PHRASE: Pleasure grows in proportion to the degree of unreality

Brecht doesn't like the fact that the unreality of the opera feeds into the unreality of the opera audience. In Brecht's opinion, the current state of theater pulls the audience to far into the depths of what they are viewing, to the point that the audience forgets themselves. "The process of fusion extends to the spectator, who gets thrown into the melting pot too and becomes a passive (suffering) part of the total work of art," (38). Brecht calls for a segregation of opera's core fibers. Music, text, setting, Brecht believes that breaking the theatre down to it's core elements, will desensitize the audience from what is happening on stage, enough to pull the audience out of the spell of the theatre. Brecht does not approve of the demeanor people take on when they are at the theatre. "They hand in their hat at the cloakroom, and with it they hand their normal behaviour," (39). Brecht despises the degree of unreality, which takes over the social structure of audience members.