Tragedy and Madness: A Study of the Character of Fanyi in Thunderstorm from the Perspective of Nietzsche’s Dionysian Spirit

School of Chinese Language and Literature, Jiangsu Normal University, 221000 Jiangsu, China

^* Corresponding author: 3020233476@jsnu.edu.cn

Abstract

As an important modern drama creator, Cao yu’s first works of art Thunderstorm served as a milestone, marking the phase rapid maturity of modern Chinese drama. Cao Yu’s efforts to bond Chinese reality with Western drama practice to creat an drama rich in length has garnered widespread attention from scholars and has been the subject of in-depth research. Numerous studies have chosen the character of Fan Yi as an analytical focus, but many of her distinctive qualities have not been sufficiently interpreted from the lens of drama theory. This could be expanded through Nietzsche’s Dionysian spirit of artistic origin, thereby broadening the scope of research on Chinese drama. This research starts from Nietzsche’s theory of the Dionysian spirit and employs comparative literature research methods and documentary analysis to conduct a cross-cultural study of Fan Yi. The article unearthed that Fan Yi’s madness has its ancient origin, able to dissolve social bounds while returning to true human existence. In addition, the way Cao Yu expresses Fan Yi’s enthusiasm and constructs the plot was also influenced by Nietzsche’s theory. The paper reveals that the success of Fanyi has a major influence on the forging of Chinese play and modern Western drama, providing inspirations for contemporary drama.