Written literature tends to change depending on the ideas and inspiration at a certain period. Each evolution becomes better than the previous one. However, some borrow inspirations from previous ages. The Romantic and Enlightenment period took place between the 1800 and 1848 in Germany. It was a battle between authors who used one of the two traits in writing their works. Each tends to believe the other one’s idea is poor while others looked for a way to fuse both thoughts and entities. Such accomplishments are present in the Woyzeck, a play written by Georg Buchner. The play characterizes of love, desist and death. Buchner’s works fused these two entities into one context as a way of telling his version of stories.
Enlightenment entails the use of science and rationality to explain the natural world occurrences and human behavior patterns. The study of these elements might help in improving the human society. Woyzeck is a poor man working in the military as a barber (Buchner 107). He takes time to make firm decisions about his life regardless of the proof that sits in front of him. He has series of hallucinations, dreams, and advice from people on how he should command everything around especially his wife (Buchner 109). Marie, Woyzeck’s wife, falls in love with Drum-Major and their secret is known by people. An officer mocks Woyzeck by saying that he has no virtue or morals, which he defends himself by saying that if he were rich, none of the accusations would hold ground (Buchner 113).
The hallucinations and dreams act as a sign towards Woyzeck that all is not well in his house. They act as enlightenment traits, which try to send him a message, but he takes matters lightly. The relationship between Marie and Drum-Major continues to grow even in front of Woyzeck when he visits the bar (Buchner 122). His actions are irrational and inhuman since it is quite odd for a husband to look at his wife with another man. However, the life of Woyzeck is like a guinea pig as illustrated by the doctor when he invited him to class. Indeed, Woyzeck life, actions, and decisions can help one learn on how to do things differently. Apart from that, it enables one to question some of life’s choices and their effects on people.
Romantic entails the description of human behaviors and world occurrences through feelings and emotions. These entities are present in the relationship between Woyzeck, his wife, and Drum Major. The storyline helps uncover the emotions and abrupt decisions people make when they are hurt. The death of Marie acts as an example of sweet love turn to bitterness and anger (Buchner 131). Woyzeck kills Marie after he goes through emotional distress, which was quite late, as people knew about the romance between his wife and Drum Major. Marie represents the women who tend to fall for men outside their marriages. Her story acts as a teaching towards the consequences of going behind your husband’s back and starts another relationship. In a way, she knew that Woyzeck might beat her or kill her after he knew of her relationship with Drum-Major (Buchner 126). Drum-Major stands out as the alpha male in the play as nothing occurs to him even after Woyzeck finds about the relationship. What shields him is the fact that he has more money and power than Woyzeck.
In conclusion, the enlightenment and romantic traits tell the story of Woyzeck. The plot composes of both entities though one can choose to look at one perspective. Such combinations are rare to find in the written literature that existed between 1800 and 1848.
Work Cited
Buchner, Georg. Danton's Death, Leonce, and Lena, Woyzeck. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print.
