Crying and laughing as the pillars of criticism of Switzerland in the play Twenty Thousand Pages by Lukas Bärfuss
Abstract
The focus of this article is the little-explored play Twenty Thousand Pages by the Swiss playwright Lukas Bärfuss. The criticism of Swiss society is presented under the focus of the emo-tional manifestations of laughter and crying. The focus is on two main protagonists, Wüthrich and Tony. One weeps constantly in his hiding place over the negative attitude of Swiss society to its behavior during World War II. The other tries to make the serious allegations public through an amusing TV show. The following research questions are examined in this regard: Are the main characters Wüthrich and Tony to be understood as complementary oppositions, each of which can be equated with crying and laughing? For the same reason, have their efforts to criticize Swiss cop-ing with the past concerning the atrocities of the Second World War failed? What position does society take regarding these two individuals, and what role do crying and laughter play in this?
Keywords:
laughter, crying, Twenty Thousand Pages, Lukas Bärfuss, empathy, criticism of SwitzerlandReferences
References
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