Harpo Marx as Trickster

by Charlene Fix

Overview

The author invites readers to spend time in the pleasure of Harpo's cinematic company while comparing him to tricksters from folklore, myth and legend. The book demonstrates how Harpo, the sweetest, wildest, most magical Marx brother, accomplishes the archetypal trickster's work. Thirteen chapters examine Harpo's trickster persona closely in each of the Marx Brothers' films: The Cocoanuts, Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horse Feathers, Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, Room Service, At the Circus, Go West, The Big Store, A Night in Casablanca and Love Happy.

Harpo as trickster embodies luck, foolishness, cleverness, mania, hunger, lust, stealing, shape-shifting, gender-bending, alliance with underdogs, attacks on the powerful, musicality, sympathy for animals, magic and mischief. His trickster behaviors in all the films are woven into a composite impression that "with a little luck, will resonate beyond the covers of this book and leak out into the world, making it a more just, flexible, resilient, amusing and magical place."

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476601496
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	02/07/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	232
File size:	11 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Charlene Fix is a professor of literature and creative writing at Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio.
Charlene Fix is a professor of literature and creative writing at Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Preface  1
Introduction  5
 1. The Cocoanuts (1929): Trickster Appears  19
 2. Animal Crackers (1930): The Professor Professes  30
 3. Monkey Business (1931): Not Quite Chevalier  39
 4. Horse Feathers (1932): Dogging Football  50
 5. Duck Soup (1933): Taking a Scissors to War  60
 6. A Night at the Opera (1935): Cleaning with Dirt  74
 7. A Day at the Races (1937): It’s Gabriel  87
 8. Room Service (1938): Gimme Shelter, Food and Art  100
 9. At the Circus (1939): Swingali’s Sneeze  109
10. Go West (1940): Feeding the Train the Train
11. The Big Store (1941): Mercantile Mayhem  135
12. A Night in Casablanca (1946): Meta Marx  148
13. Love Happy (1949): Trickster’s Capstone or Hail and Farewell  159
Conclusion: A Retrospective Montage  173
Notes  211
Bibliography  216
Index  219