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kingofspain93's review against another edition
3.5
I’m literally always going on about Rorty’s theory of sentimental education but Brecht was ahead of the game on this one. Sick of theater necessitating commodification (or so the intro to my edition of The Measures Taken says) Brecht wrote plays that were specifically intended to instruct and radicalize the performers. While I go back and forth on theater, I think that having someone perform radicalism in order to engage with it and learn about it is brilliant and Brecht seems as radical as they come. Based on the four plays collected here Brecht was opposed to alleviating suffering in the short term because he recognized that this only makes life under tyranny more bearable and, therefore, props up the tyrant (The Measures Taken). He also demonstrates that attempting to play by the rules of the system in order to take it down just gives the system credibility and prevents revolutionary action (The Exception and the Rule). Finally, he emphasizes the importance of solidarity and individual ethics going hand-in-hand in revolutionary movements to both do what is necessary and to disarm harmful conventions (He Who Says Yes & He Who Says No). As didactic as a lot of the dialogue is, there is actually a surprising amount of critical depth to each of these plays that rewards active interpretation and reflection.
My only issue with this collection is that all four of the plays are heavily involved with exploring and discussing exploitation of the Asian working class by Europeans. This is, of course, an actual and ongoing phenomenon, but it’s noted that two of the plays here are adapted from Noh plays. No matter what I’m uncomfortable with white men who are super into Asian culture (he says while literally watching Ringu on YouTube) so I want to know more about why Brecht focused on Asia before I give it the all clear. Was there something specific going on in Asia at the time these were written that drew his focus there? Does Brecht’s body of work cover multiple countries, and these were for some reason published together unrelated to his interests? Unclear. Obviously not the same as the white guy on the bus wearing the Sailor Moon t-shirt but there’s too much history here for it not to be concerning.
edit: marking this down half a star because there are no fucking women in major roles fucking fake radicals smh
peiman198913's review against another edition
4.0
اون روزی که خوندم خیلی حرفای زیادی برای نوشتن داشتم راجع به این اثر ولی اینجا جاش نبود. الان هم اینو مینویسم چون دوست دارم چیزی در مورد این کتاب نوشته باشم. این نمایشنامه داره با تعریف یک داستان از زبان چند نفر که خودشون در ماجرا بودن به قصه ی پر غصه ی کمونیسم میپردازه. به این که چقدر زبان های قوی و مغزهای ضعیفی دارند! به نظر میاد که این موضوع اولین قدم برای تشکیل هر حزبی باشه!!!! بگذریم
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