A LEVINASIAN READING OF SHAKESPEARE’S THE WINTER’S TALE AND SARAH KANE’S PHAEDRA’S LOVE

Abstract

This research aims to compare Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale (1623) with Kane’s Phaedra’s Love (1996) from the viewpoint of Levinas and his ideas on the relationship between being and the Other expressed in his pivotal work Otherwise than Being or Beyond Essence (1978). The central events of the two plays are analyzed based on the text to flesh out the similarities and differences the two playwrights have with regard to their treatment of the approach of the Other. Of the highest importance in the analysis is how the characters of the plays deal with responsibility for the Other, and also how they react to the wonder of facing the Other. It is concluded that, in Shakespeare’s play, the characters mostly do not carry out their ethical responsibility, and those who do are not treated well; as the play progresses, however, they start to take responsibility for one another which leads to a mostly happy ending. In Kane’s play, by contrast, there is no happy ending because the vast majority of characters do not realize their responsibility, and thus, their wonder at facing the Other turns extremely violent. Additionally, even those characters that come to terms with their responsibility undergo the same gruesome fate as those who do not embody ethical responsibility.