Svengali

Svengali

Svengali is the name of a fictional character in George du Maurier's 1894 novel "Trilby". A sensation in its day, the novel created a stereotype of the evil hypnotist that persists to this day. The character was portrayed in many silent film versions of the story, and in talking pictures by John Barrymore in a 1931 film of the same name, by Donald Wolfit in a 1954 version in Technicolor, and by Peter O'Toole in a 1983 made-for-television modernized version, also in color, co-starring Jodie Foster. This last one changed the names of all the characters, but was still called "Svengali".

The word "" has entered the language meaning a person who, with evil intent, manipulates another into doing what is desired. It is frequently used for any kind of coach who seems to exercise an extreme degree of domination over a performer (especially if the person is female or believes he or she can only perform in the presence of the coach).A famous example of a svengali is with the swedish rock band, The Hives and their mysterious manager, Randy Fitzsimmons

The character

He "would either fawn or bully, and could be grossly impertinent. He had a kind of cynical humor, which was more offensive than amusing, and always laughed at the wrong thing, at the wrong time, in the wrong place. And his laughter was always derisive and full of malice."

Svengali transforms Trilby into a great singer using hypnosis, but she cannot perform without his help in entering a trance state. The relation between Svengali and Trilby forms only a small portion of the novel, which is mainly an evocation of Bohemian Paris in the 1850s.

ee also

*Stage mother

External links

*
* [http://www.hypnosisinmedia.com/index.php?title=Fiction:Du_Maurier%2C_George_%28Trilby%29_Part_I Complete online text of the novel]

References


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  • Svengali — bezeichnet: Svengali (Fiktive Figur), Person im Hintergrund, die eine andere Person stark beeinflusst oder manipuliert Svengali ist der Titel folgender Werke: Svengali (Album), Jazz Album von Gil Evans (1973) Svengali (1914), österreichischer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Svengali — Personnage de fiction apparaissant dans Trilby Genre Mâle Activité(s) Chef d orchestre, Hyp …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Svengali — ► NOUN ▪ a person who exercises a controlling influence on another, especially for a sinister purpose. ORIGIN from Svengali, a musician in George du Maurier s novel Trilby (1894) who controls Trilby s stage singing hypnotically …   English terms dictionary

  • Svengali — [sven gä′lē, sfengä′lē] n. [from the evil hypnotist, Svengali, in the novel Trilby (1894) by DU MAURIER George (Louis Palmella Busson)] a person who dominates or manipulates another, esp. with evil intentions …   English World dictionary

  • Svengali — one who exerts controlling or mesmeric influence on another, 1914, from hypnotist character of that name in the novel Trilby (1894) by George Du Maurier …   Etymology dictionary

  • Svengali — UK [svenˈɡɑːlɪ] / US [svenˈɡɑlɪ] noun [countable] Word forms Svengali : singular Svengali plural Svengalis someone who controls the minds of other people and makes them do bad things …   English dictionary

  • Svengali — noun Etymology: Svengali, villainous hypnotist in the novel Trilby (1894) by George du Maurier Date: 1919 a person who manipulates or exerts excessive control over another …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • svengali — (Roget s 3 Superthesaurus) (VOCABULARY WORD) n. [sven GAH lee] one who persuades or brainwashes another to do his bidding, often for evil purposes, so named after the hypnotist in the novel Trilby. He was a Svengali who mesmerized women wherever… …   English dictionary for students

  • Svengali — Sven|ga|li [svenˈga:li] n [Date: 1900 2000; Origin: Svengali, character who uses hypnotism to get control over people in the book Trilby (1894) by George Du Maurier] a man who has the power to control people s minds and make them do bad or… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Svengali — [svɛn gα:li] noun a person who exercises a controlling influence on another, especially for a sinister purpose. Origin Svengali, a musician in George du Maurier s novel Trilby (1894) who controls Trilby s stage singing hypnotically …   English new terms dictionary

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