Bertolt Brecht [E1] [E2] [I1] [F1] [F2] [S1] [S2] [S3] was born on 10 February 1898 in Augsburg, Germany and one of the country's most influential poets, playwrights and screenwriters. His most famous work was the musical "The Threepenny Opera" (with Kurt Weill), but his dramas such as "Mother Courage and Her Children" or "The Good Person of Sezuan" were equally successful. As he opposed the upcoming Nazi movement, he fled Germany in 1933 and finally emigrated to the United States. After testifying before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1947, he left Hollywood and returned to Europe. He settled down in East Germany, where he founded the famous "Berliner Ensemble" and became the state's intellectual hero. He died on 14 August 1956 in East Berlin.
The following poem is taken from a collection of poems called “Deutsche Marginalien” (1936-1940), therein you can read many short poems against war.[S1] It was addressed to Adolf Hitler, the Chancellor of the Third Reich, who was pushing again his nation toward a second World War. The poem below probably refers to the Great War.
Der Krieg, der kommen wird
Ist nicht der erste. Vor ihm
Waren andere Kriege.
Als der letzte vorüber war
Gab es Sieger und Besiegte.
Bei den Besiegten das niedere Volk
Hungerte. Bei den Siegern
Hungerte das niedere Volk auch.
Exercise n. 1 Choose the right answer:
1.This poem deals with
- war
- meditation
- love
- sadness
2.At the end of each war
- only those defeated suffer
- nobody suffers
- only those who win suffer
- both defeated ones and those who win suffer
3.Humankind
- will be able to stop fighting
- will destroy itself
- will recover from the bad effects of war
- will keep on fighting and suffering
Exercise n. 2 Answer the following questions:
1. The tone of the poem is bitter. Who is not going to suffer hunger?
2. The historical and social setting of nowadays is obviously different from Brecht’s. Nevertheless his challenge is still up to date. Do you think that wars still have this result? Make examples.
