Genre: German Drama
First Performed: 1913
Written: 1836
Published:1879
Themes: Poverty, Suffering, Madness
He left the work incomplete at his death, but it has been posthumously "finished" by a variety of authors, editors and translators.
Woyzeck has become one of the most performed and influential plays in the German theatre repertory.
Büchner probably began writing the play between June and September 1836.
It remained in a fragmentary state at the time of his early death in 1837.
Woyzeck was first published in 1879 in a heavily reworked version by Karl Emil Franzos.
It was not performed until November 8, 1913 at the Residenztheater, Munich, where it was produced by Max Reinhardt.
Woyzeck deals with the dehumanising effects of doctors and the military on a young man's life. It is often seen as 'working class' tragedy, though it can also be viewed as having another dimension, portraying the 'perennial tragedy of human jealousy'.[1] The play was admired both by the German naturalist Gerhart Hauptmann and, subsequently, by expressionistplaywrights.[2] It is loosely based on the true story of Johann Christian Woyzeck, a Leipzigwigmaker who later became a soldier. In 1821, Woyzeck, in a fit of jealousy, murdered Christiane Woost, a widow with whom he had been living. He was later publicly beheaded.
In editions based on the Franzos version and at its first stage performances, the play and the title character bore the name "Wozzeck": an indication of the near-illegibility of the manuscripts with which Franzos worked. Not only did he have to cope with Büchner's "microscopically small" handwriting, but the pages had faded so badly that they had to be chemically treated to make the text decipherable at all. Franzos was unaware of the real-life basis of the drama, which was first generally disseminated through the appearance in 1921 of a new edition based on the manuscript by Georg Witkowski, which introduced the corrected title Woyzeck.
With his jealous suspicions growing, Woyzeck confronts the drum major, who beats him up and humiliates him. Finally, Woyzeck stabs Marie to death by a pond. While a third act trial is claimed by some, notably A. H. J. Knight and Fritz Bergemann, to have been part of the original conception (what may be the beginning of a courtroom scene survives), the fragment, as left by Büchner, ends with Woyzeck disposing of the knife in the pond and while trying to clean himself of the blood after having dumped the knife in deep waters. Here Franzos inserted the stage direction "ertrinkt" (he drowns), and although this emendation according to Knight "almost amounts to a forgery," most versions employ drowning as an appropriate resolution to the story. [3]Franz Woyzeck, a lowly soldier stationed in a provincial German town, is living with Marie, the mother of his child which is not blessed by the church as it was born out of wedlock. Woyzeck earns extra money for his family by performing menial jobs for the Captain and agreeing to take part in medical experiments conducted by the Doctor. At one of these experiments, the Doctor tells Woyzeck that he must eat nothing but peas. It is obvious that Woyzeck's mental health is breaking down and he begins to experience a series of apocalyptic visions. Meanwhile, Marie grows tired of Woyzeck and turns her attentions to a handsome drum major who, in an ambiguous scene taking place in Marie's bedroom, sleeps with her.
When we first encounter Woyzeck and Andres, Where are they ? In an open field.
What can Woyzeck and Andres see in the distance? The Town.
What are Woyzeck and Andres first pictured doing? Cutting canes in the undergrowth.
Woyzeck’s hallucinations deal with what violent act? Decapitation.
Woyzeck sees a vision in the sky that is reminiscent of what biblical story? That of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Woyzeck hears noises in the bushes, to whom does he attribute them? Freemasons.
What is Woyzeck and Marie’s relationship?
From what vantage point does Marie admire the Drum- Major? Her window.
Why does Marie call Margreth ‘’Bitch’’? Because she points out Marie’s attraction to the Drum-Major.
What is particular about Marie and Woyzeck’s child? He is illegitimate.
Which of the following does Woyzeck forget to do when he arrives at Marie’s? Acknowledge his child.
How does Marie react to Woyzeck’s hallucination? She worries that he will go insane.
Where do Marie and Woyzeck go for entertainment? A fair.
What animal does the showman present inside the booth? A horse.
What animal does the showman present outside the booth? A dancing monkey.
What does the monkey represent? An unspoiled human being.
For what does the Drum- Major see Marie fit? Breeding.
What can the animal supposedly do? Tell time.
How does the Sergeant get Marie’s attention? He produces a watch for the showman to use.
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