Yet Sudermann always lacked the sincerity and earnestness of Brieux, for he considered the play primarily as a means to tell a story in as effective a manner as possible. Brieux's purpose has always been to expose a state of affairs and argue about it. As a consequence, Sudermann never fell into the error of allowing the thesis to overshadow the play. As a matter of fact, he became with years less and less didactic, and took good care that his later plays should be free of encumbering theses, so that now his desire to please the unthinking public has brought him near to artistic bankruptcy.
Sudermann is clearly a man whose best work is over. "Honor" led dramatists to treat the theater more seriously, it taught them to construct plays with a story, and showed that a thesis play is not necessarily a "conversation"; his attention to detail instilled a desire for greater truthfulness in the delineation of character. "Honor" and its immediate successors present a series of pictures of lower, middle, and upper class German society of the day which are and will in the future prove of great value for the student of the times and of the drama.
BARRETT H. CLARK.
| PERSONS REPRESENTED. | ||
|---|---|---|
| Councillor of Commerce Muhlingk | ||
| Amalie | His wife | |
| Kurt | } | Their children |
| Leonore | ||
| Lothar Brandt | ||
| Hugo Stengel | ||
| Count Von Trast-Saarberg | ||
| Robert Heinecke | ||
| Old Heinecke | ||
| His Wife | ||
| Auguste | } | Their daughters |
| Alma | ||
| Michalski | A joiner, Auguste's husband | |
| Frau Hebenstreit TheGardener's wife | } | In Muhlingk's service |
| Wilhelm A servant | ||
| Johann Coachman | ||
| Indian Servant of Count Trast | ||
The action takes place in the vicinity of Charlottenburg, now a part of Berlin.
HONOR
ACT I.
Scene:--A room in Heinecke's house--The cheap, lower middle-class decorations and tawdry furnishings are in sharp contrast with two silk-upholstered arm-chairs, which are covered during the first part of the act--and a large gilded mirror. A chest of drawers and several shelves are covered with various worn articles of household use. To the right of the spectator, below the traditional German sofa, is a table with a coffee service. To the left is a long, rough-hewn work-table; upon it are pieces of cardboard, a pile of cardboard boxes and a large paste-pot. Beside the table is a workstool.
(Frau Heinecke is busily engaged in cleaning the room. Frau Hebenstreit stands on the threshold of the door to the left.)