Fruhlings Erwachen and Woyzeck - Essay Example

? Fruhlings Erwachen and Woyzeck The tragic catastrophe in Fruhlings Erwachen arises from the clash between innocent human nature as exemplified in the children and the perverse social order and hypocritical morality of the adults. The play is meant to bring out the dangers that arise from a rigid moral code that is in contrast with reality. The failure of adults and the set educational standards and system to inform youths about moral issues makes them irresponsible and unaware to deal with reality. This in turn leads to the tragic catastrophe. Lust is pervasive in the play and has consumed teens. One girl in the play is beaten by her father yet another one wants to be in her place. The teenagers do not understand the problem not even how to address it. It comes to a scenario where they cannot control themselves. What follows is suicide, rape, beatings, teenage pregnancies, masturbation and abortions among other vices. The play is filled with ignorance, little innocence and the set demands and expectations of the society. Wedekind depicts that family and school in Fruhlings Erwachen are key sites for socialization. The family has been depicted as a foundation of a free society. It is in the family that children learn essential components of socialization, such as voluntary restraint, personal responsibility, and respect for others. The society has set certain taboos that are reflected in the family values. In this manner, parents set certain expectations and demands on their children that reflect the taboos of the society. At home, in the family level, parents also set their own sense of morality that children must abide by and observe. The school is also a site of socialization. It is in school where adolescents socialized with their peers, learnt issues to do with their sexuality and morality. Teachers imparted in them the values of the society and morality as set, demanded and expected by the society. It is in the school that the society conducted teaching of morality collectively to teenagers in the society (Watanabe-O'Kelly, 2000, p. 367). Melchior and ‘der vermummte Herr’ are some of the main characters that feature in Fruhlings Erwachen. They have particular roles in the play. They are introduced as adolescent characters that go through their first experiences with sexual issues and clash with the adult world. Melchior is a smart character who is self-assured and an only teenager that seems to know sexuality and the possible outcomes of it. Herr is pressured to do well in school by his parents. He is confused by sexual stirrings that occur to him for the first time. He does not understand it completely. The two characters present two conflicting views of what happens to teenagers in the society mostly about societal expectations and sexuality issues. the conventional morality comes up in a rather negative manner through Melchior`s encounter with Wendla and her mother`s advice on sexual issues and also through Herr`s failure in exam and his apparent parent`s reaction. In Fruhlings Erwachen, the relationship between social determinants and human freedom is of a contrasting nature. The events that take place in the play are mainly judged or determined by societal taboos, values and norms as opposed to human freedom. Adults have been entangled in to the societal taboos on sexuality forcing them to impart on their children. Parents cannot talk to their children about sexual intercourse. Human freedom is not a choice, the society sets rules, expectations and demands that are to be followed by adults and children through its power structure. On the other hand, human freedom plays an essential role as a determinant of events in Woyzeck. Sexual relationships and tensions that involve Woyzeck and his wife, Marie and between Marie and her secret lover Drum Major. The events that happen are determined by self-choice. Morals are not determined by the society but by personal endeavors and whatever individuals consider morals. This is why Woyzeck defends himself by stating that he could be moral and honorable if he were not poor. This in turn leads to the tragic end where Woyzeck stabs his wife to death. Both Fruhlings Erwachen and Woyzeck are both didactic works. They are informative and intended to teach. Fruhlings Erwachen is didactic in the sense that it teaches that societal rigid taboos, expectations and demands are not always the answer to all problems in the society. They do not work in the same way for different generations. The societal taboos worked for adults but not for teenagers. The fact that they kept sexual facts secret from teenagers caused a tragic end. Teenagers became promiscuous, carried out abortions and other evil deeds. Therefore, the story teaches against rigid societal taboos and against secrecy of vital information. Woyzeck teaches about the dangers of unfaithfulness and the lack of morals in the society where people decide what is moral for them. Marie becomes unfaithful to his husband, which leads to her own death (Watanabe-O'Kelly, 2000, p. 368). In Fruhlings Erwachen, societal authority overpowers individual choices. The society has imposed the idea that the authority of adults is unquestionable, also accompanied by the idea that adolescent authority is of no importance to the society. They should always follow instructions. This is also reflected in the idea that sexuality is not a topic of discussion. However, in Woyzeck individual choices overrun authority. There are no morals to be observed by all. Everyone engages in behavior that they see fit and moral. Even when Woyzeck commits murder, in addressing the public, the doctor and a Judge, the policeman says,"…A good murder, a proper murder, a lovely murder, as lovely a murder as anyone could wish, we've not had a murder like this for years..." (Watanabe-O'Kelly, 2000) In conclusion, Both Fruhlings Erwachen and Woyzeck are works written depicting societies with different views on morality, taboos and family values. They present different sides of the same issue, which is morality. They both end in a tragic manner. They are both didactic pieces that touch on the importance of proper handling of sexual concepts in the society both for adults and teenagers. Reference Watanabe-O'Kelly, H., 2000. The Cambridge history of German literature. London: Cambridge University Press. Read More