Die Räuber

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Die Räuber (The Robbers) is playwright Friedrich Schiller's first drama. It is divided into five acts which consist of two to five scenes each. It was written toward the end of the Sturm und Drang movement, was published in 1781, and premiered on January 13, 1782 in Mannheim, Germany.

The plot centers around a conflict between two aristocratic brothers, Karl and Franz Moor. The charismatic but rebellious student Karl, is deeply loved by his father, while the younger brother, Franz, depicts himself from the outset of the play as a coldly calculating villain who plots to wrest the paternal inheritance away from Karl. As the play unfolds, however, the motives for Franz's villainy prove to be complex, as does the seeming heroism of his "innocent" elder brother. Schiller raises many disturbing issues in his first play—a play that astounded the Mannheim audience and made the author an overnight sensation. He questions the dividing lines between personal liberty and the law as well as probing into the modern psychology of power, the nature of masculinity, and the essential difference between good and evil. Verdi's opera of the same name, I masnadieri, is based on Schiller's work.

Contents 1 Contents 1.1 Act I 1.1.1 Scene 1 1.1.2 Scene 2 1.1.3 Scene 3 1.2 Act II 1.2.1 Scene 1 1.2.2 Scene 2 1.2.3 Scene 3 1.3 Act III 1.3.1 Scene 1 1.3.2 Scene 2 1.4 Act IV 1.4.1 Scene 1 1.4.2 Scene 2 1.4.3 Scene 3 1.4.4 Scene 4 1.4.5 Scene 5 1.5 Act V 1.5.1 Scene 1 1.5.2 Scene 2 2 Dramatis personae 2.1 Maximilian, Count Von Moor 2.2 Charles, his son 2.3 Francis, his son 2.4 Amelia Von Edelreich, his niece 2.5 Spiegelberger 2.6 Schweitzer 2.7 Grimm 2.8 Razmann 2.9 Schufterle 2.10 Roller 2.11 Kosinsky 2.12 Schwartz 2.13 Hermann 2.14 Daniel 2.15 Pastor Moser 2.16 Father Dominic 2.17 Band of robbers, servants, etc. 3 Film adaptations

[edit] Contents

[edit] Act I

[edit] Scene 1

"Quae medicamenta non sanant, ferrum sanat; quae ferrum non sanat, ignis sanat."

(That which medicine does not cure, iron cures; that which iron does not cure, fire cures.)

—Hippocrates

The setting is Germany. Period of action about two years.

The castle of the von Moors in Franconias, a thesis of the literature scientist Werner von Stransky Stranka Stransky-Stranka-Greifenfels from the year 1998 in the today's Middle Franconian municipality Muhr at the lake is appropriate.

• Place: Franconia
• Persons: Franz, Old Moorland
  

Old Moor has two sons. Franz, the younger, lives at home, while Karl, the eldest, is a none too serious student. Franz, always envious of his older brother's status as favorite, brings his father a falsified letter bearing the news that Karl is being sought by the authorities for participating in a duel in which he killed a man. Franz uses this "news" to convince his father to disown his favorite son. Franz, afraid that his father might change his mind, sends a letter to Karl himself, telling him this has happened.

[edit] Scene 2

• Place: A tavern on the frontiers of Saxony
• Persons: Karl, Spiegelberg, Schweizer, Grimm, Roller, Schufterle, Razman, Schwarz
  

Meanwhile, Karl is off in a tavern, raging at Christianity—he labels it as hypocritical—and at the state's narrow laws. Spiegelberg, the wildest among Karl's friends, proposes organizing a gang of robbers so that he can become his own master. Karl receives his father's letter, which was actually written by Franz. Hearing that his father has disowned him shakes Karl deeply. In his anguish, he lets his friends convince him to become captain of Spiegelberg's proposed criminal gang. They swear one another loyalty unto death. Spiegelberg, however, is furious that he was not selected to be the gang's leader.

[edit] Scene 3

• Place: Moor's Castle. Amalia's chamber.
• Persons: Franz, Amalia
  

Franz tries to ruin Karl's relationship with Amalia, who clearly dislikes Franz. He tells her that Karl pawned the ring she gave him. Amalia says that Karl would never do such a thing. Finally, Franz claims that Karl asked him to take care of Amalia if he died. This convinces Amalia that Franz is a liar, as Karl had told her to take no other lover if he died. She throws him out.

[edit] Act II

[edit] Scene 1

• Place: Francis von Moor in his chamber—-in meditation.
• Characters: Franz, Hermann
  

Franz pursues his plan to kill his father inobtrusively. He tells Hermann—ostensibly an illegitimate son of Count Moor—to tell Count Moor that Karl is dead, and promises Hermann Amalia's hand in marriage if he does so.

[edit] Scene 2

• Place: Count Moor's bedchamber.
• Characters: Amalia, Daniel Romagna, Franz, Hermann, Count Moor

Count Moor receives news from Hermann of the alleged death of his oldest son, blames himself, and has a nervous breakdown, to the point where Amalia and Franz believe that he is dead. Franz cheers the apparent death of his father. Franz ascends to the throne and starts to consider what policies to pursue. It is clear that he is going to become a tyrant.

[edit] Scene 3

• Place: The Bohemian woods.
• Characters: Spiegelberg, Razmann, Schwartz, Karl, Schweizer, Scooter, Grimm, Schufterle, band of robbers

Scooter is saved from the gallows, and the whole city is burned down in revenge for having sentenced him. Karl is dismayed about the misdeeds committed by his men, such as the murder of a child committed by Schufterle. Later, soldiers encircle the forest, into which the gang of robbers retreats. A priest is sent to offer the robbers the chance to surrender and be pardoned if they hand over Karl, but his offer is refused. Karl boasts even to the priest about what he has done, saying that it was murder of apparently harmful and hypocritical elements in society. The robbers stand to fight against the soldiers even though they know they have no chance.

[edit] Act III

[edit] Scene 1

• Place: Amelia in the garden, playing the guitar.
• Characters: Franz, Amalia, Hermann
  

Franz courts Amalia, who is Karl's mistress. When she refuses him, calling him a murderer, he tries to force her to marry; Amalia tells him that she'd sooner go into a cloister. She boxes his ears, and grabbing his dagger, succeeds in driving him away. Just as she decides on a cloistered life, Hermann shows up and lets her know that both Karl and the old count are still alive.

[edit] Scene 2

• Place: In the country, near the Danube
• Persons: Karl, Schwarz, Grimm, Schweizer, Kosinsky
  

The robbers in the forest have won the fight against the soldiers. They gather after the victory at a river in the forest, and lament their one casualty, Scooter. There they meet Kosinsky, who wants to join them. At first, Karl opposes this, but Kosinsky convinces him by telling him that they share a similar fate. By coincidence, Kosinky's true love is also named Amalia. Karl is reminded thereby of his home, and he leaves with the robbers to return to Amalia.

[edit] Act IV

[edit] Scene 1

• Place: Rural scenery in the neighborhood of Charles Von Moor's castle.
• Persons: Karl, Kosinsky
  

Karl arrives home and kisses his native soil. Memories of his childhood and youth are awakened at the sight of this familiar environment. He enters the castle in disguise as Count Brand.

[edit] Scene 2

• Place: Gallery in the castle
• Persons: Karl, Amalia, Franz, Daniel
  

Amalia accompanies the disguised Karl into the gallery of ancestors, but does not recognize him. Franz, however, recognizes Karl and demands that the old servant Daniel kill Karl. Daniel, however, who is deeply religious, doesn't want to burden his conscience with murder.

[edit] Scene 3

• Place: Another room in the castle.
• Persons: Karl, Daniel, Kosinsky
  

Karl learns from Daniel about the plotting of his brother. He would like to see Amalia again, and then intends to leave the lock without a thought of revenge.

[edit] Scene 4

• Place: In the Moor castle, garden
• Persons: Karl meets Amalia in the garden of the castle. Only when the two sing the Hektorlied and Karl prematurely breaks off and runs away, does he reveal his true identity.

[edit] Scene 5

• Place: A neighboring forest. Night. An old ruined castle in the centre of the scene.
• Persons: The robbers, Schweizer, Razmann, Spiegelberg, Schwartz, Grimm, Karl, Kosinsky, Hermann, Old Moorland

When the band is once again together, Spiegelberg is unsure of the position of the captain; he expresses his wish to lead the group himself, and Schweizer strangles him for that. Later at night, Hermann arrives in the forest to bring his father food. Karl sees this, recognizes his father, and frees him, although he himself is not recognized. He tells Schweizer to get Franz out of the castle and thereby to avenge his father.

[edit] Act V

[edit] Scene 1

• Place: A vista of rooms. Dark night.
• Persons: Daniel, Franz, serving, minister Moser, people Schweizer, Grimm, Schwartz
  

Franz has a nightmare of the recent court and gets death panic. When he realizes he can still hear Schweizer's voice, he strangles himself. Schweizer, who can no longer fulfill the order to bring Franz alive, shoots himself.

[edit] Scene 2

• Place: A neighboring forest. Night. An old ruined castle in the centre of the scene.
• Persons: The robbers, Razmann, Schwartz, Grimm, Karl, Amalia, Kosinsky, Old Moorland.

The robbers return with Amalia to Karl. Karl reveals the fact that he is a robber captain whereupon Old Moorland dies of shock. Amalia wants to live with Karl, but he is bound by his oath given to the robbers. He does not want to continue living and shoots Amalia. Karl turns himself in.

[edit] Dramatis personae

[edit] Maximilian, Count Von Moor

Maximilian Moorland is the beloved father of Karl and Franz (also "Old Moorland" mentioned). He is a good person at heart, but is weak and has failed to educate his two sons; he is thus responsible for the perversion of the Moorland family. Because of this failure, family values are purged and invalid. Thus the Moorland family is an analogy of the political State, a typical political criticism of Schiller's; the prince as a national father is particularly condemned.

[edit] Charles, his son

Karl Moorland is a self-confident idealist. He is good-looking and well-liked by all. His emotions and impulses are rather feminine in nature (his feelings of deep love for Amalia, his general melancholy). Together with his gang of robbers, he fights against the unfairness and corruption of the feudal authorities, and in doing so, also becomes a disgraceful criminal and murderous arsonist, while believing his father to have banished him from his home after supposedly disgracing their family name. He loves for Amalia and his offended homeland believes itself. This despair leads to the urge to express and discover new goals and directions, those his ideals and dreams of heroes correspond themselves. He offends against laws, for as he says, the end justifies the means. He develops a close connection with his robbers, especially to Scooter and Schweizer, but recognizes in the process the unscrupulousness and dishonor of Spiegelberg and his other associates. He is not an honest robber, that its Schandtaten admits as it to recognize must that his father it would not defame to forgive and also Amalie such a Mordbuben like him, develops a deep internal twist, since he swore himself to his robbers at the same time from them to never separate and Schweizer and Scooter died only for him. Despaired if he calls the blood tariff in, father and loving kills and decides to turn himself in to the law, which shows that he is good in the reason of the heart.

[edit] Francis, his son

Franz Moorland is an egoistic rationalist and materialist. He is feelingless and cold. He is rather ugly and unpopular, as opposed to his brother Karl, but he is quite intelligent and cunning. He is not purely bad, but his father loved only his brother and not him. From this, he developed a lack of feeling, which made the "sinful world" intolerable to his passions, and he fixed himself due to this on a rationalistic kind of thinking. In the character of Franz, Schiller demonstrates what could happen if the moral way of thinking were finally replaced by the purely rational. Franz strives for power in order to be able to implement his interests.

[edit] Amelia Von Edelreich, his niece

Amelia is Karl's love. To its relationship see sucked. "Hektorlied". you is a faithful and reliable person. But so it is also again not reliable: Their uncertainty tells itself, when it believes Franz first, as it tries it against Karl to apply (see ring, sword).

[edit] Spiegelberger

Spiegelberger acts as an opponent of Karl Moorland—contrary to this, it is propelled from the crime as such; in addition, it was appointed on Karl's robber captain posts, there it, against its expectation, not even the robber captain is envious. It makes Karl bad in addition with the robbers, in order to become robber captain, which does not succeed to it however.

[edit] Schweitzer

[edit] Grimm

[edit] Razmann

Libertines, afterwards banditti.

[edit] Schufterle

[edit] Roller

[edit] Kosinsky

[edit] Schwartz

[edit] Hermann

The natural son of a Nobleman.

[edit] Daniel

An old servant of Count von Moor.

[edit] Pastor Moser

[edit] Father Dominic

A Monk.

[edit] Band of robbers, servants, etc.

[edit] Film adaptations

The Robbers (1913) directed by J. Searle Dawley and Walter Edwin