End of the Circus

Paul Bouissac is Professor Emeritus at Victoria College, University of Toronto, Canada. He is a world renowned figure in semiotics and a pioneer of circus studies.

This is a rigorous yet heart-felt account of the demise of the travelling circus. Professor Bouissac argues that both its former popularity and present opprobrium reflect the ways that sedentary societies have seen themselves, their travelling others and their relationship with nature. No-one could tell this tale better.

• Acknowledgements1. Overture: Themes and VariationsIntroductionWhence and wither the ‘traditional’ circus?‘Death to the circus’Clowns on the waneThe body: from ritual to spectacleThe human tragedy: “You! Wretched Gypsies!”2. First Movement, Andante Sostenuto: The Time of the GypsiesWho are the Gypsies?Where do Gypsies come from?Contrapuntal development #1Being a Gypsy: the bane or bliss of differenceA deeper time perspectiveThe circus enters history: Was Philip Astley a Gypsy?The art of survivalContrapuntal development #2: What is a name?Our inner GypsyAn ode to resilienceOn the flipsideThe evolution of space, time, and cultures3. Second Movement Vivace Furioso: AnimalsA memoryHunger rules the worldThe human animal: the game of life and deathBear powerThe hyena men of NigeriaWolvesThe death of a tigressHunger never stopsFrom non-animal humans to non-human animalsThe cage acts of yesteryearsWhat is a wild animal?The antiquity of the animal circus: the elephantsThe antiquity of the animal circus: the predatorsWild utopiaEthos, ethics, and the Peterson effectA self-defeating strategyCultural entropy and semiotic panic4. Third Movement, Adagio Lamentendo: ClownsPerplexed clownsMasksWhat is a clown?A detour to India: the VidûshakaA modern master: Charlie ChaplinTwo kinds of laughterThe twilight of the clown: off-limit humorThe clown and its discontentsThe white-face clown: the waxing and waning of a cultural heroBlack face mattersThe crucifixion of the clownFree speech and the clowns: Is Jordan Peterson a trickster?5. Fourth Movement, Maestoso Appassionato: BodiesWhat is a body?Modes of survivalLife on the brink of deathEpiphaniesThe body brought into playGreatness and misery of acrobats’ bodiesNegotiating one’s own body: benefit-to-cost ratioBodies unboundThe visceral circus: bodies of fear and desireTechnological evolution and the perception of riskFor your eyes only: Eros at the circusFrom ritual to spectacle6. Coda, SforzandoResistance and resilienceThe downfall of the traditional circusThe Anthropocene delusionThe reign of anthropomorphismThe return of the hyenasReferencesIndex