Draußen vor der Tür
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Draußen vor der Tür (The Man Outside literally Outside, in Front of the Door) is a play written by Wolfgang Borchert. It made its debut on German radio on 13 February 1947.
Draußen vor der Tür describes the hopelessness of a soldier, Beckmann, who returns from Stalingrad only to find that he has also lost his wife and home, as well as his illusions and beliefs. He finds every door he comes to closed, even the Elbe rejects his suicide, washing him up on shore. The play ends with what can be assumed to be Beckman's death.
Due to its release during the sensitive immediate postwar period, Borchert subtitled his play "a play that no theatre wants to perform and no audience wants to see." Despite this, the first radio broadcast (February 1947) was very successful. The first theatrical showing of Draußen vor der Tür was the day after Borchert's death, November 21, 1947.
The play consists of five scenes in one act. It makes use of Brechtian techniques such as the Verfremdungseffekt (distancing technique) to disorient and engage its audience.
Contents |
[edit] Characters
This list is translated from the original text
- Beckmann, one of many
- His Wife, who forgot him
- Her Husband, who she loves
- A Woman, whose husband came home with one leg
- Her Husband, who dreamed of her for 1000 nights
- A Commander, who is very merry
- His Wife, who is cold in her warm Parlour
- The Daughter, just over for dinner
- Her Courageous Husband
- A Cabaret Director, with daring goals, but a weak heart
- Frau Kramer, Who is no longer Frau Kramer, which is horrible.
- The Old Man, who no one believes in anymore (God)
- The Undertaker with a case of the hiccups (Death)
- A Street Sweeper, who is nothing (Also Death)
- The Other, who everyone knows (Conscience)
- The Elbe (Life)
Folowing the character list, there is a short (2 paragraph) introduction to the play (similar to the original dramatic use of a prologue). These paragraphs explain that "A man" (Beckmann) comes home to Germany, but he has no home to go to. At first, he feels distanced from his life, thinking it is a film. But slowly he realizes that it is an "all-day film".
[edit] Prologue
The play begins with a fat undertaker with hiccups examining a body by the river. The body does not appear to belong to a soldier, although he is wearing soldier's clothes. After asking himself questions about the body, the undertaker makes the nihilistic claim that this death changes nothing. The old man (God) comes into the scene, weeping. God explains that he is weeping because his children are killing each other. Since no one believes in him anymore, he can do nothing to stop them. The undertaker agrees that it is very tragic.
Once the undertaker reveals his identity (Death), God tells him that he "has it good." Death is the new God; people believe in death. However, God remembers a skinny, sickly death. Death explains that he has grown fat during the last century, due to all the "business" from the war. His hiccups are also a result of his over-eating. The scene ends with Death telling God to take a rest, for emotional rehabilitation.
[edit] The Dream
Beckmann awakes (after a suicide attempt) to find himself floating in the Elbe. The Elbe turns out to be a very motherly figure, not the romantic "type Ophelia" Beckmann expected. Once she discovers that Beckmann is bent on suicide, she lashes out, patronizing him. She calls him faint-hearted and explains that she will not let him kill himself. The dream ends with him washing up on the sand.
[edit] Scene I
The Other intrudces himself to Beckmann. He describes himself as the "yes-sayer" among other things. Beckmann becomes annoyed with him, telling him to leave. After a short time, A girl appears, offering to help Beckmann, by giving him new, dry clothes and some warmth. She explains that she's only helping him because he's wet and cold; later, she admits that she also was helping him because he looks so sad and innocent.
[edit] Scene II
Beckmann goes with the girl to her house, where he finds out that her husband (who is apparently very tall) was a soldier, in Stalingrad (like Beckmann). The girl also laughs at Beckmann's gasmask goggles, which he continues to wear, because it allows him to see the world as grey and blurry. Her husband comes home, uising crutches to walk as he has only one leg. It turns out it was Beckmann's fault that he lost his leg. Beckmann attempts to go back to the Elbe to finally kill himself, but the Other convinces him not to. Instead he is going to visit someone "who lives in a warm house."
[edit] Scene III
The third scene marks the emotional climax of the play. Beckmann appears at his old Colonel's house just in time for dinner. He immediately places blame with the Colonel, saying that for 3 years he ate caviar while the men suffered. Beckmann then gives a detailed description of the nightmare which keeps him from getting rest.
In the dream, a fat man (presumably the same character as the undertaker) plays a Military March on a very large xylophone made out of human bones. The man is running back and forth, sweating blood. The blood gives him red stripes down the side of his shirt (like that of a General in the German Army.) All the dead from throuought history is there, and Beckmann is forced to stand there among them, under a sickly, discolored moon. And they are all chanting "Beckmann. Sargent Beckmann."
Following the dream, Beckmann tells the Colonel that he has come to give the Colonel the responsibility for the eleven men lost under his command. He claims that if he can sleep with the thousands, eleven more will not change anything for him. The Colonel finds this whole story too strange to believe, and considers (or pretends to consider) it a joke. He starts laughing, telling Beckmann he needs to take it to a theatre, because it will be an absolute hit. Beckmann leaves after breaking a light, taking with him a bottle of rum, and some stale bread. He decides to take his story to a director.
[edit] Scene IV
The scene begins with a monologue from the director about the importance of Truth in art. He claims what art needs is someone new and young to speak the truth. Beckmann begins expressing his ideas, and the Director seems to change his mind. He claims Beckmann needs to make a name for himself, and come back in a couple of years.
Finally, he agrees to hear Beckmann's song. After he sings his song (a stylized summary of the play up to this point), the Director begins explaining that it is too dark and foreboding. People want something uplifting. Beckmann counters that it is the Truth. The director contradicts him, saying that "Truth has nothing to do with art." Beckmann reproaches him, and leaves the theatre. He once again gets in an argument with the Other, who ends the argument by telling him to go home. Beckman remembers his parents and expresses excitement for the first (and only) time in the play.
[edit] Scene V
Upon arriving at his house, Beckmann notices the sign has changed. A woman he has never seen (Frau Kramer) answers the door. He finds out that his parents no longer live in their house. Instead, the are in a graveyard, having killed themselves during the post-war denazification. Beckmann forces the door closed and leaves, once again to kill himself.
The Other comes, and the longest dialog of the ensues. The nihilistic point of the play comes across during this dialog: There is always suffering in the world; one cannot do anything to change the suffering; and the world will not care if you are suffering. These are Beckmann's reasons for suicide. As evidence for this, he outlines a hypothetical play (which follows the books itself):
- 1st Act: Grey skies. Man is beginning to ache.
- 2nd Act: Grey skies. Man continues to ache.
- 3rd Act: It is getting dark and it is raining.
- 4th Act: It is darker. Man sees a door.
- 5th Act: It is night, deep night, and the door is closed. Man is standing outside. Outside on the doorstep. Man is standing on the Elbe., on the Seine, on the Volga, on the Mississippi. Man stands there crazed, frozen, hungry, and damn tired. And then there is a splash, and the ripples make neat little circles, and then the curtains drop.
The Other counters that while there is always suffering in the world, there is always hope, and there is always happiness. Dwelling on the suffering cannot accomplish anything; you can make things better by focusing on the good; as he says, "Do you fear the darkness between two lamp-posts?"
