Abstract

BLANCO, Mariana. Controversies around the representation of violence: Blasted by Sarah Kane. CELEHIS [online]. 2017, n.34, pp.1-10. ISSN 2313-9463.

In January 1995, Sarah Kane (Essex, 1971- London, 1999) convulsed the London theater scene with the premiere of Blasted, a work that was harshly criticized because of its direct and ruthless display of brutality on stage. The fierce attacks by critics, scandalized by the bloody images deployed by Kane to recreate the ravages of the globalization of violence, contributed to make the author's first production a media phenomenon, "perhaps the least seen and most talked about play in recent memory" (Macdonald: s/n). Based on a succinct revision of the controversy provoked by Blasted, this paper reflects on the scope of the representation of violence in Kanes theatre, focusing on the effects pursued by her aesthetics of provocation. Likewise, and considering that the problem has firm roots in theatrical tradition, we will observe the function of catastrophe in tragedy in order to analyze the way Kane recovers and revitalizes the ancient tragic páthos.

Keywords : Sarah Kane - Contemporary English drama - Violence - Páthos - Reception.

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