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A character mask ((ドイツ語:Charaktermaske)) in the Marxian sense is a character disguised with a different character. The term was used by Karl Marx in various published writings from the 1840s to the 1860s, and also by Friedrich Engels. It is related to the classical Greek concepts of mimesis (imitative representation using analogies) and prosopopoeia (impersonation or personification) as well as the Roman concept of persona,〔A famous anthropological essay on the idea of the "persona" is Marcel Mauss, "A category of the human mind: the notion of person, the notion of 'self'." in: Mauss, ''Sociology and psychology: essays''. Translated by Ben Brewster. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1979. See, for a recent discussion of the concept of persona: Marta Cecilia Betancur García (Universidad de Caldas), "Persona y máscara", ''Praxis Filosófica'', Nueva serie, no. 30, January–June 2010: pp. 7–16.()〕 but also differs from them (see below).〔The Greek concept of prosopon, meaning "the face", literally is "that which is set before the eyes", and thus also refers to "a mask" (John Mack (ed.), ''Masks: the art of expression''. London: British Museum, 1994, p. 151). In Greek theatre, the function of the mask was impersonate a character. In post-Freudian psychology, by contrast, the mask is a metaphor for the external self, concealing the reality within (ibid., p. 151-152, 157).〕 The notion of character masks has been used by neo-Marxist and non-Marxist sociologists,〔The neo-Marxists referring to character masks were especially those of the Frankfurt School, such as Theodor W. Adorno and Max Horkheimer. For a non-Marxist approach to character masks, see Anthony Giddens, ''The constitution of society: outline of the theory of structuration''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986.〕 philosophers〔See: Alasdair Macintyre, ''After Virtue''. University of Notre Dame Press, 2007, pp. 27–35, 109–110; Peter Sloterdijk, ''Critique of Cynical Reason''. Verso, 1988, p. 37.〕 and anthropologists〔E.g. Lawrence Krader and David Graeber.〕 to interpret how people relate in societies with a complex division of labour, where people depend on trade to meet many of their needs. Marx's own idea of character masks was not a cut-and-dried academic concept with a fixed definition. ==Character masks versus social masks== As a psychological term, "character" is traditionally used more in continental Europe, while in Britain and North America the term "personality" is used in approximately the same contexts.〔Gordon W. Allport, "My encounters with personality theory". Recorded and edited reminiscence at the Boston University School of Theology, October 12, 1962, transcribed by W. Douglas, p. 1. As cited by Christopher F. Monte and Robert N. Sollod, ''Beneath the mask. An introduction to theories of personality'', 7th edition. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2003, p. 2. A Marxist interpretation of character is provided by Kit R. Christensen, ''The Politics of Character Development: A Marxist Reappraisal of the Moral Life''. Praeger, 1994.〕 Marx however uses the term "character mask" analogously to a theatrical role, where the actor (or the characteristics of a prop) represents a certain interest or function, and intends by character both "the characteristics of somebody" and "the characteristics of something". Marx's metaphorical use of the term "character masks" refers back to carnival masks and the masks used in classical Greek theatre. At issue is the social form in which a practice is acted out. A sophisticated academic language for talking about the sociology of roles did not exist in the mid-19th century. Marx therefore borrowed from theatre and literature to express his idea.〔Edith Hall, ''The theatrical cast of Athens; interactions between ancient Greek drama & society''. Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 31.〕 Although György Lukács pioneered a sociology of drama in 1909,〔George Lukács, "The Sociology of Modern Drama" (transl. Lee Baxandall), ''The Tulane Drama Review'', 1965, Vol.9(4), pp.146–170.〕 a sociology of roles began only in the 1930s, and a specific sociology of theatre (e.g. by Jean Duvignaud) first emerged in the 1960s.〔Elizabeth and Tom Burns, ''Sociology of Literature and Drama''. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1973.〕 Marx's concept is both that an identity appears differently from its true identity (it is masked or disguised), and that this difference has very real practical consequences (the mask is not simply a decoration, but performs a real function and has real effects, even independently of the mask bearer). The nearest equivalent term in modern English for Marx's "character masks" is social masks. However, such a translation is not entirely satisfactory, for several reasons: *A "social mask" is normally understood only as the mask of an individual, while Marx's concept of character masks has been applied by Marxists and non-Marxists to persons and politicians,〔See for example Ronald W. Clark, ''Lenin: the man behind the mask''. New York: St Martins Press, 1989; Gary Allen, ''Richard Nixon: The Man Behind The Mask''. Boston: Western Islands, 1971 (see also Richard Nixon mask; Adam Robinson, ''Bin Laden: behind the mask of the terrorist''. Edinburgh: Mainstream, 2001. Nick Henck, ''Subcommander Marcos: the man and the mask''. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2007.〕 groups and social classes, mass media, social movements and political parties, social institutions, organizations and functions, governments, symbolic expressions, historical eras, and dramatic, literary or theatrical contexts. In each case, the suggestion is that matters present themselves other than they really are.〔See e.g. Ingo Elbe, "Thesen zum Begriff der Charaktermaske" (). ''Rote Ruhr Uni'' site.〕 *Marx's character masks are a specific kind of social masks, i.e. masks of people and things which represent a social, political, intellectual or economic function, within the given social relationships among groups of people. The category of "social masks" is much more general and inclusive. *With Marx's character masks, it is understood that they are bound up with a specific type of society at a specific historical time, and with a specific theory of how the social relations in that society function. By contrast, the general concept of "social masks" assumes no specific theory, specific society or specific historical time; social masks of whatever form can be assumed to have existed forever and a day, and thus are treated as a more or less permanent part of the human condition. Nevertheless, the Argentinian/Spanish sociologist Pablo Nacach has used the concept of "social masks" in a wider, critical sense.〔Pablo Nacach, ''Máscaras sociales. Las relaciones personales en el mundo actual''. Madrid: Debate Editorial, 2008.()〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Character mask」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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