Analysis of the First Two Acts of Brechts The Caucasian Chalk Circle :: The Caucasian Chalk Circle

Set shortly after World War two, the Prologue commences with twogroups of peasants seated in the ruins of a ovalbumin village, presentis a delegate from the State Reconstruction Commission. We areintroduced to the two parties as they argue the retrieval of a valleythe goat herders (on the right) originally owned the bring in andtherefore believe that as they were there first they should hence keepthe land, whereas the party on the left (the fruit farmers) argue thatthey could put the land to better use by means of superior production.The delegate moderating the debate chooses the fruit farmers. Thisintroduction non only sets the plays structure but excessively possesses manycommunist undertones as in a capitalist government the land would bereturned to its original owner, yet under Communist supervision the consistent explanation is to give the land to whoever will put it tothe best use. In order to celebrate the peaceful resolution to thedispute the peasants on the left brook a vocalizer named Arkadi to singa song entitled The Chalk Circle. The positioning of the two partieson the stage is very effective, as one direct comprehends thepolitical significance. The party on the right representing right-wingbeliefs and that of the left conveying that of the communists, thefact that the delegate selects the Communists to receive the landsuggests the topic of the play and the eventual aftermath of it,resulting in a foreboding and somewhat confusing atmosphere. Theprologue serves as a means for Brecht to present his ideas before theplay essentially commences thus allowing the audience to simulate themoral of the play and be inclined to acknowledge the Communist messagebefore the actual production begins. The singer appears to be symbolicof wisdom end-to-end the play he narrates the fable in a lyrical andpoetic fashion with metaphors that offers insight on the variouscharacters feelings and clarification of the various scenes.The prologue appears historicall y sinless yet the initiation of ActOne presents an entirely different mood the singer causes his storyto be perceived as a fairytale. By utter in verse all realism istaken away and the audience is transported to a fabled world createdby the singer. Though not announced, the Acts having titles emphasizesthe storybook theme. The play commences with the singer seated on thefloor surrounded by a group of listeners (the chorus) in his hand is abook, as he commences his tale he does not read from the book butrather narrates from memory the manner of his recitation makes itclear that he has told his story over and over again.