The Broken Jug (English: The Broken Jug)

A one-act comedy by the German playwright Kleist. It was written in 1806 and premiered in Weimar in 1808. It is a masterpiece of modern German comedy. It is a court drama set in a rural Dutch village. The lecherous judge Adam sneaks into the room of a village girl, Eve, on a dark night, but runs into her lover, Rupprecht, and jumps out of the window. In the process, he breaks a historic jar, hurts his foot, and even loses his judge's wig. The next day, Eve's mother brings the broken jar to court to sue Rupprecht, and Adam is forced to try the case, of which he is the culprit. Under the supervision of a judicial advisor who is on tour at the time, he tries desperately to pin the crime on someone else. However, Adam's sophistry and lies are revealed one after another in front of the audience, who already know the truth from Adam's behavior. The clever language play, which hides and reveals, is also worth watching. Adam's dramatic acting makes this work not only a situational comedy but also an outstanding character comedy. When Adam is seen as a lovable villain, the play has a strong flavor of an idyllic human comedy, but there are also views of it as a realistic comedy that criticizes and satirizes the power of the social system.

[Shirou Nakamura]

"The Fierce Turtle" translated by Tomio Tezuka (Iwanami Bunko)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

ドイツの劇作家クライストの一幕喜劇。1806年成立、08年ワイマールで初演。近代ドイツ喜劇の代表的傑作。オランダの農村を舞台にした裁判劇。好色な裁判官アダムは闇夜(あんや)、村の娘エーフェ（イブ）の部屋に忍び込むが、彼女の恋人ループレヒトと鉢合わせし、窓から飛び落ちる。そのとき由緒のある甕を壊し、足を痛め、裁判官の鬘(かつら)まで落っことす。翌日エーフェの母が「こわれ甕」を手に、ループレヒトを訴えるに及んで、アダムは自分が犯人であるこの一件を裁くはめになる。おりから巡察中の司法顧問官の監督下、彼は罪を他人に着せようと躍起になる。だがアダムのようすから真相を先刻承知の観客の前で、彼の詭弁(きべん)や嘘(うそ)八百の化けの皮が次々にはげ落ちる。隠したり暴いたりの巧妙な言語遊戯も見ものである。アダムの出たとこ勝負の大芝居は、この作を状況喜劇のみならず出色の性格喜劇にもしている。アダムに憎めない悪人をみるときは牧歌的人間喜劇の趣(おもむき)が濃いが、社会体制の権力に対する批判や風刺のリアリズム喜劇とする見方もある。

［中村志朗］

『手塚富雄訳『こわれがめ』（岩波文庫）』

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