1, THE STRUCTURE ‘Twene ane three Mediterancans in Racin: jt poctically, these ‘The great tag ite are aid the set and the exer, shade and sim raed to the abselate StsteOne nesd merely vit Greece today to uadewtand the violence of ination, ad how moch Racingn tag ty, by te omstisined” nature, comesponds Yo these ites Racing had never seen: Thebes, Btbrotim, Trees these capitals of tragedy are lges, Tiocec, whee Phacda dn ba soched Koll forte by bles The fun produce 4 Tandscape that is pure, distinct, depope- ined fe i without shade, which i simultaneously repose, secrecy, exchange, and da Even ouside the house, there Sno feat breath of ‘unoggenized space. i, a whole people remains imprton ‘because the ‘wind fal toss, ‘The Chamber ‘Tis geography sustain a special ration between the howe and ts extern, between the Radian palace and its hinterland, Although there is only one setting, accord- he mls, one might sy Gab ees sis ct i te tage of te Tmythie cave ti the invtble and dreadfl place where Ponerluts: Net's throne room, Akaser place, the Holy of Holes were the Cod of the Jews Sves. "This 34 ON RACINE ‘cavern has a flequentsubstitte: the King’s eile, porter tous Because no-one ever knows if the King ie living of dead (Amurath, Mithiidates, Theseus). ‘The characters speak ofthis undefined ste only with repect and fern, they scary dare enter it, they pas before i with ana: ‘ety. The Chamber is both the abode of Power and its an fox Bac nly eats Fn cas function, it kils by being invisible. Ia Bajezet i i the utes and black Orean who deal out death, extend by lene and daines the terbleinerin of the hen rmenacingly express both contiguity The faction ofthe throne, oom, the Ryal Chamber, is welled inthe es om Ear ‘i fond de ar ali leur mje oie ‘Aft es dee eee, Privette pido tot ata, uteri pl psi seu (13) ‘Tie teal yc ten cp tin hl plac, let thar sets and deth Be ewer fa inter who i Son there without ing stmmoned, ‘On the encour of the Racnian sit, oe Berd Der ‘a Chr vce (Caer Rend Bans Vi, Fos) RACINAN MAN 5 an cxcangs the agency of nts py: cncrite ater ker al es powe at News dor, The Door ha a acto matte Seay Sp ous want gow Aer cy the hater with i and hes ‘Biles, she Athle) “ue Vel (or Se tat hen cceal, it the Mr tha pete tere ore and tothe eyes ofthe ter (the a tat beat expres ts trp cotton Se Sel of Bae “The ted tga the ey a Soe pred the bee. This contgnity is expresed poctically by ihe palice: wath poner fown into the set, the sas lead to the ships ready to ‘ail, the ramparts are a baleony above the bute iel and if there are hidden pusiges, they no longer constitute part ofthe tragedy, they ate sleady Fight Ths the line fhat separates tragedy from ion is thin, almost abstract; wat i volved is be al wave the word: the tragedy is simultaneously prison and pro tection aguas mp, against all that not isl rome th se ager oped cere a ee gia rofl ere Sainte ‘lide Ail ert om stage bat exer off. Not seer he denon of gre ond sy 5 dhs6 ON RACINE convents, for the cr Rows Taset ae caith sentence, ‘movement isthe model of« whole sic of exits in which it is enough for the executioner to dismiss or ais his rey to cane death, as ifthe mere contact withthe outer fir wat enough to solve or blast: how many Raciian victims die beeause they are no longer protected by his tage site which nonetelest, they sui, trade then slr mortally (Britannica, Bact, Hippoiyts). ‘The essen ial image of this exterior death, im which the victim slowiy sffcates out of the tragic aig isthe Devnician (Orient, which intemninably summons th heros into nom. fe expenenees all el space asa suoesion of chains (Oreste, Antices, ippolyas): here sueing s evidently substitute fot eat all behavior that suspends Timgwage exes life & "Fie szond exter space is that of excape: but eae is never named except bythe fre eas of feds ad Setantte conldats an nor gure (Acoma, Za) enstntyesormend epe toe hero on one of hese sonfes shpe at sein foot ef clay Racin tragedy, epeseting how immediate and Bow ey neation iF (here only on shippion in Racine the tne on which te eplve Epi fal in ove Wit her tavsher). The Elon over, is a spec nly {emit entre and-pigned tral the now tage peste Wes Had tes Ie See io hs ak val Sa a (ae. HE2) (ut ipa yan he wind tole Des vanes daw One mde on diene... (Bé.13) ‘Ships hay ame in Ota ‘Dé svr on wisnas done te ort pripad (Be 112) ‘Ay on 2 ship made dyin the babor« RACINIAN MAN 7 So om the Estero that this is, servants, mesenges, maton, and ‘gouds come and go, wesponsble for feeding tragedy with fveus: their entlnces and exits ae task ot signe or i In that infinite (and iabaitly sterile) conclave Ssh ce Igy, they ae he ‘fon cas Soho preserve the haze from profane contact ith realty, Spare him what might be called the tava Aitehenry of ding, and transmit the event to him only when tt pated down, rednced to the state of {he thie fonetion of exterior "on stage ay dtd as news ‘etna, murder ‘ot langge wich i aged, Ton ito pave come © cng ae at soi eee ad 7 Too much Ue, Uae ume of space itself. This quite Einseinian problem constitutes mat of the tragic ac ‘ons In shert, Recinian topography is comvergeaty ery Fae comme yous snes, mal nt dligene, Untang chen ar a icp Mite hase tote on ite tooo je pu tenee tote et fe (1) at, a you inom; for all my hate the sad between the (ip and Byzantium along ene 2 showed ee