Characterisation and Theatricality in King Lear of the Steppes: The Rewriting of the Shakespearean Classic

Abstract This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the rewriting of King Lear, the Shakespearean classic, as it appears in Ivan Turgenev’s novella King Lear of the Steppes, published in 1870. In order to study this case of appropriation in Russian literature, which was received with skepticism by many of his contemporaries and forgotten for a long time, the focus is placed on two fundamental aspects: characterisation and theatricality. These two features connect Turgenev’s work with the source text and exemplify how adaptation and appropriation function within target cultural systems. Far from being a mere literary experiment, the appropriation of some of Shakespeare’s characters in Turgenev’s works and their use as literary archetypes was based on ideological reasons that would influence the evolution of nineteenth-century Russian thought. The present research highlights the importance of processes of rewriting, such as adaptation and appropriation, for the development of target cultural systems and, in order to do so, the perspective of adaptation studies is adopted.