CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

Article Title

Aesthetics, Opera, and Alterity in Herzog's Work

Authors

Jacob-Ivan Eidt, University of Dallas

Abstract

In his article "Aesthetics, Opera, and Alterity in Herzog's Work" Jacob-Ivan Eidt analyses Werner Herzog's 1982 film Fitzcarraldo. Eidt's analysis is executed in the context of opera, cinema, and aesthetics. Eidt argues that Herzog uses opera as a romantic motif with which he creates a self-critical process whereby elements of the Romantic vision are called into question thus providing a nuanced reading of the main character and the Indigenous world he encounters. This process, Eidt argues, produces a complex narrative of colonial alterity where colonial self-inscription upon an Other is ultimately doomed to failure.

Recommended Citation

Eidt, Jacob-Ivan. "Aesthetics, Opera, and Alterity in Herzog's Work." CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture 14.1 (2012): <http://dx.doi.org/10.7771/1481-4374.1924>

This text has been blind peer reviewed by 2+1 experts in the field.

The above text, published by Purdue University Press ©Purdue University, has been downloaded 242 times as of 05/12/13.