A character of this name declares himself to be “a dreamer with whom it is rather difficult to deal” and “the Old Man of the Forest” in a triumphant speech to his uncle Kaspar of Auersperg. For 10 points each:
[10m] Give this name of the title character of a “dramatic prose poem” by Villiers de l’Isle-Adam. Another character with this name encounters mastodons and dinosaurs while on a scientific expedition with his uncle Otto Lidenbrock.
ANSWER: Axel [or Axël] (The second character is from Journey to the Center of the Earth, whose influence critics like André Lebois have argued is reflected in the preponderance of underground scenes in Axël.)
[10e] The pioneering Symbolist drama Axël heavily influenced this Belgian playwright, who wrote of a fatal love triangle involving the grandsons of King Arkël in Pelléas and Mélisande. This author wrote The Blue Bird.
ANSWER: Maurice Maeterlinck [or Maurice Polydore-Marie-Bernard Maeterlinck or Comte Maeterlinck]
[10h] In this other Symbolist drama, an actress impersonates Queen Mary to keep her husband from being appointed Viceroy of England. This absurdly long philosophical play by Paul Claudel centers on Rodrigo and Prouhèze (“proo-EZ”).
ANSWER: The Satin Slipper; or, the worst is not the surest [or Le Soulier de satin; ou, le pire n’est pas toujours sûr]
<Arya Karthik, European Literature>