エリアス・カネッティの権力論の一考－『群衆と権力』と『猶予された者たち』より－

Abstract

The drama "Die Befristeten"(the numbered) was written by Elias Canetti in 1952/1953. All of the characters in the drama know when they will die. They are called by numbers which represent the length of years that they live. There is a hierarchy: those who live longer get more power than those who live shorter. "Die Befristeten" is often compared with Elias Canetti's cultural anthropological work "Masse und Macht"(crowds and power) which was written between 1948-1959. According to the author "Masse und Macht" was a study about the root of fascism. Although, he wanted to limit himself not to write any literary works during the period he worked on "Masse und Macht" , he began to write "Die Befristeten" in 1952. In both works the major theme is 'power'. In "Masse und Macht" Canetti mentioned the notion of 'surviving' that together with other concepts as elements have influence on power. Beside the concepts 'death' plays an important role in the power of society in "Die Befristeten". I interpreted the power of society in "Die Befristeten" considering the above mentioned concepts 'surviving' and 'death'.