Since its publication in 1890, Ibsen's 'Hedda Gabler' has been a recurring point of fascination for readers, theatre audiences, and artists alike. Newly married, yet utterly bored, the character of Hedda Gabler evokes reflection on beauty, love, passion, death, nihilism, identity, and a host of other topics of an existential nature. It is no surprise that Ibsen's work has gained the attention of philosophically-minded readers from Nietzsche, Lou Andreas-Salomé, and Freud, to Adorno, Cavell, and beyond. Once staged at avant-garde theatres in Paris, London, and Berlin, Ibsen is now a global phenomenon. The enigmatic character of Hedda Gabler remains intriguing to generations of actors, audiences, and readers. 'Hedda Gabler' occupies a privileged place in the history of European drama and as a work of literature, and, as this volume demonstrates, invites profound and worthwhile philosophical questions
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