The manifesto of Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik is headed for a dramatic makeover. The artistic director of the Copenhagen based Cafe Teatret, Christian Lollike, has plans to adapt the 1,500 page manifesto for the stage.
Lollike said that the views espoused by Breivik aren't unique and that it's possible a similar type of tragedy could happen again. He believes it is important to understand where Breivik was coming from - "What I'm afraid of is that Breivik's way of thinking will be left alone and will not be probed and reflected on..."
Christian Lollike
A cynical view might be that the project is an attempt to exploit Breivik's infamy. That certainly seems to be the view of Erik Ulfsby, director of The Norwegian Theatre. He called Lollike's rationale "a bad excuse to draw attention to his project."
Per Balch Soerensen, the father of one of those murdered by Breivik said the play - Manifesto 2083 - is an "acceptance of his (Breivik's) acts."
Lollike is right about one thing - it is important to examin Breivik's ideas. It is important to look beyond the manifesto as Breivik's "creation" to the sources, connections and individuals that helped inspire and motivate him. He may have acted alone, but he was heavily influenced by the "crusading" conspiracy theorists who, however inadvertently, helped place a metaphorical gun in his hand. There was nothing spontaneous about Breivik's actions, the massacre was preceded by meticulous planning and extensive online communications.
A Guardian article titled Anders Breivik's spider web of hate includes maps that show the web pages Breivik linked to and the ways in which those pages link back to Breivik's manifesto:
More Breivik mind maps from the Guardian here.
Breivik's manifesto is heavily derivative with borrowings from some of the better known online "defenders of the gates." Names that come up include the pseudonymous Fjordman and Jihad Watch's Robert Spence. Breivik also seemed impressed with a site called Gates of Vienna run by American Edward May. Other pundits mentioned include Daniel Pipes, Mark Steyn and Melanie Phillips.
In common with a lot of right wing alarmists Breivik blames the "downfall" of Western culture on "cultural Marxists" and "multiculturalism." His obsessions are tediously predictable - vikings, Templars, crusaders... all the epic stuff that fed into his sense of being white, Christian and superior. He says at one point "I am very proud of my Viking heritage. My name, Breivik, is a place name from Northern Norway, dating back to before the Viking era..."
It's the type of mono-minded writing of the cut-and-paste variety that seems eerily familiar. Some pundits have noted a similarity in style between Breivik's manifesto and jihadist instruction manuals.
Some on the right argue that Breivik was a madman and that calling him an "Islamophobe" shouldn't really apply because he went after his "neighbors" and no mosque was targeted. The need to believe that since Breivik was deranged those who he cites as authorities are somehow absolved of any taint of association, however tangential, is understandable. These pundits are keen to put as much mileage between themselves and the atrocity as possible. Labeling Breivik as unhinged is one way of doing that. Unfortunately for them, twisted though Breivik's thinking may be a recent diagnosis determined that he is not insane.
UK Independent:
Psychiatrists who are monitoring Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik say that he is not psychotic, contradicting an earlier diagnosis by experts.
A court filing by the public prosecutor said four experts at Ila Prison in Oslo had not observed any signs that Breivik was insane.
It was also revealed that he was not receiving any medication and the prison had not seen any need to move him to another facility.
His manifesto although derivative was carefully crafted, even compelling reading in parts. A crusader on a mission and it's clear where he drew his inspiration from.
One way to do a dramatic reworking of the manifesto would be to get behind the crusader's mask and justifications to expose the web of hate-driven thinking that was a prime motivator. A theatrical adaptation of Breivik's manifesto just might succeed in doing that. Whether Cafe Teatret's monologue, Manifesto 2083, will come even close is another question.
