Abstract
İskoç oyun yazarı Zinnie Harris’in Nefesinizi Nasıl Tutarsınız (2015) adlı distopik tiyatro oyunu, sadece kasvetli bir geleceği yansıtmakla kalmaz, aynı zamanda Avrupa'nın ekonomik bir çöküşten geçtiği ve Avrupalıların mülteci haline gelerek teknelerle Afrika ülkelerine göç etmeye çalıştığı yıkıcı ve tersine bir anlatıyı gözler önüne serer. Oyunda, müşteri ilişkileri konusunda uzman, üniversite mezunu ve iddialı kariyer planları olan ana karakter Dana ve kız kardeşi Jasmine, pek çok Avrupalı gibi bir tekneye binip Mısır'ın İskenderiye kentine ulaşmaya çalışmaktadır. Dana'nın ve kız kardeşinin hayatlarının; Dana’nın, Birleşmiş Milletler'de çalışan ve kendisinin şeytan olduğunu iddia eden Jarron adında bir adamla cinsel ilişkiye girmesinin ardından alt üst olması tesadüf değildir. Şeytan tarafından düzenlenen ve felaketlerle sonuçlanan olayların ardından, oyunun sonunda her iki kadın da son yıllardaki mültecilerin çoğunluğu gibi deniz yolculuğunu tamamlayamadan boğulur. Bu çalışmada, Dana ve Jasmine'in oyun boyunca yaşadıkları deneyimler ve gösterdikleri direnç, özellikle eşikteliğin anlamı ve eşiğin ötesine geçmenin imkânı/imkânsızlığına odaklanılarak “eşiktelik” kavramı çerçevesinde ele alınacaktır. Makale, Zinnie Harris'in bu oyunda, Avrupalıları ve Avrupa siyasetini sarsmaya ve mültecilerin kişisel/siyasi çıkarların kurbanı haline geldiklerini göstermeye çalıştığını ve böylece yazarın mülteci sorununu eleştirel bir şekilde yeniden ele aldığını ve bunu yaparken ironik bir şekilde seyirciyi/okuyucuyu eşikte olma durumuna soktuğunu iddia etmektedir.
References
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Abstract
The dystopian play How to Hold Your Breath (2015) written by Scottish playwright Zinnie Harris not only echoes a bleak future, but also visualises a subversive narrative in which Europe goes through an economic collapse, and Europeans become refugees, trying to immigrate to African countries on boats. Dana, the protagonist who is an expert in customer relations with a university degree and ambitious career plans, and her sister Jasmine are seen getting on a boat and trying to reach Alexandria, Egypt just like many other Europeans. It is not coincidental that Dana’s and her sister’s lives turn topsy-turvy after Dana’s having a sexual intercourse with a man working for the United Nations named Jarron who claims that he is a demon. Due to a couple of catastrophic events orchestrated by the demon, both women get drowned at the end like a majority of refugees in recent years. In this study, the experiences of Dana and Jasmine throughout the play and their resilience will be explored within the framework of the concept of “liminality” with a special focus on the meaning and (im) possibility of going beyond liminality. The article contends that Zinnie Harris in her play critically revisits the refugee problem in order to unsettle Europeans and European politics and to demonstrate how refugees are made the victims of personal/political expediency by ironically putting the audience/readers in a liminal situation.
References
- Aston, Elaine. “Moving Women Centre Stage: Structures of Feminist-Tragic Feeling.” Journal of Contemporary Drama in English 5, no.2 (2017): 292-310. https://doi.org/10.1515/jcde-2017-0027. google scholar
- Billington, Michael. “How to Hold Your Breath Review.” The Guardian, February 15, 2015. https://www. theguardian.com/stage/2015/feb/11/how-to-hold-your-breath-review-maxine-peake-royal-court-theatre. google scholar
- Boles, William C. “How to Hold Your Breath by Zinnie Harris, and Game by Mike Barlett Review.” Theatre Journal 68, no.1 (2016): 105-108. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/614410. google scholar
- Cavendish, Dominic. “How to Hold Your Breath, Review.” The Telegraph, February 11, 2015. https:// www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/11403321/How-to-hold-your-breath-Royal-Court-review-perturbing.html. google scholar
- Decker, Jessica Elbert, and Dylan Winchock. “Introduction.” In Borderlands and Liminal Subjects Transgressing the Limits in Philosophy and Literature, edited by Jessica Elbert Decker and Dylan Winchock, 1-18. New York: Palgrave Macmillian, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67813-9. google scholar
- Frost, Robert. “Mending Wall.” Poetryfoundation.org Accessed July 20, 2022. https://www.poetryfoundation. org/poems/44266/mending-wall. google scholar
- Hammerskjöld, Dag. “Dealing with Crimes Against Humanity.” Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation. Accessed August 18, 2022. https://www.daghammarskjold.se/publication/dealing-crimes-humanity/. google scholar
- Harris, Zinnie. How to Hold Your Breath. London: Faber and Faber, 2015. google scholar
- History of the United Nations. Accessed August 18, 2022. https://www.un.org/en/about-us/history-of-the-un. google scholar
- Kaye, Randi and Chelsea J. Carter. “Stories of life, death and faith: ‘To Heaven and Back.’” November 29, 2013. https://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/29/us/to-heaven-and-back/index.html. google scholar
- McGreal, Chris. “A world of problems: The United Nations at 70.” The Guardian. September 7, 2015. https:// www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/07/what-has-the-un-achieved-united-nations. google scholar
- Morris, Mike. Concise Dictionary of Social and Cultural Anthropology. West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. google scholar
- Rapport, Nigel. Social and Cultural Anthropology The Key Concepts. New York: Routledge, 2014. google scholar
- Thomassen, Bj0rn. “The Uses and Meanings of Liminality.” International Political Anthropology 2, no.1 (2009): 5-27. google scholar
- Thomassen, Bj0rn. Liminality and the Modern: Living Through the In-Between. Surrey: Ashgate, 2014. google scholar
- Turner, Victor. The Ritual Process Structure andAnti-Structure. New York: Cornell University Press, 1991. google scholar
- Van Gennep, Arnold. The Rites of Passage. Translated by Monika B. Vizedom and Gabrielle L. Caffee. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1960. google scholar
Abstract
Keywords
liminality refugeehood resilience Zinnie Harris How to Hold Your Breath eşiktelik mültecilik direnç Zinnie Harris Nefesinizi Nasıl Tutarsınız
References
- Aston, Elaine. “Moving Women Centre Stage: Structures of Feminist-Tragic Feeling.” Journal of Contemporary Drama in English 5, no.2 (2017): 292-310. https://doi.org/10.1515/jcde-2017-0027. google scholar
- Billington, Michael. “How to Hold Your Breath Review.” The Guardian, February 15, 2015. https://www. theguardian.com/stage/2015/feb/11/how-to-hold-your-breath-review-maxine-peake-royal-court-theatre. google scholar
- Boles, William C. “How to Hold Your Breath by Zinnie Harris, and Game by Mike Barlett Review.” Theatre Journal 68, no.1 (2016): 105-108. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/614410. google scholar
- Cavendish, Dominic. “How to Hold Your Breath, Review.” The Telegraph, February 11, 2015. https:// www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-reviews/11403321/How-to-hold-your-breath-Royal-Court-review-perturbing.html. google scholar
- Decker, Jessica Elbert, and Dylan Winchock. “Introduction.” In Borderlands and Liminal Subjects Transgressing the Limits in Philosophy and Literature, edited by Jessica Elbert Decker and Dylan Winchock, 1-18. New York: Palgrave Macmillian, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67813-9. google scholar
- Frost, Robert. “Mending Wall.” Poetryfoundation.org Accessed July 20, 2022. https://www.poetryfoundation. org/poems/44266/mending-wall. google scholar
- Hammerskjöld, Dag. “Dealing with Crimes Against Humanity.” Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation. Accessed August 18, 2022. https://www.daghammarskjold.se/publication/dealing-crimes-humanity/. google scholar
- Harris, Zinnie. How to Hold Your Breath. London: Faber and Faber, 2015. google scholar
- History of the United Nations. Accessed August 18, 2022. https://www.un.org/en/about-us/history-of-the-un. google scholar
- Kaye, Randi and Chelsea J. Carter. “Stories of life, death and faith: ‘To Heaven and Back.’” November 29, 2013. https://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/29/us/to-heaven-and-back/index.html. google scholar
- McGreal, Chris. “A world of problems: The United Nations at 70.” The Guardian. September 7, 2015. https:// www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/07/what-has-the-un-achieved-united-nations. google scholar
- Morris, Mike. Concise Dictionary of Social and Cultural Anthropology. West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. google scholar
- Rapport, Nigel. Social and Cultural Anthropology The Key Concepts. New York: Routledge, 2014. google scholar
- Thomassen, Bj0rn. “The Uses and Meanings of Liminality.” International Political Anthropology 2, no.1 (2009): 5-27. google scholar
- Thomassen, Bj0rn. Liminality and the Modern: Living Through the In-Between. Surrey: Ashgate, 2014. google scholar
- Turner, Victor. The Ritual Process Structure andAnti-Structure. New York: Cornell University Press, 1991. google scholar
- Van Gennep, Arnold. The Rites of Passage. Translated by Monika B. Vizedom and Gabrielle L. Caffee. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1960. google scholar
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Contemporary Drama Studies, Applied Theatre |
| Journal Section | Research Article |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | June 22, 2023 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2023 |