The relationship between rhetoric (rhetoric tacens:
muette rhetoric) and dance involves two aspects of
rhetoric. One aspect is how rhetoric in dance, as
well as music, theatre design, architecture, art,
etc., supported the state. How did rhetoric support
the social stratification in Renaissance society:
Royalty and noble aristocrats, guilds (see image
above: blacksmiths were in guilds) and peasants?
This aspect includes the ideology used by the
aristocracy to set themselves apart from the rest
of society: views expressed in Castiglione's book
about courtier life and manners. This aristocratic
behavior (the 'social code' found in 'courtesy books')
was an integral part of dance. Some might even say that
the ability to dance well defined an aristocrat, and
'dancing well' was displayed not only in dance, but
in one's behavior while dancing. Dance was an integral
aspect of courtier behavior: aristocratic "gestures".
The social aspect of rhetoric is discussed in greater
detail later.
.
However, there is yet another major area in the
rhetoric of dance, and that focuses upon how the
principles of rhetoric were implemented in dance.
What are these rhetorical "gestures" found in dance?
How the views of Quintilian, Cicero, etc., were
implemented in dance shall now be discussed.
.
Rhetoric was viewed as an oration composed of basic
components (as an aid to memory). A long oration
had a beginning, middle, and end; or, to use the
vocabulary of the Baroque, the components of an
oration were the "proposition", the "intrigue",
and the "denouement" (Bernard Lamy).
However, rhetorical analysis further decomposed
the parts of an oration. Thus the components of the
"proposition" (beginning) are the "exordium" and
the "narration". The "intrigue" was composed of the
"confirmation" and the "confutation". The "denouement"
(end) was summarized by a winding-up component called
the "peroration". Thus elaborating and developing an
oration, rhetorical figures could be used to enhance
beauty (persuasion). Thus we finaly obtain the
following structure of an oration: "Exordium",
"narration", "confirmation", "confutation", and the
"peroration".1
.
We find Lully's menuet from Psyché,
using the poetry of Corneille: "Is it not wise not to
fall in love when one is young?" is identified as the
"proposition", with repetition as "Is one wise?" as
the "exordium". The music (and dance steps) match
the repeated words. The "intrigue" ("proposition")
being: "Is one wise not to love?" and "Let's hurry
and enjoy today's pleasures." Repetition such as
"unceasing hurry", while Lully's music is suited to
quick leaps (the reader might suggest accompanying
dance steps). The "denouement" is a strong cadence
by Lully, to accompany Corneille's "Youth has the
sense to enjoy love's charms." A bow, and nod of
the head by dancers might be a very proper sign of
agreement. Similarly, Lully's music and the associated
choreography by Pécour for "La passacaille de
Persée" has the same five-part rhetorical structure.
2
The intensity rises, peaks, then falls, with the
peak taking place during the middle (intrigue).
The paper, "The passacaille in Lully's Armide" has also
been examined and found to have the same five-part rhetorical
structure of Lamy.3
A subclass of dances, called "imitative" dances because
they imitated the repeated motions found in certain
occupations, also had repetitions as a kind of rhetorical
symmetry. Furthermore, the repeated motions acted as
silent rhetorical gestures. Thus, dances of blacksmiths,
boatmen, drunkards, fighting, people falling asleep, etc.
4
Each step in dance corresponded to a word, or an
syllable. Thus, as with speech, each step/word
could be viewed as a gesture, also taking part in
the meter (of text, poetry, speech, music, and
dance). Thus just as dance steps were supported
by music, the dance, text, music, and poetry had
a rhetorical aspect. For additional information,
click here.
An analysis of the dancers' foot steps, in the paper
"The passacaille in Lully's Armide", has also
found a great deal of symmetry or repitition: another aspect
of rhetoric.5, 6
Dances can use special sequences or componds of steps, which
are similar to rhetorical "figures". These ornaments of dance
function in a similar way to how ornaments are used in music,
also similar to how ornaments are used in spoken or written
works. A list of a few of these ornaments will be found
of interest.7
baloné sur le cou de pied
caprioles
caprioles battus
chassé
chassé de côté
contratempi battuti
demi-chassé
demi-jeté
forlanes (repeated phrases of 2 bars)
gorgugliè
les pied en l'air
les jambes étendues (distese)
les jambes repliées (ritirate)
pas coupé
pas de bourrée
pas de courante
pas de galliarde
pas de menuet
pas de rigaudon
pas de sissone
pas elevé
pas plié
pas ronde
pas tombé
pas tortillé
plié après avoir marché
petite ronde de jambe sauté
pirouettes
pirouettes en dehors
poser la pointe du pied
ronde de jambe
sauté et retombé sur la lambe qui marche
salto tondo sottoal corpo
Tordichamp in aria salata
Etc. (many more)
There is a further relationship between rhetoric and dance.
Namely, dance "motion" also was understood as "emotion".8
Taking the view that syllable length is not synonymous with
poetic scansion, rather that it means short and long syllables
"of declamation" (as used in French oratory). Thus any
syllable must be forced to be made long despite the inadequacies
of musical notation. To be pointed: the "rhetorical" length of a
syllable overrides the musical notes that correspond to it
within a musical bar. Thus, during performance, the notes (and
syllables) must forced to be the proper rhetorical length.
The shorter a French rhythmic unit, the more intense
it is perceived (rhetorically). Short units are
employed in exclamations and commands. Three-syllable
units are perceived as balanced and calm. Units of
four or more syllables are perceived as "fluid", or as
being "hasty or emotional".9
During the exordium, the dance steps should be
of balanced phrasing, motion 'equal and slow rhythm'.
During the narration, increasingly longer units
(syllables), shifting to three-syllable units, as
the dance emotions heighten (even using quavers
notes that are of short duration). Hand and torso
movements become restricted, dance steps blur into
glides (glissandi). During confirmation (proof),
rhetorical figures (dance figures – ornaments, or
compound steps, etc.) appear, mimes (hand gestures)
appear, increasing appearance of quavers, accidentals
(jetés, tombés), increasing right and
left movements, momentary rests. During peroration,
angry, spiteful, tender, and kind gestures along with
rotation of torso, arm waving, rolling-eye gestures.
10
Lascivious gestures.11
A major change has now taken place in the relationship
between dance and music in relation to classical views
of performative rhetoric: rhetoric mutte, or rhetoric tacens.
Gennaro Magri, the great dancer, criticized because of his
participation in grotteschi (as opposed to serio) uses the
phrase "the gesture leg"12.
Classical rhetoricians such as Quintilian have emphasized
"gesture" in rhetoric. Gestures such as use of hands, eyes,
facial expressions. However, in dance, gestures are greatly
expanded to the toe, the half-toe (demi-pointe)
ball-of foot, foot, leg, arm, wrist, hand and fingers, torso,
head, eyes, neck, shoulders. Magri refers to the hip joint
(weight shifting of balance), exaggerated facial expressions
(attitudini sforzate), etc. Thus "gestures" as now used
greatly exceed the gestures of Quintilian.
We find " ... [Gasparo] Angiolini claimed danse pantomime
... as the most expressive [form of dance]...".
13
This very broadly opens up the entire area of gesture as
rhetoric muette! Gesture may now be combined with acting,
and dancers explicitly and consciously emphasize pantomime
in dance in any way desired to express the appropriate
emotions or attitudini, including clothing
as well as cosmetics as a form of rhetoric muette.
We should take note, however, that while examining dance
patterns on the stage or theatre floor extends rhetoric
muette to two-dimensional languages, pantomime includes
three-dimensional gestures. Thus rhetoric muette is now
extended to three dimensional linguistic analysis.
However, there is more!
"... Magri and Weaver saw grotesque dancing as particularly
expressive...", but Angiolini claimed "danse pantomime"
based upon serious dancing as the most expressive.
14
Magri was attacked by the aristocrats. Aristocratic society favord
the dance serio that emphasized heroic characters (aristocrats,
of course), not the dance grotteschi (or Commedia dell'Arte).
.
"Whoever is capable of being a serio gives everything
of himself to that genre. The Grottesco will concentrate
on his specialty and does not put on buskins. The mezzo carattere
puts all his efforts there: the gavottine, the tempi
brillanti are always his constant exercise; and thus they
are all done to perfection." 15
.
The use of the term "buskins" (chopines) is significant, as buskins
are worn by aristrocrats in dance serio. Why is this significant?
Now costume as an aspect of rhetoric tacens is highlighted, and also
because rhetoric tacens is now explicitly embracing class distinctions.
.
"That is, the seri should not be valued more highly than
the grotteschi simply because the heroes played by the
former enjoy higher social or aesthetic rank than the shepherds
or artisans depicted by the latter." 15
.
The political nature implied by dance grotteschi vs dance serio
extends even further! The dance grotteschi also extends to
regional (oltramontani), national, and international
distinctions, as well as specific dance forms (carré)
and occupations. Thus the appearance of conquered peoples including
Moors (L'Union per la Peregrina Marherita Reale e Celeste, 1660),
Incas, Persians, Ottomans, and Indians (Ballet de la Douairière
de Billebahaute, 1626). Turquerie and Chinoiserie became common
place in ballet and theatre. 16
.
"Writing of the grotesque dancer, Weaver added,
'His Perfection is to become what he performs; to be capable of representing
all manner of Passions, which Passions have all their peculiar
Gestures; and that those Gestures be just, distinguishing and
agreeable in all Parts, Body, Head, Arms and Legs." From grotesque dancing,
Weaver derived scenical dancing, which he described as 'a faint Imitation of
the Roman Pantomimes, and differs from the Grotesque, in that
the last only represents Persons, Passions, and Manners;
and the former explains whole Stories by Action,' thus adding a
narrative to expressive dancing." 17
Thus Grotesque does passions with gestures, while pantomime includes both
passions and actions. The gestures of action (dance) and gestures of pantomime
are expressive enough to constitute a "narrative of gestures".
18
.
Gestures capable of expressing a narrative of passions include such passions
as anger, shame, indignation, threats, fear, reconcilitation, submission,
foregiveness, astonishment, in the view of Ferrère, and are expressed
along with Feuillet notation and music, with accompanying drawings of
pantomime gestures (Figure 9.2). 19
.
Thus "Music is essential to pantomimes; it is the music that speaks, we
[dancers] only gesture...". 20
.
An example is provided of two performers, performing simultaneously.
While one does pantomime (doesn't dance), the other dances (doesn't
do pantomime). Thus a simultaneous narrative of passions.
21
.
Ferrère's dance floor patterns are at the same time, very imaginative.
22
1
"Dance Rhythms of the French Baroque:
A Handbook for Performance", by Betty Bang Mather,
Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana,
1987, pp. 87-89
2
Ibid., pp. 119-125
3
"The passacaille in Lully's Armide: phrase
structure in the choreography and the music", by Judith
L. Schwartz, Early Music, vol. XXVI, No. 2, May 1998,
300-320, p. 302
4
"Dance, Spectacle, and the Body Politick, 1250-1750",
Nevile, Jennifer (Ed.), Indiana Univ. Press, Bloomington,
Indiana, 2008, p. 198.
5
Ibid., p. 308
6
"Audible rhetoric and mute rhetoric: the
17th-century French sarabande", Patricia Ranum,
Early Music, vol. 14 (1), pp. 28-30
Ranum finds the same divisions of rhetoric apply
to baroque dance (sarabande): Exordium, Narration,
Confirmation, Confutation, and Peroration.
7
"Dance and Music of Court and Theater: Selected
Writings of Wendy Hilton", Pendragon Press, Stuyvesant,
New York, 1997
8
"Audible rhetoric and mute rhetoric: the
17th-century French sarabande", Patricia Ranum,
Early Music, vol. 14 (1), p. 22, see footnote #2, p. 36.
9
Ibid., p. 27.
10
Ibid., pp. 28-30.
11
Ibid., p. 24: The view held at this time by Jesuits
was expressed as follows: "The sarabande is a
passionate dance that originated with the Moors of
Grenada and that the Spanish Inquisition outlawed
because it deemed it capable of arousing tender
passions, captivating the heart with eyes, and
disturbing the tranquility of the mind."
12
"The Grotesque Dancer on the Eighteenth-Century Stage:
Gennaro Magri and His World", Harris-Warrick, Rebecca;
Brown, Bruce Alan; (Eds.), Univ. Wisconsin Press, 2005, pp. 130-133
13
Ibid., p. 202
14
"Critica Musica", Knowles, John; (Ed.), Gordon and Breach, 1996,
"The Speaking Body: Gaspero Angiolini's Rhétorique Muette
and the Ballet d'Action in the Eighteenth Century", pp. 15-56,
and "The Grotesque Dancer on the Eighteenth-Century Stage: Gennaro
Magri and His World", Harris-Warrick, Rebecca; Brown, Bruce Alan;
(Eds.), Univ. Wisconsin Press, 2005, p. 202
15
"The Grotesque Dancer on the Eighteenth-Century Stage:
Gennaro Magri and His World", Harris-Warrick, Rebecca;
Brown, Bruce Alan; (Eds.), Univ. Wisconsin Press, 2005, p. 163
16
Ibid., p. 168
17
Ibid., p. 212
18
Ibid., p. 214, 216
19
Ibid., pp. 221-224, and p. 237 (figure)
20
Ibid., footnote #36, p. 261
21
Ibid., Table 9.4, p. 262
22
Ibid., Figure 9.4 a. (colimaçon, or snail), p. 275
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