryreactionagainstanera of 'illusionism' (and as such stressedagain the theatricalityoftheater), its implicationsseemto have createdtendencieswhichperhapshave gone beyond original intentions. These tendentiesmaydestroymore than mere theatrical 'illusionism'; they indeedseem o reach to the very roots of theater. One of these trendsappearso point toward a destructionof aesthetic distance withrefereneeo the spectators, thereby reducing or eliminating thetensionbetweenactor and spectator,betweenstage and audience,whicheemsto be a corwdttw strwequa non for the theater.?' 3This idea of initial confidencethat the new techniqueswouldbe alutary for the theater, followed by disillusionmentwhen it

23 Budel, op. ait., p. 277.

7/29/2019 471736

11/22

XestheticDistance ix "El Pi6blico" 285becameobviousthat they could lead to disaster, is stressed in ElPublico.The audience is representedby a lady who expressesher ownillusion and subsequentdisillusion by saying that when they wereclimbingover the hill of ruin (in the contest of the play this ob-viously means when the theater-within-the-theaterechniquesper-mitted them to wander over the stage) they thought they saw thelight of dawn, but they stumbled against the curtains, and hershoesare now stainedwith petroleum.The stage directorhas had a similar experience. He was theinitial cause of the revolution becausehe opened the stage trapsto allow the audienceto see the inner workings of the stage. Hesoon discoveredthat under these circumstancesall of his skill ismsufficient o maintain theatrical illusion. "El directorde escenaevito de maneragenial que la masa de espectadoresse enterasedeesto?pero los caballosy la revolucion han destruido sus planes2'(p. 1075).In addition, the revolution has escalated beyond imagination.No one couldhave anticipatedit would touch such time-establishedmasterpiecesas Pconseo nd Juliet: "Era ull drama delicioso y larevolucionno tiene derechopara profanarlas tumbas" (p. 1069).However, Garcia Ilorca does not limit himself to these moresubtle forms of lamenting the destruction of aesthetic distance.After listening to the argumentof the students about exactly whythe revolutionstarted,Ilorcaclearly stateswhy the theateris dying:"Aqui esta la gran equivocacionde todos y por eso el teatroagoni2a. El publicono debe atravesar as sedas y los cartonesqueel poeta levanta en su dormitorio. Romeo puede ser un ave yJulieta puede ser una piedra. Romeopuede ser un grano de saly Julieta puede ser un mapa. ^Que le importaesto al publico"(p. 1070).Ijater, he reinforceshis messagethat a spectatorshould nevertake part in a play and that aestheticdistancemust be maintained.When a student complainsthat the attitude of the public has beendetestablehis friend answers-"Detestable. Un espectadorno debeformar nunca parte del drama. Cuandola gente va al acuarinmno asesinaa las serpientes de mar, ni a las ratas de agua, ni a lospeces cubiertos de lepra, sino que resbala sobre 1QS cristales susojos y aprende" (p. 1075).

7/29/2019 471736

12/22

286 WtlqnaNewberry ER, :xZVII (1969)A comparisonof Ortegay Gasset'sDeshumanizaciondel arte(1925) and Garcia IJorca'sEl Publico (1930) 24 iS surprisinglyfruitful. It may seem incongruousto comparethe work of thephilosopherof the mtnorzas electas whose essay has a clearly de-fined thesis with that of the poet of and for the people whosesur-realist play under analysis is not availablein its entirety. How-ever, the irnages employed by GSarciajorca show an amazingsirnilarityto those used by his predecessor,making it seem con-ceivablethat part of El Publicomay be GSareiajorea'sunconscioussurrealist distortion of some of Ortega y Gassets ideas, eventhoughOrtegay Gassetis concernedwith all "arte nuevo" mani-festationsand GareiaIlorearefers only to the new theater.Ortegay Gassetis tertainly the most likely ideologicalinspira-tion for ideas regardingaestheticdistance in El Publico, not onlybecauseof the commonlanguage, but because Garcia Ijorca hadtwodirect opportunitiesto be exposedto these ideas: the two menfrequentedthe Residencia de Estudiantes in Madrid during thesameperiod, and xvhenGarciaIjorcawas in New York one of hisfriendsxvasOrtegay Gasset's translator,MildredAdams. Evenifthe possibilityof direct inspirationis to be rejected,this reactionof two writers, otherwise diametrically opposed in almost every+^ray,o the samephenomenons estremely interesting.In spite of the similarity of images denoting interest in thesame heatrical situation, it is obviousthat most of the time thesetwowriters are reactingto distinct facets of the phenomenon. Al-though ceasionallyOrtegay Gassetmakesa statementwhichcouldreferto the breakdownof aesthetic distance caused by theater-within-the-theaterechniques, his chief concern is to study thephenomenonf ideological content in the new art which has be-comeoo distant for the majority of the people to understand.Garciajorca7 lthoughthere are definiteexamplesof dehumani2a-tionn his play, illustrates the results of the breakdownof physi-caldistarlcebetween the poetic illusion and the audience causedbyhe theater-within-the-theaterechniques.Another important diference is that GSarciaJorcadefinitely

24Although the date 1933 is often given, GSarefajorea's acquaintancesseemo be iD agreement that he was working on it during and immediatelyafterhis stay in New Tork City. During this time he stated: "El teatronuevo, vanzado de formas y tooria es mi mayor preoccupaciin. NuevaYorks UDsitio fliico para tomarle el pulso al nuevo arte teatral" (p. 1608).

7/29/2019 471736

13/22

AestheticDistace in "El Publico" 287shows his disapprovaland rejectionof these techniqueswhich havecaused the destruction of theater. Although Ortega y Gassetelearly states that he is merely moved by the desire to try to un-derstandthe phenomenon,motivatedneither by ire nor enthusiasm,and admits that new art has produted nothing worth while, inhis essay we feel a tatit approval of the dehumanizedart whichmakes a elear intellectual distinetion between the select minorityand the masseswhich are foreed to recognize their inferiority be-cause of their inability to understand the new art. In fact, thesocial implications of the intellectually aristocraticideas conveyedby Ortega y Gasset almost overshadowhis distussion of aestheticdistance. However, a comparisonof Bullough's artiele and Ortegay Gasset's essay reveals that they are treating the same funda-mental psythologicalproblem.25Ortega y Gasset's statement which most elearly deseribes thesituation treated in Et PubEicoppears at the end of his thapter"IJa vuelta del reves" in which he calls Sei personaggin cercad'autore he first "drama de ideas": "se advierte ejemplarmentela dificultaddel gran publico para acomodar a vision a esta per-spectiva invertida. Va bustando el drama humano que la obraconstantementedessirtua, retira e ironiza, poniendoen su lugar-esto es, en primerplano-la fiecion teatral misma,como tal fiecion.A1 gran publicole irrita que le enganen y no sabe complacerseenel delitioso fraude del arte, tanto mas esquisito cuanto mejormanifiestesu te:sturafraudulenta. 226

25 Mithelis states: "Bullough's theory, then, would keep contemplationelose to the spectator's psychological experience, while the theory of Ortegay Gasset would liberate it from every emotional link with the object, by thegreatest possible retreat from it, thus making of aesthetic contemplation analmost e2clusively intellectual act" (op. it. p. 2). It is possible that thisstatement is not quite accurate. The two men were doing completely difEerentthings. Bullough, as a psychologist, is analyzing the factors which createthe ideal aesthetit distance for masimum aesthetit enjoyment. Ortega yGasset is describing the characteristics of the new art which he believes re-moves itself from the common man. The former, therefore, is presentingthis comple2 problem and analyzing psychological reactions. The latter isdescribing how he thinks the new art is. Both realize that too great anaesthetie distance will prevent enjoyment of the work of art, although Ortegay Gasset maintains that a select minority possesses the unusual ability toenjoy aehumanizea forms.

26 JosE Ortega y Gasset, Obra Completas (Madnd: Revista de Occi-dente, 1947), III, 377. All quotations from La deshxmunwaci6ndel atwte refrom this edition.

7/29/2019 471736

14/22

Wilmva ewberry88 BR, XXXVII (1969)This irritationof the audiencedescribedby Ortegay Gassetisone of the main themes of Et PubEico,of course, but there is apassagewhich specificallyechoesthe above-quotedconcepts. Theaudienceis angry and asks that the poet be draggedby the horses;even though it was a "drama delicioso" and the tomb scene waswell developed, they discoveredthe lie when they saw Juliet'sfeet, which were extremelysmall. This was "delicioso" and im-possibleto criticize,but they were too small to be a woman'sfeet.They were too perfect and too feminine. Obviously they weremale feet, feet inventedby a man, and this is horrifying.The confusionof the audience caused by the new art or newtheater is treated by both writers, Ortega y Gasset betause thework of art is intellectually too distant from them: "Tan prontocomo estos elementos puramente esteticos dominen y no puedeagarrar bien la historia de Juan y Maria, el publico queda des-pistadoy no sabe que hacer" (p. 357); and GarclaIjorcabecauseaesthetic distance has disappeared and they have approachedclosely enough to see the interior mechanicsof the theater: "Y

que han sacadoen claro? Un racimode heridasy una desorienta-cion absoluta" (p. 1076 .Naturally in La deshumanizaciondel arte the conversion ofhuman forms into non-humanones is a prominenttheme. "Con-venla libertar la poesla, que, cargada de materiahumanase habiaconvertidoen un grave,e iba arrastrando obrela tierra,hiriendosecontra los arbolesy las esquinasde los tejados comoun globo singas" (p. 371). Ortega y Gasset believes that in the new epochthe symbolof art has again becomethe magic flute of Pan, whichmakesthe goats danceon the edge of the forest. He inquireswhatthe young people want the poet to be, in contrastto the romanticpoet who "querla siempre ser un hombre" (p. 371). He rejectsthe possibilitythat they want him to be "un pajaro,un ictiosauro,un dodecaedro",believingthat they only want him to be a poet.This "deshumanizacion"aspect is quite prominentin El Pub-lico. There are many figures which are not quite human, and aconstant theme is the possibility that all forms can representpoeticreality, for example:"Es una cuestionde forma,de mascara.Un gato puede ser una rana, y la luna de invierno puede sermuy bien un haz de lena cubiertode gusanosateridos" (p. 1071).Of course the Pan-like figures who dance and play the flute in

7/29/2019 471736

15/22

AestheticDistance in "El Publico" 289"Reina Romana" are directly reminiscent of Ortega y Gasset'sopinion about the new epoch.Both realize that aesthetie distance is necessary. This is oneof the main ideas of Garcla Ijorca's play, and he nuderlines it bysaying that the audienceshould not go beyond the silk and card-board that the poet erects in his room, and that people who goto the aquarium slide their eyes over the glass and learn, so whyshould they not do the same in the theater? Ortega y Gassetstates clearly: "Ver es una accion a distancia. Y cada una delas artes maneja un aparato proyector que aleja las cosas y lastransfigura. En su pantalla magica las contemplamosdesterradas,inquilinas de un astroinabordable absolutamente ejanas. Cuandofalta esta desrealizacionse produce en nosotros un titubeo fatal;no sabemossi vivir las cosas o contemplarlas" (p. 370). An allu-sion to the screen of the cinema is also found in the stage direc-tions of El Publico: "Ija luz toma un tinte plateado de pantallacinematografica" (p. 1075). This occurs after the "Desnudo"dies: the man appears in his place, just before the statement thatthe spectator should not form part of the drama, obviously tosuggest that this new genre has a lesson for the theater becausespectator participation in the film is impossible.Both writers show the ironical or farsical essence of new art.Ortega y Gasset believesthat the new inspiration is comical,rang-ing from clownery to a slight ironical wink, even though the con-tent of the work is not comical. Art mocksitself. Garcia Ijorcauses the joy and laughter of the students in an episode towardthe end of the play to create an emotionalabout-face: the vitallyimportant situation which had been treated with completeserious-ness until then is suddenly made the object of jest when one ofthe students throws Juliet's shoe at his friend. This shoe hadbeen taken from the dead actor, apparently with the original in-tention of conserving t as a relic.27Youth is an important element of the phenomenonwhich bothartists observe. Ortega y Gasset believes that " Todo el artenuevo resulta comprensibley adquiere cierta dosis de grandezacuando se le interpreta como un ensayo de crear puerilidaden un mundo viejo" (p. 384). In Garcia Ijorca's play youth is

27Professor Budel also discusses this "making fun" aspect of the con-temporary theater. Op. ott. p. 291.

7/29/2019 471736

16/22

WilrnaNewberry290 BS, XVII (1969)hopeful of finding the solution, is helpful in leading the olderpeople, and is willing to destroy the old doetrinesof the past.

Finally, both writers see that young people want to start fromseratch,as Qrtegay Gassetstates: "ljos jovenes quieren crear dela nada" (p. 356), and Gareia Ijorea's young people intend toburn the book from which the priests read the mass. Also, theyboth realize the need to find another road, which is neither thepresent one nor the traditional one, as Qrtegay Gasset says: "Alas objeeioneshabria que anadir otra cosa: la insinuation de otroeaminopara el arte que no sea este deshumanizador i reitere lasvlas usadas y abusadas" (p. 386), and Garefa IJoreae:xpressesthis idea by showing the young people looking for this path atthe end of the play: "Alguna puerta sera la verdadera" (p. 1079).Pirandellism and the problem of aesthetic distance seem toelarify GarelaIjorea'smessagein Et Pubtico: The central figureof " CuadroQuinto is a " Desnudoviejo" who is dying (" agon-iza"). Although most commentators onsiderthis figure to sym-bolize the poet, I wish to suggest that more specifieallyhe repre-sents the theater, or the spirit of the theater. I believe this tobe true becausethe te:xtstates "el teatro agoniza," and becausehe is an old man and is lying on a bed "como pintado por unprimitivo" whiehwouldsuggestthe ancientart-formof the theater.Also, he is naked, which in addition to stressing the analogy ofhis deathwith the crutifisionof (:hristwouldshowwhy the theateris dying-it has been stripped of its elothing which would sym-bolize the distanceplated betweenthe illusion of the theater andthe audience.

"Cuadro Quinto" is preceded by a lyrical interlude entitled"Reina Romana,"which is set in a differenthistoricalperiod, theepoch of the RomanEmpire, explaining the emphasison elassicalunity here. GarelaIjoreamay have intendedto representa difer-ent period of the theater in each of the five acts, ending with"(:uadro Quinto" about the contemporarytheater which termi-nates with hope for the future. If so, Gonzalo,who is called atthe end of "Reina Romana," having been inquired about at thebeginning of "(:uadro Quinto," could possibly be don Gonzalo,Tirso de Molina's Convidadode Piedra and Zorrilla's characterof the samenamewho couldhave appearedin the interveningactsto representthe sig1>oe oroand the romantictheater. Of coursethis is only conjecture,but GarciaIjorca did state that his two

7/29/2019 471736

17/22

Aesthetic Distance tn "El Pxblico'2 291favorite plays were Romeo and Ju1>iet nd Don Juan Tenorzo.28Also, Schonberg'ssuggestion that the shout "Enrique, Enrique"at the end of the play is the cry from Praust could possibly bevalid and would fit in with this general theme.In "(:uadro Quinto" the male nurse is estracting blood fromthe nude figure with his complete consentand cooperation. GarciaIJorcaonce stated: "Now I am writing a poetry which demandsthe opening of veins,-a poetry freed from reality," 29 suggestmgthat this figure of the theater must also be freed from the closecontact with reality which the theater-within-the-theaterechniqueshave forced him to accept.The figure is being crucified. Although no cross actually ap-pearsymany of the other symbols of the crucifi:xion f Christ arepresent, including the thieves. As Saez points out,30 n Poet inNew York the figure of Christ crucifiedcarries with it the lmpliedhope of resurrection. Obviously the crucifision has the same sig-nificance here, because a nurse, a figure associated with healing,is arranging for his death. There are other very strong symbolsof hope at the end of the play, that is, the students have lanternsin their hands and are leading the adults in their search for theright door. The reasonfor the great importancegiven to the stu-dents in this play is clear if we remember hat after his returnto Spain from New York Garcia Ijorca organized a universitytheater.The audience asks that the stage director be killed. The direc-tor is one of Pirandellos most prominent agents for breakinginto the illusion of the stage as esemplified by Dr. Hinkfuss ofQuestra Sera st recita a soggetto. The members of the audienceare indifferent to the dying theater, probably because they areunaware of its ancient grandeur, so cluttered has the stage be-comewith all the gimmickswhich make true theater impossible

28 Carlos Morla L;ynch,En Espana con FedertoGarcfaLorca (Madrid,1958), p. 125. 'sSon las dos obras que desearia haber eserito."29 Lorca-Selected and Translated by J. L. Gili (Bungay, Suifolk:Pe:clguin,1960), p. .30Richard Saez, "The Ritual Sacrifiee in Lorea's 'Poet in New Tork' ",in lorca, X Collectionof CrtttcalEssays, ed. Manuel Durin (EnglewoodCliffs, 1962, p. 108-129. Although f3aez does not mention Et P4blico illthis artiele, his analysis of the propitiatory vietim aspeet of Poet in NewZork s alsodirectly applicable to this play.

7/29/2019 471736

18/22

W.s a.tlwa wew erry92 BB, XVII (1969)The spectatorsare completelyconfused becausethey have ap-proachedthe dramaticwork too closely, can touch the props andclothing of the actors, and thus all illusion is destroyed whichnothing can be found to replace. At the same time they are un-able to find an exit from the burning theater, perhaps stressingman's commitment o and need of theater.Horses are an important symbol in "(:uadro Quinto." Theyseem to representuncontrollable orce and freedom. They aid inthe breaking down of barriers between the stage and the audi-ence. Thus, at the beginning of the "Cuadro" they accompany

the directorwhohas instigatedthe revolutionby openingthe stagetraps. But whenthe revolutiongets out of hand, and the directorfinds that he can no longer maintain poetic illusion, the horsesare still aligned with the revolutionwhich is now destroyingthedirector's efforts, and when everyone else is desperately lookingfor an exit from the burningtheater the horsesare able to escapeby breakinga hole throughthe roof of the stage.Thefirst bombof the revolutionkills the professorof rhetoric-at least the new techniques are spontaneous-which enables hiswife, whose name is Elena or Selene, symbolizingthe moon, towork so much "que tendra que ponerse dos grifos en las tetas"(p. 1067). They say that she used to go up to the terracewith ahorse, so she is associatedwith freedomof poetic expressionhere,with the destructionof artifieialbarriers. In fact, she is the onewho sees what was happening in the theater and ives the voiceof alarm. The poets try to kill her, but she keeps shouting andthe crowd arrives to help. Thus the role of the moon in EZPubltco illustrates GustavoCorrea'sarticle in which he explainsthe very comples moonsymbolism n GarelaIjorca'swritings: themoon is an affirmativebut ambivalentsymbol, correspondingtothe changeablenature which the moon's phases give to it. Themoon symbolizes vital renovation and "plenitud de realizacion"and at the same time it destroys life implatably and inevitably."Se halla asI el hombrebajo la influentia ineseapablede un signoque es a la vez su salvaciony su propia destrueci6n. Apartarsede el es penetraren el caos desmoralizador ag6nicode lna vidasin sentido.n2 81

8l(}ustavo Correa,"El simbolismo de la luna en Garcia Lorca," PXLi1,T.XXTT Deeember, 1957), 1084.

7/29/2019 471736

19/22

AesthettcDtstancetn "El Publtco" 293Juliet, the characterwho is stuf3Sednder the seats, does not

correspondto Pirandello's "Sei Personaggi" because she is notin search of dramatic form for her story. Allowing for a certainsurrealisticdistortion of time, she is somewhat like Delia Morelloof Czascuno sxo modowho suffers in the audiencewhen the storyof her life is representedon the stage. Ijike Pirandello's "SeiPersonaggi," however, she seems to represent superior artisticcreation, destroyedhere to show the most horrible effects of therevolution.At the same time Garcia Ijorca illustrates the superiority ofdramatic illusion, which has also been destroyed,to whateverreal-ity the "verdadera" Juliet represents,as manifestedby the com-ment of a student when his friend tells him that Juliet was playedby a disguised boy, "un truco del director de escena," and thatthe true Juliet had been gagged and placed beneath the chairs:" i Pues me gusta! Parecia muy hermosa, y si era un jovendisfrazadono me importa nada; en cambio,no hubiese recogidoel zapato de aquella muchachallena de polvo que gemia debajode las sillas " (p. 1077 .Consistentwith the theme of disorientation of this play, thespectators are in disagreementabout why the revolution began.However, one of the students states: "Se amaban los esqueletosy estaban amarillos de llama, pero no se amabanlos trajes y elpublico vio varias veces la cola de Julieta cubierta de pequenossapitosde asco" (p. 1070). This statementseemsto echo a remarkmade by Garcia IJorca in an interview: "El teatro necesita quelos personajesque aparezeanen la escena lleven un traje de poesiay al mismo tiempo que se les vea los huesos,la sangre" (p. 1634),which is a plea for a combinationof profound humanity whichcommunicates tself directly to all men with the compensatingdistancefactor of poetic illusion.The ritualistic element of "Cuadro Quinto" cannot be over-looked. Professor Budel points out the audience participationfactor which religious ceremonyand contemporarytheater havein common: "On our modern stage, in comparison, he audienceis to be made part and parcel of the whole performance; it is tobe dragged, as it were, into the play. With this we move towardthe concept of theater as rite, as the liturgical celebrationof a

7/29/2019 471736

20/22

294 WtlmaNewberry HR, ZZXVII ( 1969community; indeea a situation not unlike the one from whichtheater originally sprang.2232In El Publ1,cohe sacrifice of the "Desnudo" is carried outaccording to strict ritual-the prompter is in charge of preparingthe necessary instrllments: "Solo faltan los candeleros, el caliz,y las ampollas de aceite alcanforado" (p. 1073). The timin, al-though thrown somewhat out of kilter by the mistake of theprompter, is obviously intendea to follow a pre-establishedcere-mony.The ceremonial death of this figure is also shown to be inti-mately connected with the fate of man, because when the "Des-nudo" dies the revolving bed turns to reveal a man in eveningclothes, representing the spectator, who is also dying, complainingabout the loneliness of man who has been deserted by the spiritof theater: " Agonia. Soledad del hombre en el sueno lleno deascensores,trenes donde tu vas a velocidades increibles. Soledadde los edificios, de las esquinas, de las playas, donde tu no apare-ceras nunca" (p. 1079 .

Spain possesses a unique genre which is a perfect synthesis oftheater and ritual, the bullfight, and Garcia Ijorca is not ignorantof this. He said in his essay Teor1,a juego del duende:"laliturgia de los toros, autentico drama religioso donde, de la mismamanera que en la misa, se adora y se sacrifica a un Dios" (p. 45).And the bull symbol appears in El Publtco wice. Near theend of the play one of the students states: "Yo tengo cuatrocientostoros. Con las maromas que torcio mi padre los engancharemosa las rocas para partirlas y que salga un volcan" (p. 1078). Per-haps the elementsassociatedwith the bullfight, then, of3Ser partialanswer to the problemof the theater.33Soon after the bulls are mentioned the prompter announces:"Senores: elase de Geometriadeseriptiva." In his artiele Teorta82 Budel, op.cqt., . 284.88 Guillermo Diaz-Plaja has also quoted a pertinent remark made byGEarcia orca in this connection: "Creo que 108 toros es la fiesta mas culta quehay en el mundo. Es el drama puro, en el cual el espanol derrama sus

mejores ligrimas y sus mejores bilia Es el Gnico sitio adonde se va conla seguridad de ver la muerte rodeada de la mas deslumbradora bellezasQud seria de la primavera espanola de nuestra sangre y de nuestra lenguasi dejaran de sonar los clarines dramaticos de la corrida" Federtco GardaLorca (Madrid: Austral, 1961), p. 62.

7/29/2019 471736

21/22

Aesthettc Dtstance tn "El Publtco" 295y juego del d?4endeGEareiajoreastated: "En los toros [el duende]adquiere sus acentos mas impresionantes,porque tiene que lucharpor un lado, con la muerte que puede destruirlo, y por otrolado con la geometria, con la medida base fundamental de lafiesta" (p. 46), which is a restatement of a fundamental problemof the theater somehowa way must be found to fit the life foree,which is essentially noncontrollable, into the art forms whichseparate aesthetic experience from life.In summary, Garefa Ijorea demonstrates that although therevolution in the theater, that is, Pirandellism, was greeted withenthusiasm by the members of the audience, they soon becameconfused and unhappy because these same techniques, by remov-ing aesthetic distance, made poetic illusion impossible. After thedeath of the theater thus caused a new path must be found toenable its resurrection. The young people, carrying lanterns andleading the adults, are hopefully looking for this path at the endof the play, as GareIaIjorea said in an interview in 1934: " Cami-nos nuevos hay para salvar al teatro. Todo esta en atreverse acaminarpor ellos" (p. 1624)Before El PtGbltCO GartIa Lorea had employed theater-within-the-theater techniques to a limited extent. In Los t1,teres deCachtporra here is a prologue in which Mosquito speaks to theaudience, in La zapatera prodtgtosa here is a puppet play-within-the-play, and especially in Retabltllo de don (7rtstobal n whichthere is a battle between the playwright and the director, who alsoenters into the play with the actors, and at the end holds thepuppets in his hand, showing them to the audience.34 In Ast6quepasen ctnco anos, which was written at the same time as El Publtco,Garcia Ijorea shows how appropriate the play-within-the-play isin surrealist theater.After El Publtco he seems to have abandoned the techniquecompletely, which would support my theory that this play isactually a rejection of aspects of Pirandellism which destroy aes-thetic distance.At the beginning of his career when Gareia IJoreadid use theforms which break into theatrical illusion, most of the time he

84For more idormation about Garcia Lorca's puppet plays consit:William I. Oliver, "Lorca: 'The Puppets and the Artist,' " Tulane Dramalieview, Vll, ii, 76-95.

7/29/2019 471736

22/22

296 WtltnaNewberry HZ, ZZXVII (1969)used eompensating aetors which preventeddestructionof illusion.In the first place, most of these early plays are puppet plays,and although we may be remindedof the MaesePedro traditionhere, Don Quijoteno longer exists. When Glarcia jorcaused thistechnique ia a regular play, La zapatera prodig1,0sa, e allowedfantasy to re-distancethe play, compensating or any loss of illu-sion the initial direct address to the audience by the playwrightmay have caused, because before the playwright withdraws heperforms a magicians' trick-when he takes off his hat a greenlight shines out of it, and then when he tips it a showerof waterfalls. Sanchez comments: "Nada podia ser mas teatral, nadamas falso, pero la intencion de Ijorca es perfectamente clara.Despuesde invitar al espectadora acompanarleen su mundo defantasia, queria poner en claro la magia que es esencia delteatro. 35 Even here, however, the stage directions state: "E1autormira un poco cohibidoal publico y se retira de espaldas,llenode ironia" (p. 822), again showing that Garcia Ijorca wasawareof the ironicalaspectof these techniques.GarcIa Ilorca may not have been completely aware of thedeepersignificanceof Pirandello s plays. He probably dia notrealizehat Pirandello also always compensated or a loss of dis-tanceon one level by an increase of distance on another. Therearentellectual and poetic aspects of these two playwrightswhichshow imilar artistic spirit. Don Perlimplin (of AmoqOe DonPerliZmpltnon Belisa en su jardtn) and MariaJosefa (of La casadeBernard,aAlba) are Pirandello-likecharacters. Garcia Ijorcawouldhave lovea I giganti della montagn which, accordingtoPirandello,s "The triumph of poetry, and at the same time thetragedyf poetry forcedto exist in the midst of the brutalmodernWOrla.^ 36 The cosmicidentificationof man and the universe inNoni sa comeand, for example,in Bodas de sangre is strikinglysimilar.But this, of course,must be treated in anotheressay.

WEMANEWBERRYState Untsersity of New Zork at BuJfalo35 Sinehez, op. act. p. 25.3sQuoted by Marta Abba in her Introduetion to Luipi PirandelGo lDhe71fountainpiantsnd OtherPlays (New Yorkt 1958), p. 24.