SOURCE: Falk, Thomas H. “Masks and Transformations: The Wedding, Comedy of Vanity, Life-Terms.” In Elias Canetti, pp. 68-83. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993.

In the following essay, Falk examines Canetti's plays to determine why he considered himself to be first and foremost a dramatist.

“Above all else, I consider myself to be a dramatist and everything associated with dramatic work represents the nucleus of my personality.”¹ This is a surprising statement if one considers only that Canetti has published just three plays. If, however, one also considers how Canetti has included parts of his novel and numerous character sketches in his public readings, for example, his statement becomes far less astonishing. In conversations, occasional interviews, and in some written statements, Canetti has mentioned—without giving titles—having written other plays, but no further information about such works is available. An examination of the three plays that were published will...