80,000+ Books in-stock in NZ 📚

Blog updates ✍️ Shirl’s May Reads & Book Briefing

The Caucasian Chalk Circle

By Bertolt Brecht
Series: Student Editions
0.0 (0 reviews)
3.74 goodreads logo

Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.

Check link for latest rating. ( 9,198 ratings, 360 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Caucasian Chalk Circle by Bertolt Brecht is a thought-provoking play that explores themes of justice, power, and familial bonds. Set against the backdrop of a revolution, the story follows a servant girl, Grusha, who selflessly rescues and raises a child abandoned by the fleeing governor and his wife. The play intricately weaves together a tale of sacrifice and righteousness while posing profound questions about rightful ownership and the essence of parental love.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2499
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you appreciate thought-provoking plays that explore themes of justice, morality, and human nature through a compelling narrative and innovative storytelling. Ideal for those intrigued by a blend of dramatic tension and social commentary, it offers an engaging exploration of human decisions under pressure.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Brecht projects an ancient Chinese story onto a realistic setting in Soviet Georgia. In a theme that echoes the Judgment of Solomon, two women argue over the possession of a child. Thanks to the unruly judge, Azdak (one of Brecht's most vivid creations), natural justice is done and the peasant Grusha keeps the child she loves, even though she is not its mother.

Written while Brecht was in exile in the United States during the Second World War, The Caucasian Chalk Circle is a politically charged, much-revived, and complex example of Brecht's epic theatre.

This new Student Edition contains introductory commentary and notes by Kristopher Imbrigotta from the University of Puget Sound, US, offering a much-needed contemporary perspective on the play.

The introduction covers:

  • narrative structure: play about a play within a play ("circle")
  • songs and music
  • justice and social systems
  • context: Brecht, exile, WWII, socialism
  • notions of collective and class
  • fable and story adaptation, folk fairy tale

Series: Student Editions

View all

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781350113367

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 22 April 2021

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Methuen Drama

Edition: 2nd edition

Contributors:

  • Translated by James Stern
  • Translated by Tania Stern
  • Translated by W. H. Auden
  • Edited by Kristopher Imbrigotta

Audience: Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 145g

Pages: 160

Collections

Arts & Culture Bertolt Brecht Non-Fiction Series: Student Editions

About the Author

Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956) is acknowledged as one of the great dramatists whose work has had a considerable influence on the theatre. His landmark plays include Mother Courage and Her Children, The Threepenny Opera, The Life of Galileo and The Caucasian Chalk Circle. His plays and dramatic theory are central to the study of modern theatre.

Kristopher Imbrigotta is Assistant Professor of German Studies at the University of Puget Sound (Tacoma, USA). His research and teaching cover literature and cultural studies from the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, focusing primarily on theater history and drama pedagogy; visual culture and film; memory discourses and literary historiography; and environmental humanities. He is co-editor of the performance journal Communications of the International Brecht Society and an elected member of the steering committee for the Brecht Society. He is also a member of the international translation team for the latest edition of Brecht on Theater (2014).

Also by Bertolt Brecht

View all

More from Arts & Culture

View all

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 80,000 books and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.

The Latest at Book Hero

View all