Editing Eleonora Duse (section)

== Acting philosophy ==
[[File:Eleanora Duse.jpg|thumb|left|Eleonora Duse, early in her acting career]]
Duse was cryptic regarding her acting style. She claimed not to have a technique of any sort, and scorned at efforts to put her art into a science. What is known is that she had a highly heterodox, almost religious philosophy of acting, seeking to "eliminate the self" and become the characters she portrayed. It is a common misconception that her acting was purely intuitive and spontaneous, in reality she labored over her craft.

Duse wore little makeup<ref name="EB1911"/> but "made herself up morally. In other words, she allowed the inner compulsions, grief and joys of her characters to use her body as their medium for expression, often to the detriment of her health."

According to the [[Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition|''Encyclopædia Britannica'']], "her art depended on intense naturalness rather than stage effect, sympathetic force and poignant intellectuality rather than the theatrical emotionalism of the French tradition."<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=y|wstitle=Duse, Eleanora|volume=8|page=712}}</ref>

Over the course of her career, Duse became well-known and respected for her assistance to young actors and actresses during the early stages of their careers. Among diverse artistic geniuses who acknowledged being inspired by Duse are [[modern dance]] pioneer [[Martha Graham]] and [[Imagism|Imagist]] poetry pioneer [[Amy Lowell]]. She was great friends with actress [[Eva Le Gallienne]], who wrote her biography.