Introduction

INTRODUCTION

Bertolt Brecht is acknowledged by many literary critics as one of the foremost thinkers and playwrights of the early 20^th century. His works are recognized and performed throughout the world today. Brecht’s observations on society and culture are as influential now as they were in his time. They have been adapted to a wide range of time frames, cultural climates and societal circumstances. Performances of Brecht’s plays are still enacted in present-day Germany, as well as China, Brazil, India, and the United States. Brecht’s theatrical pieces, writings and theories address socio-economic conditions found throughout the world. On account of the different interpretations associated with Brecht’s works, they are performed and read by divergent audiences in assorted languages. His writings and plays are still widely reprinted and performed for both entertainment and pedagogical purposes.

Brecht considered his writings for theater a collaborative process, drawing upon his earlier works as well as the expertise of others for additional inspiration and modifications. He had no quandaries about borrowing passages of text verbatim from other sources, including that of his own works. This editorial process often continued up until the time of the initial performance as he modified script and stage notes. In later years Brecht continued to generate derivative works based heavily upon earlier plays and writings and upon the works of others for new revisions and releases. This dissertation presents examples of this shared creative process as being representative of, but not necessarily limited to, Brecht’s influence on other cross-genre creative processes such as software code scripting.

Brecht’s influence on the readers and performers of his works lies in the pedagogical elements that appear throughout much of his literature, particularly his learning plays produced in the late 1920s to the early 1930s. This dissertation focuses on this stage of Brecht’s development and writings. Brecht envisioned theater being as much about education as it was entertainment. The same applied to his thinking regarding radio performances. In an early essay noted in his publication Versuche Brecht classifies a Lehrstück as a “Lehrmittel” and not as a “Genußmittel”.[1] A classic Brechtian theme is the use of new and innovative performance methods, including a direct appeal to the working class, while his works also drew interest from a larger segment of society. Plays such as Die Mutter, Mann ist Mann, Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder, and Der gute Mensch von Sezuan focused on the less-privileged portions of society. Each of these plays were designed to interest as well as instruct the audience.

Though later in life Brecht strictly enforced the copyright of his own works, only some of his own early writings and texts can be attributed solely to him. He liberally sampled excerpts and entire passages from other writers. As will be shown later in this dissertation, Brecht extrapolated from the writings of others and at times collaborated with others on several of his more well-known works. He is even known to have directly lifted other original writings into his own text. Brecht also collected input from friends and collaborators, which he then integrated into his own writings. In spite of recent controversies surrounding Brecht and his supposed contributors, much of which can be attributed to John Fuegi’s work, “Brecht & Co.”, the final author of Brecht’s works remains Brecht himself. The writing style and mannerisms within his plays and writings can be attributed solely to him.

The resulting corpus of Brecht’s collected manuscripts is, in fact, a conglomeration of original work merged with the input of actors and actresses, political comrades and other authors. From the assembled observations Brecht was able to more successfully construct theatrical performances that drew in observers willing to be engaged in his unique performances. With the continuing input of others his works underwent several metamorphoses. Roose-Evans explains that Brecht would often rewrite a play based on the audience’s reaction, thus making it an “encounter” or an “experiment”.[2] Some of these “experiments” were best known by their early titles, while others underwent several revisions and appeared in different variations and under alternate designations. Sometimes Brecht would simply rename an existing play as it went from one revision to another as in the case of Der Flug des Lindberghs to Der Lindberghflug and finally Der Ozeanflug. Other times he would completely rework an already produced play and simply rename it for another production run. The play Die Dreigroschenoper was revisited many times over for various media outlets, such as the stage, film and music. Eight years after the Dreigroschenoper appeared on stage Brecht transformed Die Dreigroschenoper into a novel, which then appeared as the Dreigroschenroman; another work which he developed from the original. For each reworking Brecht incorporated more of himself and the writings of others into the body of his manuscripts in order to satisfy the demands of his time, fulfill the needs he envisioned, or to react against altered political conditions.

At the same time, Brecht took an antagonistic stance against the theatrical norms of the time, causing controversy among audience members. He accomplished this through his V-Effekt or Verfremdung method, thus promoting critical thinking about theater performances. This theoretical theory is not to be confused with the concept of Entfremdung espoused by Hegel and Marx.[3] In spite of Brecht’s Marxist leanings, the concept of Verfremdung deals exclusively with the “deflating, detached” attitude exhibited in so many of his works and which has come to typify Brecht. In Colin Counsel’s book “Signs of Performance” Brecht revisited the idea of defamiliarization, a former concept of Stanislovsky used by actors dealing with stage fright, to now deter the performers from identifying with their character roles. [4] Brecht also employed devices such as bright lights, hard benches, and smoking throughout the performance to create a new look in a familiar arena. By doing so the audience sees the on-stage actors and actresses in a new manner.[5] His intent was to shatter all illusion and prevent the audience members from being caught up in the performance and swept away by the story, the actors or the naturalistic devices on stage. The actors quoted their lines rather than attempting to portray an on-stage persona. Instead of “playing” the character the actor or actress “demonstrated” that individual, almost in a third-person narrative format. Throughout the performance the action was interrupted with signs and props describing the on-stage proceedings.

According to James Roose-Evans, Brecht later in life rejected some of the staging methods of Konstantin Stanislavsky and Max Reinhardt, theater directors who influenced Brecht’s early work. He considered their works a depiction of humanity’s limited relationship with its environment, such as the family or place of work.[6] Brecht saw the works of his predecessors as failing to effectively depict humanity in general within a broader landscape, that of its relationship with society as a whole. His plays and writings attempted to change this perception.

Brecht’s practice of montage by means of film or photographic projection onto screens over the stage strengthened the actors’ stage performances and further distanced the audience members from identifying with any particular character. This use of Kritischer Realismus or Critical Realism, as Brecht referred to it, revealed the world as a distorted projection.[7] Brecht also refuted the standard musical performances of the day in favor of music that functions more as a commentary on or interruption of action on stage. Unlike grand opera and other forms of musical theater, where songs, gestures, dialogue, and action blend into a seamless whole, Brecht’s musical numbers, though entertaining, exercise a disruptive influence on the performance. According to Walter Benjamin, Brecht’s works, particularly those of his early Versuche were “meant to represent individual experiences … as they are aimed at using (and transforming) certain existing institutes and institutions”.[8] Benjamin saw Brecht’s efforts not just as a form of renovation of the existing theatrical hierarchy, but as an innovation of a new form of theater.

Brecht’s intention, however, was not to completely alienate the audience but instead looked to enlighten and reshape their understanding of the performance. The consensus among Brecht scholars is that Brecht’s underlying intent behind his works was “to teach us how to survive”.[9] He stimulated audience reactions rather than encouraged a passive acquiescence as that found in the old bourgeois theater. The entire theatrical experience was meant to function as a stimulating pedagogical event. In this sense he pushed audience attendees and critics alike away from the notions of the German literary and theatrical scene of his time, where emotional empathy was the norm, to his own educational ideals of establishing a learning process or Lernprozeß.[10] Brecht meant to remove the sentimentalized idealism of the German theater of his time in an effort to revitalize the theatrical process. One can conjecture that it was Brecht’s ultimate intention to create a “theater for the scientific age”, by incorporating elements of the everyday world, including politics, economics, and education along with scientific advances such as radio, airplanes, and medicine, into his productions.[11] Thus, he better represented the social landscape. On account of this recasting of theatrical practices, Brecht’s innovative dramatic style has kept his plays and theatrical pieces alive on stage and in the minds of his admirers. His pioneering use of technology on the stage has become a common device in current theatrical performances today. Technology and art, which during Brecht’s time were distinct and unrelated, were blended in many of his works and set the stage for later works by other playwrights who adopted Brecht’s techniques.

It has been proposed that it was Brecht’s intention to revise the concept of theater and reconstruct it in a new format. Much like the Marxist concept of the dialectical process of history, Brecht’s representation of human struggle among disparate social forces was meant to educate and activate the general populace.[12] He believed social maladies could be rectified through a new use of theater. By educating audience goers through stage performances, Brecht felt confident from the late 1920s on that he could raise the social status of the common worker and bring it to the higher condition envisioned by Marxism. Brecht’s efforts in conveying these ideals to the public by means of the stage and radio is examined throughout the course of this work.

The pedagogical techniques employed by Brecht translate well into other forms of media. One specific field of research currently undergoing a renaissance of thought is that of computer software. To be more specific, computer programs intended for mass distribution are being re-conceptualized. No longer is software or computer code the exclusive property of large corporations that then dictate the content and quality of any given program. Rather than implementing these applications and programs using the traditional “top-down” method of dispersal, while gleaning a substantial reward in return, the current method of programming philosophy starts from the “bottom-up”.

A “grass-roots” movement is underway to replace many costly proprietary software programs with free alternatives and distribute them unreservedly to all users without any financial compensation. More a philosophy than an actual business model, the open source movement[13] promotes freeing source code from corporate control and placing it back in the hands of the developers. Software writers themselves are now free to choose how to distribute, control and further develop their own programs without corporate mandates, limitations or restrictions. Few or no monetary expenses are incurred in advancing this software. Anyone with a connection to the “Internet” or “World Wide Web” can download, examine, modify and use open source software created and distributed by the average programmer. These programs are typically written by enthusiasts in their spare time, either working to solve a problem or dedicated to creating a greater suite of tools or applications. This new breed of computer code far surpasses older proprietary standards in many ways, particularly in terms of coding quality and technical support.[14] It is a common fact that in most cases the only compensation granted open source programmers is peer recognition. This new generation of computer programmers purposely gives computer code away. This stands in direct opposition to Brecht’s own attitude, who sought revenue from his primary and derivative works. However, it is not the open source movement’s primary intention to seek monetary compensation for their programs. Recognition and collaboration is generally reward enough. There are specific instances where the open source programmer is offered employment at a company on account of his or her expertise with a particular application, one that he or she either wrote or documented, but these are indirect results of the open source programmers efforts. In most cases, open source coding is a hobby carried out separately from regular employment.

Though comparing Brecht’s learning plays with open source computer code may seem disparate at first, the two share some unique similarities in purpose and construction. Brecht viewed theater as a pedagogical tool; a medium by which he could better instruct and educate the masses. He used the theater, along with cinema, his writings, and radio productions to encourage individuals to re-examine their own political, social and economic situations; the focus moving from entertainment to education and to a betterment of society. Likewise, open source code is a holistic approach to sharing work among programmers intended to benefit all. The stability, non-existent cost, multi-purpose uses, and educational application associated with this type of programming all contribute to the developer community’s infatuation with free and open software. Though it has never been openly expressed, the general attitude of open source programmers is to take back control of the computing field, wresting it away from current capitalistic and monopolistic practices. Their ambition is for free and open software be the domineering force in future technologies. The ideal scenario is for all software code to be free and openly exchanged among programmers.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine Brechtian pedagogical plays and how Brecht’s theatrical concepts are related to free and open computer code. Not only are his ideas and attitudes regarding collaborative efforts alive and well in the computer field, but they are also applicable to other fields of study. One case in point where similar Brechtian ideals benefited another scientific field is that of mathematics. Primarily through the free exchange of ideas have researchers in this field accomplished new breakthroughs. The open source model adopted by mathematicians accounts for many of the advances in mathematics since the 17^th century. It, too, was once a closed and monopolistic field of study. Knowledge was restricted to a limited number of privileged individuals. Similar to what Eric S. Raymond describes as the Cathedral, or the dispersal of knowledge from a limited source,[15] Pythagoras, in the sixth century B.C. allowed only a few of his followers to be privy to mathematical theorems he developed. It was only much later in 1611 that Father Mersenne in Paris, France began to divulge mathematical theorems to all willing to listen, going against the research trends at that time. He justified the sharing of theorems and the free exchange of information as benefiting mathematics and mankind.[16] Over the next few hundred years mathematics began to resemble a Bazaar methodology, or a free exchange of ideas among the populace as outlined by Eric S. Raymond in his book, “The Cathedral and the Bazaar”. The Cathedral viewpoint represents the closed, proprietary ideologies of past and present versus the free exchange of ideas and innovations, exemplified in the practice of the bazaar or open market.

How these concepts relate to both Brechtian theater and computer code will be shown over the course of the next few chapters. This dissertation examines both the commonalities behind Brecht’s learning plays and that of open source software along with the unique differences that set both apart in their genre. Both utilize elements of the Bazaar model while working against a Cathedral ideology.

This dissertation examines how Brechtian theatrical ideas parallel the development of computer code termed open source software.[17] The term “open source” refers to computer software that grants all users free access to the computer code or language used to create the software program. Just as Brecht used all available published texts to his advantage, open source shares and uses the building blocks of code or text with any interested parties. Brecht’s early learning plays also have a strong similarity to open source code; that being its didactic nature. Brecht intended for his learning plays to be educational in purpose. So, too, are the basic instructions that make up computer code and which operate computers available to all who want to better understand both the application and the programmer. The only condition for the use and distribution of open source is that any changes or improvements must also be freely available to all.[18] One must share all improvements made to the code and along with all compiled or binary code also attach the changes in human-readable format. This ensures the continued improvement and development of all affected programs. Likewise, the feedback solicited by Brecht from his collaborators and peers went back into continual improvement and enhancement of his plays and written works.

To understand how Brecht’s plays and open source software relate we must examine how Brecht envisioned the purpose and function of his plays and written works and how code is distributed by the open source programmer. As was mentioned earlier, Brecht was adept at providing physical expression of his works on stage, while also allowing viewers and actors to contribute to the creative process. Brecht, however, had the ultimate say in the final performance. Whether it was a simple Lehrstück or a more grandiose drama or even film, Brecht sometimes allowed the performers a minor say in what transpired on the stage and how their actions were received. Brecht’s solicitations for feedback are typified in a variety of forms among those in the open source community. The open source process allows those who benefit from the software to also act as contributors to the learning and creative process.

Analogous to the creative input Brecht sought to bring into his plays and the theater world as a whole, the current movement in the computing industry to produce new and innovative products and applications is geared not only to the software developer, but also to the average computer user. This growing faction intends to bring software to the neophyte. Open source coding attempts to break down the monopolistic tendencies of current software manufacturers, providing the source code of operating systems and related applications to the consumer at little or no cost. This idea itself, which even a few years ago seemed revolutionary, is now becoming standard practice. A myriad of applications are now freely available to any networked user to download and install. These do not violate licensing restrictions since the very license under which they are published ensures that the code or text remains open to all. It is freely distributable in varying formats, whether it is plain text or compiled binary code. Indeed, the licenses currently implemented on many open source programs make it virtually impossible for any one programmer to copyright improvements to the code base. As mentioned earlier, modifications to open source software must be accessible by all. The programmer initiating work on the base code can later choose whether to reject or incorporate into the body of the program suggested modifications for future releases.

Free open source alternatives are causing a stir in proprietary software engineering and marketing circles. Operating systems such as Linux and FreeBSD have proven themselves to be more cost-efficient and stable than their proprietary, closed-source competitors such as Windows, Mac OS and Solaris. It is no longer unreasonable to expect an open source operating system to remain operational for months, if not years, without a reboot. Users of many proprietary systems still find it a common occurrence to reboot their machines every time a new application is installed or after a day or two due to memory overflows or software lockups.

Open source software has made all computing bugs more superficial and transparent to the programmer. According to Eric S. Raymond, the self-styled Linux advocate, “Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow.” [19] This implies that if enough people view the code and contribute input, errors in the programming are quickly stamped out. Brecht used this same technique by soliciting comments from collaborators and performers. Their input was incorporated back into the performance. Not unlike the control exercised by a lead programmer on any open source project, Brecht retained overarching control of what eventually was incorporated into the written work or performance.

Under the open source categorization one finds no shortage of applications. A simple search of any open source repository such as freshmeat.net or sourceforge.net discloses open source projects numbering in the thousands.[20] In other words, there is no shortage of intellectual talent within the open source community. Individual contributors and developers for each application are carefully managed by project leaders to contribute the greatest amount of useful code to the furthering of that specific application.

Brecht also carefully utilized the resources of those near him to assist and, in some cases, actually write text for which he subsequently took credit. John Fuegi makes some startling accusations that support this claim, citing Benno Besson who named several people that had written things for Brecht.[21] These writings were not only partial collaborative works, but were specifically designed to appeal to a unique sector of the public. Brecht tailored many of his plays to the working class. He also included in his performances the latest technological innovations, such as radio and cinema, which was affordable for most people and to which nearly all had some form of access.

The advances in computing are reminiscent of the tactics pioneered by Brecht in many of his plays. He solicited comments by others and incorporated those ideas he liked into the productions. Though Brecht did not always give credit to those contributors, he was happy to extract those noteworthy ideas from personal opinion. This practice not only helped to improve his performances, but they also operated in a pedagogical sense. According to Reiner Steinweg and according to Brecht’s concept, within the performance of a Lehrstück there was sometimes no audience, only players.[22] The education was intended primarily for the actors.

The concepts behind Brechtian theater are revisited in open source computing. Open software disbands the former practices of closed, proprietary software applications. As was the case with Brecht, open source programmers expand upon existing texts and contribute to the community a more inventive adaptation. Brecht’s own Dreigroschenoper was based on John Gay’s play The Beggar’s Opera from 200 years earlier. He embellished adopted works with a trademark style and reintroduced them back into theatrical circles. He also accepted the contributions of his co-authors, viewers, actors and mistresses and incorporated their versions into his writings. This aspect of Brecht’s work is still disagreed upon by many of Brecht’s critics.[23] Again, John Fuegi’s publication of Brecht & Co. [24] casts a lingering and disparaging shadow on much of Brecht’s authorship, attributing a large portion of Brecht’s writings to others. Though several rebuttals of the work have also surfaced,[25] Fuegi’s claims are not without some merit; Brecht liberally adopted and incorporated into his plays the works, translations and original story lines of other authors. The importance of this fact is examined in more detail as it relates to the distribution of open source software.

III

Over the next seven chapters this dissertation examines various aspects of Brecht’s pedagogical works and their relationship with open source software. Chapter 1 looks at Brechtian theater and how its development led to several teaching tools. Brecht’s early plays were the antithesis of standard theatrical practices of the time. Their purpose served to bring about a re-examination of the theatrical genre. The next section, chapter 2, demonstrates Brecht’s implementation of technology in his works, specifically in his early learning play, Der Ozeanflug. Throughout many of his radio and stage plays Brecht used the latest scientific advances and employed them as vehicles for explaining specific ideas and concepts. Brecht made extensive use of the latest scientific advances in order to enhance his own performances. This chapter also examines how many of Brecht’s ideas are still applicable today and how they are being re-visited in a new form, that of open source software. Chapter 3 further explains how open source software can be seen as an analogue to creative productivity in a Brechtian vein. Similar to Brecht’s utilization of technology to teach the people, the genre of computer programs and thinking is educating the populace. Expensive software and source code which were designed for higher end computers and mainframes and limited only to wealthy businesses is accessible to all. The average personal computer currently possesses the same computing power once held only by expensive mainframes just a few years earlier. Open source software reflects many of the ideas touted by Brecht in his literary works. This software is both instructive and representative of the latest trends in computing, while drawing many parallels to Brecht’s philosophies. Just as Brecht’s plays continue to evolve through varying interpretations and performance, the open source movement increases in quality and distribution.

Chapter 4 draws a parallel between Brecht’s teachings and open source software’s educational use. Free software is gaining in popularity among University students and researchers. Brecht attempted to achieve the same kind of wide distribution, but where he failed in reaching all social classes, operating systems such as Linux and applications distributed under the GPL (General Public License) are a standard feature of the technology landscape. They are not only the norm among programmers and high-end users, but also among regular users. Chapter 5 examines the economics of Brecht’s teachings in theater and literature. The ideals touted by Brecht in literature are practiced to a certain degree by free software and open source advocates. Brecht’s works and the latest software applications can be said to resemble each other in that they are attempting to reverse current economic practices and causing many of the supposed experts to rethink contemporary practices and ideas. This chapter also looks at the problem of patronage and copyright. How do authors and writers of software still receive compensation for their works while conforming to an open ideal in which code is distributed freely? Chapter 6 considers the basis for both Brecht’s and open source software’s universal appeal. The academic and the professional have both adopted an open attitude towards software and the sharing of ideas. The influence of open source software and the related Brechtian attitude of cooperation are considered and the question asked; what attracts present-day society to both Brecht’s plays and open computer applications. Finally, chapter 7 ventures some projections regarding the future of Brecht’s plays and open source software. It includes suggestions for both Brechtian theater productions as well as for open source programmers if they are to continue in their appeal to society and businesses. This chapter summarizes the arguments presented throughout the dissertation. Both the ideals put forth by Brecht and the current thinking by open source developers are similar in traits and practice.

In summary, Brecht’s style and thinking has re-emerged in a new technological form, that of open source software. Brecht’s ideals and the open source concept share many similarities and provide helpful hints for further innovations and successes. This dissertation will not disclose any new revelations regarding Brecht’s pedagogical works nor does it reveal anything novel about open source software. Rather, it explores the analogues between the two and brings to the forefront core elements that are contiguous to each and which bridge both fields of thought. This thesis attempts to explain how the emergence of open source software has relevance in many fields, even in German theater.

The importance of open source as a new learning format is due to its non-proprietary nature as opposed to previous software code. It is open to revisions and editing by all users. Open source instructs and has a universal appeal among programmers, developers, and end-users. The reasons for its rapid acceptance and growth can be traced back to financial and performance benefits. The appeal of open source reaches from the corporate business sector even down to the common student. Only later in his life did Brecht’s plays reverberate among the academic circles down to the bourgeois and manual laborers. So, too, is this new field of computing being felt in corporate and academic circles the world over. Even more so than Brecht’s works, open source software is global in its dispersal, reaching many levels of society. The repercussions of its growing popularity are what Brecht himself may have hoped for in his works. The influence of open software on networks, telecommunications, and technology in general revitalizes literacy in computing and brings what was once inaccessible to the masses down to common people in all levels of society.