Soren Kierkegaard

driveling, do one thing one day, something else the next, though without
emotion, in a total rut....Rather than an yof the delights of love, generate
a sort of cloying quasi-love, which is neither indifference nor desire. Let
the whole of your conduct be as unpleasing as watching a man drool.”
Constantin Constantius openl yconfesses that he himself finds the strateg y
“indelicate,” but nonetheless (or perhaps precisel yfor this reason) he offers
to procure a seamstress with whom the Young Man must be seen frequently
enough to encourage the spread of rumors concerning a dubious alliance
between the two. The Young Man approves of the plan, and the seamstress
is engaged for a year. But just as the show is about to begin the Young Man
disappears. Constantin Constantius never sees him again and has to content
himself with noting that the Young Man lacked “the elasticit yof iron y,”
which is what one needs if one is to surmount the difficulties presented by
actuality. “My young friend had no understanding of repetition. He did not
believe in it and did not will it strongly.”
Constantin Constantius could now embark on his long-planned journey,
and it began well—that is to say, the journey in the stagecoach was just as
dreadful as it had been the previous time, and this opened the bright pros-
pect of more such repetitions. So no sooner did he reach Berlin than Con-
stantin Constantius sought out the tastefull yfurnished apartment where he
had stayed during his first visit. Unfortunately it turned out that the apart-
ment was alread yleased, and Constantin Constantius had to make do with
renting a small room. His disappointment turned to hope, however, when
he learned that the Ko ̈nigsta ̈dter Theater, located at the corner of Alexan-
derplatz and Alexanderstrasse, was presenting the sameposse(a sort of farce
or burlesque bit of total theater) that had afforded him such an unforgettable
experience on his previous visit. ThepossewasThe Talisman, with a libretto
b yJohann Nepomuk Nestro yand music b yAdolf Mu ̈ller. (It was also a
great success when it was performed as the inaugural presentation at the
Casino Theater in Copenhagen on December 26, 1848.) Constantin Con-
stantius dedicates a fair number of pages to a discussion of the production,
giving special attention to Beckmann and Grobecker, a brilliant acting duo.
He also emphasizes how the planless impetuosit yof thepossecan transport
the audience to an exalted, almost ecstatic condition. Constantin Con-
stantius remembers how, on that previous visit, he had exulted in his shad-
ow ylittle theater box while waves of laughter rolled over him from ever y
side, liberating repressed childhood images from within his inner being,
while opposite him sat a lovel y young woman like a shining promise of
happiness. She sought out his eyes amorously, but also, he thought he could
recall, so chastel ythat it did her no harm.