Studies on the functions of emblems in the theater of the Jesuit Colleges (XVI-XVII centuries)

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17K02630
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: European literature
• Research Institution: Ritsumeikan University
• Principal Investigator: CHIKAWA TETSUO 立命館大学, 文学部, 准教授 (50587251)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: イエズス会 / エンブレム / 演劇

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study aims to explore the relationship between Jesuit theater and emblematic art during the 16th and 17th centuries in France and Italy. In Jesuit colleges, both theater and emblems were integrated into the secondary school curriculum for the rhetoric class. This integration allowed rhetoric teachers to make use of emblem books, incorporating emblematic images as religious and moral aphorisms in their plays. Additionally, the metaphorical worldview depicted in emblem books helped to guide moral and religious interpretations of the plays. We have attempted to demonstrate this through the analysis of several plays performed at Jesuit colleges in La Fleche (France) and Rome.

Free Research Field

フランス文学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

イエズス会の中等教育におけるエンブレムと演劇はいずれも、文学や歴史、美術史などの分野において研究が行われてきたが、両者の具体的な関係についてはさほど研究が進んでいなかった。そのため本研究では、フランスとイタリアのイエズス会学校におけるイエズス会士が手掛けた戯曲におけるエンブレムの役割に着目した。演劇とエンブレムは中等教育の枠組みに等しく位置づけられていたために相互に関連づけられていたことを、戯曲の分析を通して具体的に分析することができた。