The audience's mentality perspective does not mean that the audience goes to see the drama performance from a certain subject (such as sociology and history), but refers to the perspective caused by the mentality gap between the audience and the drama performance. The audience put their mentality in a certain position to watch the drama performance, but the position of the audience's mentality and the position of the performance in the audience's mind are not completely equivalent, and the perspective caused by this gap is the audience's mentality perspective.
There are great differences in mentality and perspective between Chinese and western drama audiences. The audience of traditional operas in China adopts a overlooking angle, while the audience of western operas adopts an upward angle. In other words, the audience of the Chinese opera has a high mentality and overlooks the performance; The audience of western drama is psychologically in a low position to look up to the performance.
This difference in perspective is mainly manifested in the difference in the center of the relationship between viewing and performance.
In a theater, actors perform plays and audiences watch performances, but in the relationship between watching and acting, they do not occupy the same position. Different plays have different emphases. One is audience-centered and the other is performance-centered. Audience-centered system in the relationship between viewing and performance means that the audience is in a central position, and has greater decision-making power in the time, length and content of the performance, and also has greater freedom in watching movies. On the contrary, in the performance-centered system, performers have greater autonomy, the performance time and the content of the repertoire are decided by the performers, and the audience has greater restrictions when watching the performance. In the audience-centered viewing relationship, the audience is in a position of commanding and overlooking the performance, forming a psychological perspective of overlooking. In the performance-centered relationship, the audience is in a low psychological position of looking up at the performance, forming a psychological perspective of looking up.
The relationship between viewing and performance of western drama is often centered on performance, and performers rarely discuss with the audience in advance. During the performance, there is less direct communication with the audience, paying attention to the overall continuity of the performance, and less interference unrelated to the performance. The audience bought tickets in advance to enter the theater and took their seats according to the number. It is not advisable to do anything unrelated to watching the play, and even clapping is only suitable for intermission and after the performance, so as not to interfere with the performance. At this time, the audience looked up to watch the performance.
The relationship between the appreciation and performance of China traditional operas tends to be audience-centered. China classical opera performances can be divided into public performances and hall performances. In public performances, whether in the theater or in the square, the time for the audience to go to the theatre is free, and there are fewer restrictions when watching the performance. They can do things that have nothing to do with watching the drama (such as chatting and eating), and they can also express their likes and dislikes at any time or even interfere with the performance (such as cheering and booing). Hall performances that serve a small audience are completely audience-centered. The performance time and repertoire are decided by the audience, and even the plot lines of the repertoire have to be temporarily changed because of taboos and other reasons. During the performance, programs unrelated to the repertoire are often added (for example, every time an important person is present, the performance will stop immediately, and "drama code" such as "jumping and adding officials" will be added to bless the guests). [1] At this time, the audience watched the performance with a overlooking attitude.
How is this difference in mentality and perspective formed?
Perhaps some people think that this is because China's operas are expressed by singing, reading and doing. Appreciating operas is mainly about appreciating the singing skills of actors. However, western drama is very literary, and the appreciation of western drama is mainly to appreciate the ideological nature of drama. Indeed, to a certain extent, this has promoted the formation of differences in mentality and perspective between Chinese and Western dramas. But this sentence can't explain the fact that grand opera and ballet, as an important part of western drama, are not literary, but mainly show their singing and dancing skills, and people appreciate them from the perspective of looking up. Kunqu opera is very literary, but in the performance in the hall, the guests still look down.
The fundamental reason for the difference between Chinese and western drama audiences' mentality and perspective lies in their different origins and formation processes.
Western drama originated from song and dance performances in ancient Greek sacrificial ceremonies. Every spring, people dress up as Dionysus's companion-Sheep Man, and everyone sings and dances to praise Dionysus's achievements. Later, an actor was added to the song and dance. He took turns to play several roles and talked to Captain Song. This was the initial dramatic factor. The content has also expanded to the great achievements of other gods and the stories of superheroes. At this point, drama as an independent art style has been formed. The whole medieval drama is a religious drama performed in churches and squares, which mainly shows the greatness of God and the deeds of saints. During the Renaissance, drama, opera and ballet were formally formed.
There are different views on the origin of China's classical operas. One view is that it originated from Nuo opera, but it only contains some performance factors of the play. On the other hand, it originated from the ritual of offering sacrifices to witches, but its decisive role in the formation of China opera has not yet been achieved. China's opera was formally formed late. During the Northern Song Dynasty, in order to meet the cultural and entertainment needs of the general public, various folk skills were gathered in this city from all over the country. Among them, the art of rap is the most influential to the formation of China traditional opera: Zhu Gong tune; Song and dance art: Daqu; The art of performance; Puppet show, legionary teleplay, etc. These three artistic styles absorbed each other and formed the embryonic form of drama-Song Zaju and Jin Zaju. These are a mixture of various folk (or already folk) entertainment styles. At the end of the Northern Song Dynasty and the beginning of the Southern Song Dynasty, a branch of the Song Zaju evolved into the Southern Opera, and China Opera only matured. [2]
From the formation of Chinese and western dramas, we can see that western dramas are produced from sacrifices and are part of religious ceremonies, and they are always religious. The religious ceremony was solemn. People attending religious ceremonies praise God's greatness with reverence, and they also admire plays that show God's great achievements. At this time, the drama performance is in a high spirit, the audience is in a low spirit, and the audience's psychological perspective is upward. Although later dramas were divorced from the religious atmosphere of sacrifice, this psychological perspective of looking up still left traces of sacrifice ceremony.
The formation of China's traditional operas is a synthesis of various forms of entertainment. Religious sacrificial rites have little influence on its formation. Compared with the origin of western drama, it is essentially a means of entertainment, and the process of integrating various means of entertainment is also a process of strengthening entertainment. People go to the theatre in Wasi just for entertainment. Naturally, operas with high psychological status look down on those with low status. Later, the opera went to the hall where rich people entertained guests and friends, to the temple fair platform of rural fairs and temple fairs, and to the grass platform for celebrating harvest in rural areas. Its audience looked down at it with a happy and relaxed mood. Later operas also had religious pantomime, but it did not have the solemn and sacred religious atmosphere of the early western drama.
This difference in birth affects the social status of Chinese and western drama practitioners and the position of drama in orthodox literature and art, and strengthens the difference in audience's mentality and perspective.
Ancient Greek dramatists and playwrights had a high social status. They are regarded as servants of religion and respected. According to the regulations of the ancient Greek Federal Conference, their lives and property are inviolable, and they can go anywhere, even perform in enemy countries, regardless of wartime. [3] After the Renaissance in Europe, the social status of dramatists was still very high. French playwrights, such as Gao Naiyi and boileau, are academicians of the French Academy, the highest academic institution. This phenomenon is common not only in France, but also in Europe. Chen Duxiu talked about the feat of western dramatists in inspiring people and rejuvenating the nation with drama in the national war, saying: "What is performed in the theater is really a big school in the world; Actors are also university teachers in the world. "Although this is his hope for China's drama according to the western situation, it reflects the recognition of the importance of drama by westerners and the evaluation of the social status of drama actors. Imagine that "students" watching the performance of "university teachers" naturally look up.
Overlooking and secondary viewing--on the differences of psychological perspectives between chinese and western drama audiences. Details from: Free paper net.
Drama has always played an important role in the style system of western literature. Poetics is a masterpiece of ancient Greek literary theory and a kind of drama theory, and one third of ancient Roman poetry art is drama theory. Hegel believes that "drama should constitute the most perfect whole in content and form, so it should be regarded as the highest realm of poetry and even general art" [4] This understanding strengthens the audience's perspective of looking up.
The social status of China ancient opera actors is quite different from that of ancient Greek actors. They are despised by society and called "advocating Excellence" and "actors". In the pre-Qin period, the dramatist's distant ancestor tour was just a plaything for entertaining princes. He is a slave and has no personal freedom. "After entering the feudal society, it can be roughly divided into two categories: one is the promotion of an official (born in the imperial court or government), and the other is the promotion of a private person. The former is an official and the latter is a domestic slave, and the nature is an official slave and a domestic slave respectively." [5] They were "enslaved by prisoners of war, punished as slaves by guilty families, or sold as slaves to children of poor families. They must marry themselves, so their slavery is passed down from generation to generation. " [6] By the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, the untouchable system such as musicians and officials was abolished, but there was still the saying of "one prostitute, two beggars and three performances". Drama writers only engaged in drama creation when the imperial examination was abolished in the Yuan Dynasty, while orthodox literati only regarded drama creation as a hobby and held a "play" mentality. They never collected drama. China's traditional opera art has always been excluded from the orthodox literature and art. In ancient times, when the audience watched the performance of the "actors", they naturally looked down.
The audience's psychological perspective is closely related to the choice tendency of sad and happy colors in drama. The different mentality and perspectives of the audience make the play have different tragic and joyful color tendencies. On the other hand, the different colors of sadness and joy in the drama strengthen the differences in mentality and perspective.
In the west, "tragedy has always been regarded as the crown of drama." [7] Dante believes that comedy begins with adversity and terror, but ends with happiness, joy and charm. Therefore, "his performance style is modest." [8] danino believes that "comedy writers are based on familiar family chores. Although they can't be said to be low-level or even evil, tragic poets deal with the death of noble emperors and the destruction of huge empires." [9] The subtext of these words is to emphasize that tragedy is higher than comedy. The important reason why westerners admire tragedy is the solemn atmosphere of tragedy, which is closest to the solemn atmosphere of religious sacrifice as the source of drama, from the perspective of looking up.
China opera audiences like to watch comedies. There is a saying in the opera that "no ugliness, no drama". The popular TV series "Bai Qiu" in Qing Dynasty is mostly comedy. This is directly related to the entertainment comedy tradition in the formation of China traditional opera, and the overlooking mentality reflected in it is also in the same strain. The performances of China's classical operas are mostly festive occasions, such as the Spring Festival Temple Fair in rural areas, the tea garden of the opera garden in the city, and the hall meetings where rich people entertain guests and friends. The audience is for entertainment, and it is not suitable for them to perform unhappy and unlucky things such as sadness, death and injury. This influenced the playwright's creation. Li Yu has a poem: "I am worried about not selling lyrics, and my husband is worried about not laughing." The world has become a Maitreya Buddha, and people can only vote if they are bald. "Even in the tragedy (bitter drama), there are many comedy elements, and comedy techniques are adopted, such as happy endings, jokes by clowns, and even" laughing and singing in bitter drama ". [10] Many operas have such a passbook drama "Silly son-in-law's Happy New Year", which describes a peasant girl who is forced to marry a rich man's silly son. This is a tragedy, but the comedy scene is chosen: the couple went back to pay a New Year call to their husbands, and the fool made many jokes. This kind of "bitter drama and laughter" is suitable for the festive atmosphere during the performance; Secondly, telling suffering as a joke itself strengthens the significance of the audience's overlooking mentality. No wonder some people think that China's operas have no real tragedy.
The same is true of watching tragedies, and the psychological perspectives of Chinese and western drama audiences are also different. The tragic conflicts in China's traditional operas have a distinct tendency of ethical criticism. This conflict is based on two diametrically opposed ethics, such as the conflict between Qin Xianglian and Chen Shimei, and the conflict between Guangxi and Wang Kui. Western tragedies, whether fate tragedy, character tragedy or social tragedy, are the strong opposites between man and himself, that is, the struggle between fate, society and character. For example, Oedipus is to fate, Hamlet is to character, and Stormonk is to society, but they all end in destruction. The protagonists in China's drama tragedies are often weak and kind people, especially women who have unfortunate experiences and innocent grievances. The main characters of western tragedies are mostly noble, dignified and powerful emperors and generals, nobles and rich people, heroes of gods and men, etc. It can be seen that the tragedy of China opera is to push the audience to a high judgment seat of morality and ethics, make the audience look down on these poor and innocent weak people, and then make moral judgments on this story and characters. However, the audience of western tragedies look up to the heroes who are stronger than themselves on the stage to fight for their lives in front of fate, personality and society, but they still can't escape the result of failure, thus producing "fear and pity", thus purifying the feelings of the audience.
Chinese and western dramas have experienced a long development process and formed their own characteristics. Only by recognizing their similarities and differences and learning from each other's strengths can they develop better.
refer to
[1][5][6] Lu Yingkun's China Opera and Social Colors [M]. Changchun: Jilin Education Press1992.P41; p 13； P 15
[2] Yu Weimin' A Brief History of Ancient China Opera' [M]. Nanjing: Jiangsu Education Press 199 1. P 13。
[3] Postscript of Luo Niansheng's ancient Greek drama [M]. Beijing: Writers Publishing House 1992.
[4][ Germany] Hegel's "Zhu Guangqian's Translation Aesthetics" Volume III, Volume II. [M]。 Beijing: Commercial Press 1997. P240
[7][ 10] Comparison of Chinese and Western Dramas in Lan Fan [M]. Beijing: Lin Xue Publishing House 1992. P542； P558
[8][9][ English] Nicole translated "Western European Drama Theory" [M]. Beijing: China Theatre Publishing House 1985. P 1 00