The plays context

Question 1

when was Woyzeck published?

Answer 1

1879

Question 2

What was happening at the time Woyzeck was written?

Answer 2

Europe was becoming overpopulated and many people found themselves without work and in extreme poverty. People blamed the industrial growth in 1830 as machinery began taking over their jobs.

Question 3

What areas were worse off during this time of industrial growth?

Answer 3

People in big cities- they lived in cramped, filthy conditions. There was frequent spreading of disease.

Question 4

Which class benefited more and who was left to suffer?

Answer 4

The German middle class grew exponentially, benefiting from the increase in industrial income through architecture, engineering and the newly built railroad. 
The working class did not receive the same opportunities due to lack of education and therefore they were denied access to certain incomes.

Question 5

When was Woyzeck first performed?

Answer 5

1913

Question 6

What was society like in 1913?

Answer 6

• Germany was a rising industrial and military power controlled by Kaiser Wilhelm.
• In Charles Emmerson’s “1913: In search of the World Before the Great War”, he refers to Berlin as the ‘nervous locus of the new German empire, an industrial powerhouse, a capital of science, and a city on parade’
• It was a time of massive development and change. Industrialisation brought an increase in population and Germany had the most powerful steel, chemical and electrical industries in Europe.

Question 7

What movement began to emerge from 1913 onwards?

Answer 7

• 1913 saw the beginning of the movement that is now referenced ‘German Expressionism’.
• Expressionism was initially based on frustration at the pettiness and materialism of Germany under Kaiser Wilhelm. Young intellectuals felt excluded and classless in this proud, materialistic Germany.
• The expressionists were inspired by the possibility of using art to go beyond the limits of human reason.
• ‘Woyzeck’ shows expressionist elements before the period began in Germany in the early 1900’s.
• Brecht was influenced by expressionism, which made way for more militant performance styles in Germany, such as Epic Theatre.

Question 8

How does Woyzeck fit the thematic conventions of the expressionist theatre movement?

Answer 8

• content concerned with industrialisation, war, dreams of subconscious
• message at the centre of the plot ( often involved a search for the truth)
• the message was often told from the viewpoint of the dreamer or hero

Question 9

How does psychology link to Woyzeck?

Answer 9

• In the same year Woyzeck was first performed, Sigmund Freud’s third edition of The Interpretation of Dreams was published.
• Pyschological discoveries were very prominent in Germany in 1913.
• There are obvious themes of psychology and experiments in the play- Woyzeck exhibits unusual behaviour according to his superiors, and is therefore recruited to serve as a research subject in an experiment. He is turned into a case, which can be monitored and studied so as to record the genesis of a crime.