The Collected Poems of Bertolt Brecht
Page 84
A ballad for Article 218
[Ballade zu Paragraph 218]
BFA 14, 40; 1929; P1931; D.C.
Article 218 of the Weimar Republic’s Constitution declared abortion to be a criminal act, with severe penalties. Brecht’s poem contributes to campaigns in the late 1920s to repeal the law or at least make it less harsh. See also his poems on Articles 1, 111, and 115 (below).
Chorus
[Chor]
BFA 14, 41; 1929; P1993; D.C.
This and the following four texts are from Brecht’s unfinished play Der Brotladen (The Bread Store).
The way down!
[Der Weg nach unten!]
BFA 14, 42; 1929; P1967; D.C.
The jobless
[Die Als]
BFA 14, 43; 1929; P1993; D.C.
I saw a bowl of soup once . . .
[Einst sah ich eine Suppe]
BFA 14, 43; 1929; P1967; D.C.
You coming from just having eaten . . .
[Ihr, die ihr eben ]
BFA 14, 45; 1929; P1967; D.C.
Everything new is better than everything old
[Alles Neue ist besser als alles Alte]
BFA 14, 46; c. 1929; P1965; D.C.
I don’t know . . .
[Ich weiss nicht: ich plage mich doch]
BFA 14, 48; c. 1929; P1982; D.C.
After the tune of ‘Oh my Baby’
[Nach ‘Oh my Baby’]
BFA 14, 48; c. 1929; P1993; D.C.
This poem, which Brecht and Elisabeth Hauptmann wrote together, seems to derive from a contemporary popular song.
Song: Nothing will come of nothing
[Der aus nichts wird nichts—Song]
BFA 14, 52; 1929/30; P1967; D.C.
These verses and those following come from the projected play Aus nichts wird nichts (Nothing Will Come of Nothing), which Brecht worked on with Elisabeth Hauptmann.
And that is good
[Gut so]
BFA 14, 53; 1929/30; P1967; D.C.
From the unfinished play Untergang des Egoisten Johann Fatzer (Downfall of the Egotist Johann Fatzer).
Here stood the ancient Moors . . .
[Hier standen die alten Mauren]
BFA 14, 63; 1930; P1965; D.C.
Wait till the tree is mighty . . .
[Warte, bis der Stamm mächtig ist]
BFA 14, 65; 1930; P1982; D.C.
Advice to Tretyakov to get well
[Rat an Tretjakow, gesund zu werden]
BFA 14, 66; 1930; P1964; D.C.
Brecht got to know and admire Sergei Tretyakov’s writings as they were translated into German in the late 1920s. Then, during Tretyakov’s six-month stay in Berlin in 1931 and Brecht’s visits to Moscow in 1932 and 1935, they became close friends. On a charge of espionage—that is, dealings with foreign writers—Tretyakov was sentenced to death in September 1937. He is said to have preempted the execution by killing himself, as an act of defiance.
Willingly take . . .
[Nimm willig]
BFA 14, 66; 1930; P1982; D.C.
Below those two stanzas Brecht began, and abruptly broke off, these variant lines:
Here is your bed. However
Coming here in the morning from
A huddle of other sleepers you will be
More welcome. We are pleased
To see you cutting up our bread with a strange knife. Among your words
Those rejoice us that are unusual here, insofar as they
Let him have no excuse . . .
[Keine Entschuldigung weiss]
BFA 14, 67; 1930; P1932; D.C.
In the same notebook Brecht then drafted these lines:
The net
With one torn mesh
No longer serves
The fish swim through
At that place
As though there were no net
It catches nothing
Suddenly all of it
Is useless.
With slight alterations Brecht took these lines, together with strophes 1 and 3 of the poem above, into Scene 9 of his play Saint Joan of the Stockyards.
Do not too readily fall for the plan . . .
[Nicht allzusehr verfallt dem Plan]
BFA 14, 67; 1930; P1982; D.C.
When winter comes . . .
[Kommt der Winter]
BFA 14, 90; 1930; P1993; D.C.
Article 1
[Paragraph 1]
BFA 14, 91; 1930; P1951; D.C.
This and the following two poems make part of a sequence Brecht planned on the Weimar Constitution of 1919. One impossibility in the translation: Staatsgewalt means “power (or authority) of the state,” but the word Gewalt on its own most often means “violence.” In this poem the two senses fuse.
Article 115
[Artikel 115]
BFA 14, 92; 1930; P1931; D.C.
Article 115 reads: “Every German citizen shall enjoy a complete and inviolable freedom in his own home. Exceptions are permitted only in accordance with the rule of law.”
Article 111
[Paragraph 111]
BFA 14, 93; 1930; P1951; D.C.
The article in question reads: “Every German citizen shall enjoy freedom of movement throughout the Reich. All have the right to dwell and to settle wherever they please, to acquire land and to pursue any trade. Restrictions on these rights may be made only in accordance with the rule of law.”
Again and again . . .
[Immer wieder]
BFA 14, 96; 1930; P1967; D.C.
Oh they are the nicest people . . .
[Ach, es sind die besten Leute]
BFA 14, 95; 1930; P1932; D.C.
Brecht wrote this song (to the tune of ‘Mack the Knife’), and the two following, for the synopsis of an unrealized film of The Threepenny Opera. Later (in 1934) he included them in his Threepenny Novel instead.
Song for the foundation of the National Deposit Bank
[Gründungssong der National Deposit Bank]
BFA 14, 96; 1930; P1932; D.C.
So the happy end has happened . . .
[Und so kommt zum guten Ende]
BFA 14, 101; 1930; P1932; D.C.
Ballad of the man on the street
[Ballade vom Mann an der Strasse]
BFA 14, 95; 1930; P1982; D.C.
Sonnet on the new edition of François Villon
[Sonett zur Neuausgabe des François Villon]
BFA 14, 98; 1930; P1930; D.C.
The “new edition” is a reissue of Karl Ammer’s translations of Villon, first published in 1907. Brecht borrowed a good deal from Ammer for his Threepenny Opera and was publicly accused of plagiarism for doing so.
And so that a moon would light him while he croaked . . .
[Und damit sein Verrecken]
BFA 14, 101; 1930; P1967; D.C.
Here is the river . . .
[Hier ist der Fluss]
BFA 14, 108; c. 1930; P1937; D.C.
This poem and the next first appeared in a Moscow publication of Brecht’s The Exception and the Rule.
Song of the courts
[Lied von den Gerichten]
BFA 14, 109; c. 1930; P1937; D.C.
The unemployment, gentlemen . . .
[Meine Herrn, das ist sehr schwierig]
BFA 14, 110; c. 1930; P1967; D.C.
How can the voice . . .
[Wie soll die Stimme]
BFA 14, 112; c. 1930–31; P1967; D.C.
Brecht seems to have intended the lines for his play Saint Joan of the Stockyards, but never included them.
1st Epistle to the Hettenbachers
[1. Brief an die Hettenbacher]
BFA 14, 113; c. 1930–31; P1993; D.C.
The addressees in this and the next piece are the inhabitants of Hettenbach, a working-class district of Brecht’s hometown, Augsburg. But what Brecht means by addressing epistles to them is unclear. Of a ‘3rd Epistle,’ too little was done to be worth translating, and if any others were writte
n they have not survived.
4th Epistle to the Hettenbachers
[4. Brief an die Hettenbacher]
BFA 14, 113; c. 1930–31; P1993; D.C.
The significance of the words “Uhme Empe” is unclear. The three figures in the third paragraph seem to be Martin Luther, Buddha, and Christ.
SONGS AND VERSES FROM KUHLE WAMPE AND THE MOTHER
Solidarity Song
[Solidaritätslied. Sonntagslied der freien Jugend]
BFA 14, 116; 1931; P1931; D.C.
This and the next four were all written for the film Kuhle Wampe. Kuhle Wampe, on the Müggelsee, outside Berlin, was a popular resort and campsite in the 1920s and 1930s. As things got worse, large numbers of the unemployed and the homeless moved out there and lived in tents. The film’s subtitle is Wem gehört die Welt?—Who does the world belong to? This particular song, in various adaptations and contexts and generally with Hanns Eisler’s music, was often published and performed in Brecht’s lifetime, and became something of an anthem for the left.
Ballad of the drop in the ocean
[Ballade vom Tropfen auf den heissen Stein]
BFA 14, 120; 1931; P1961; D.C.
Written for Kuhle Wampe, but then not used.
We wanted a place to live . . .
[Wir wollten ein Obdach haben]
BFA 14, 126; 1931; P1961; D.C.
Written for Kuhle Wampe, set to music by Eisler, but then omitted for fear the whole film might be banned on its account.
Spring
[Das Frühjahr kommt]
BFA 14, 127; 1931; P1932; D.C.
Brecht wrote the poem while Kuhle Wampe was being shot. Eisler set it as ‘Der Spaziergang’ (‘The walk’), and in that slightly different version it was sung as a commentary on the two characters Anni and Fritz as they walk together in the woods.
Coming from the crowded tenements . . .
[Kommend von den vollen Hinterhäusern]
BFA 14, 130; 1931; P1967; D.C.
Set by Eisler, a version of this poem is sung by Ernst Busch (playing Fritz) in Kuhle Wampe.
The Party is in danger
[Die Partei ist in Gefahr]
BFA 14, 122; 1931; P1932; D.C.
Brecht wrote this and the following six texts for his play The Mother.
In praise of the Third Thing
[Das Lob der dritten Sache]
BFA 14, 122; 1931; P1933; D.C.
Spoken by the Mother herself, Pelagea Vlassova.
Now the war is at its bloodiest . . .
[Jetzt ist der Krieg am blutigsten]
BFA 14, 123; 1931; P1993; D.C.
Written for The Mother but then not included. The poem’s original title was ‘In praise of the stab in the back.’
Song
[Lied]
BFA 14, 124; 1931; P1933; D.C.
Around 1940, in exile, Brecht wrote another version of this song, addressing the situation in Hitler’s Germany. Here is the first stanza (BFA 14, 524):
They have book burnings and propaganda campaigns
They have concentration camps and race departments
(Not to mention their firework displays!)
They have governors and councillors
Well-paid men who will stop at nothing.
And all for what?
Do they really believe that will subdue cold and hunger?
Song of the coat and the patch
[Das Lied vom Flicken und vom Rock]
BFA 14, 125; 1931; P1938; D.C.
This song, at first called ‘In condemnation of reformism,’ was directed against the politics of the SPD, which, according to Brecht, amounted to “You help the poor by helping capitalism.”
In praise of the Vlassovas
[Lob der Wlassowas]
BFA 14, 126; 1931; P1933; D.C.
Song of the Mother on the heroic death of the coward Vessovchikov
[Lied der Mutter über den Heldentod des Feiglings Wessowtschikow]
BFA 14, 127; 1931; P1982; D.C.
It seems Brecht wrote the verses for an early version of The Mother.
UNCOLLECTED POEMS 1931–1933
Strike song
[Streiklied]
BFA 14, 121; 1931; P1931; D.C.
Written for The Measures Taken when Brecht revised the play after its first performance in 1930.
Lullabies
[Wiegenlieder]
BFA 11, 206; 1932; P1933; T.K.
This short cycle was composed in connection with The Mother, and one copy was dedicated to Brecht’s wife, Helene Weigel. Unlike most lullabies, Brecht makes the rhythms deliberately uneven; and when Hanns Eisler set the poems he underlined the discomfort with a music of false emphases, hovering between tonality and atonality. Moltke and Blücher were famous German generals.
The song of the SA man
[Das Lied vom SA-Mann]
BFA 11, 209; 1931; P1931; T.K.
This was a song, with music by Eisler, from a political revue premiered in Berlin on November 20, 1931. Ernst Busch sang it on that and many subsequent occasions. Hitler’s Sturmabteilung (SA) was hunting down Communists and engaging in street battles long before 1933.
Where are you going?
[Wohin zieht ihr?]
BFA 14, 128; 1931; P1961; D.C.
From a flat to a bed-sit . . .
[Aus der Wohnung wird die Schlafküche]
BFA 14, 129; 1932; P1982; D.C.
In their subject the lines belong in the context of Kuhle Wampe but do not appear in the script.
Last meal
[Henkersmahl]
BFA 14, 129; 1931; P1993; D.C.
The verses possibly belong in the context of Brecht’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure—work which he developed into his own play Round Heads and Pointed Heads.
How capable human beings are!
[Welch fähiges Geschlecht]
BFA 14, 129; 1931; P1982; D.C.
So friendliness . . .
[So schritt die Freundlichkeit]
BFA 14, 129; 1931; P1982; D.C.
But now stop hoping . . .
[Hoffe doch nicht mehr]
BFA 14, 130; 1931; P1982; D.C.
What are you still waiting for?
[Worauf wartest du noch?]
BFA 14, 130; 1931; P1982; D.C.
I am his enemy . . .
[Ich bin sein Feind]
BFA 14, 130; 1931; P1982; D.C.
The fight against diabetes
[Die Bekämpfung der Zuckerkrankheit]
BFA 14, 131; 1931; P1982; D.C.
This poem, itself unfinished, was to be one of several dealing with advances in medical science. But it seems Brecht got no further with the project.
When the Thinker had asked the question . . .
[Als der Denkende die Frage gestellt hatte]
BFA 14, 131; c. 1931; P1993; D.C.
This poem, unfinished or only stanzas 22–29 of it surviving, belongs with ‘Suppose you were weak . . .’ and with the three poems having the title ‘Lesson in sabotage . . .’ and the fragment ‘Sabotagelied’ (‘Sabotage song’), not translated. Brecht invented the figure of the Thinker around 1929. He appears in several works, finished and unfinished, in those years and later.
When the Thinker became fearful . . .
[Als der Denkende fürchtete]
BFA 14, 133; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
The person in question may be Margarete Steffin.
When it became necessary to ask the question . . .
[Als die Frage gestellt werden musste]
BFA 14, 134; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
Let us assume you are weak like one . . .
[Angenommen, du wärest schwach wie einer]
BFA 14, 134; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
The surviving part of the poem begins at stanza 11.
There was a voice close by you . . .
[Da war eine Stimme neben dir]
BFA 14, 136; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
The poem is probably unf
inished.
Communism is the middle way
[Der Kommunismus ist das Mittlere]
BFA 14, 136; c. 1931; P1965; D.C.
Brecht seems to have intended the poem for The Mother, but instead of it he used ‘In praise of Communism.’
Beds for the night
[Die Nachtlager]
BFA 14, 137; 1931; P1956; D.C.
Like the play Saint Joan of the Stockyards, this poem questions the value of palliative charity in an age of systemic oppression. Brecht found the concrete example in Theodore Dreiser’s novel Sister Carrie, Chapter 45, under the heading ‘Curious Shifts of the Poor.’ The novel was translated into German by Anna Nussbaum in 1929.
Song Number 2
[Gesang Nummer 2]
BFA 14, 139; c. 1931; P1993; D.C.
The poem was written to conclude Scene 2 of The Exception and the Rule but was not used. The strophes would have been recited or sung by different players.
I always thought . . .
[Ich dachte mir immer]
BFA 14, 140; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
Fragment. If Brecht wrote more it has not survived.
A lesson in sabotage
[Lehre von der Fallhand]
BFA 14, 140; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
The literal sense of the word Fallhand (in the German title) is “wrist-drop,” which is “an affliction marked by inability to extend the hand and fingers, resulting from paralysis of the forearm extensor muscles” (OED). Brecht appropriated the word to mean “sabotage,” the deliberate crippling of a machine, a whole factory, any enterprise. See ‘When the Thinker had asked the question . . .’ (lines 4–5).
A lesson in sabotage
[Lehre von der Fallhand]
BFA 14, 141; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
A lesson in sabotage
[Lehre von der Fallhand]
BFA 14, 142; c. 1931; P1982; D.C.
Oh Falada, hanging there!
[O Falladah, die Du hangest!]
BFA 14, 142; c. 1931; P1933; D.C.
Brecht submitted the poem as his contribution to a revue—Es war einmal . . . Ein Weihnachtsmärchen nur für Erwachsene (Once upon a time . . . A Christmas fairy tale only for grown-ups) intended for Christmas 1932. The revue didn’t happen. Brecht published the poem in Die Weltbühne on January 17, 1933, writing on the proofs the date 1919, which, if not the date of composition, may allude to some such grisly event in the cold and the hunger among the poor as the war ended. Brecht seems first to have written a version in four stanzas, the horse’s monologue—and then the rest, giving the horse a horrified interlocutor. He took the horse’s name, and its speaking head, from the Grimm brothers’ ‘The Goose Girl.’ Lines 6–8 allude to a refrain in that tale. The horse’s stanzas were memorably set by Eisler.