The play opens in the living room of the Bergmann house. Mrs. Bergmann is having Wendla try on her new dress, which is much longer than her last dress, because Wendla has just turned fourteen - in fact, today is Wendla's birthday. Wendla begs her mother to let her wear her old dress a little longer, at least through the summer, because this one is so very long.

Mrs. Bergmann is a little concerned that Wendla's old pinafore is too short, but is clearly glad that Wendla does not seem to want to grow up too quickly. She wonders aloud whether Wendla will grow as tall and lanky as the other girls already have, but Wendla comments that perhaps she will not be around long enough. This comment - quite understandably - upsets Mrs. Bergmann, and Wendla explains that she often has such thoughts before she goes to sleep at night. She wonders whether this is a sin, and Mrs. Bergmann, changes the subject by agreeing to let her wear her old dress. Wendla teases her mother by suggesting that when she has to wear long dresses, she will go without underclothes, because it will be so hot.

Melchior, Moritz, Otto, George, Robert and Ernst are playing outdoors on a Sunday evening. Melchior decides that he is bored and wants to go for a walk, even though it is growing dark. The other boys decide to stop playing as well, most declaring that they must get home and begin their homework. Moritz accompanies Melchior on his walk, where Melchior tries to initiate a philosophical discussion about the meaning of life. Moritz, however, is focused on complaining about school - he is clearly not a success in the classroom, and knows that several students will have to be flunked out before the next year begins. He insists that the only reason he stays at all is because of his father. They see a black cat and discuss whether it is a bad omen, which leads Melchior to scoff at superstition in general, although he shows off his knowledge of the classics with ostentatious language.

The boys sit down under a tree and continue their free-flowing discussion. Moritz suggests that shame is a product of upbringing. He says that when he has children he will have them all sleep in the same bed, boys and girls together, and wear the same kind of simple clothes. Melchior agrees, but is a little disturbed by what seems to be the natural result of this scheme - the girls will get pregnant. He argues that people are like animals: even if they are not told what to do, they will naturally experiment when they start to feel desire for one another. Melchior goes so far as to suggest that even the girls feel desire, though he seems slightly confused by how this idea will play out.

Moritz interrupts the discussion for a moment to ask Melchior whether he has completed a classroom exercise, but Melchior presses on. Moritz expands on his child-rearing theory, talking about the value of exercise, hard work, and hard beds. This leads Melchior to comment that, since it is spring, he is going to start sleeping in a hammock. Then they begin talking about dreams; Melchior says that the worst dream he ever had involved flogging his dog until it couldn't move its legs.

Moritz asks Melchior whether he has felt what they call "masculine stirrings," to which Melchior replies in the affirmative. Melchior obliquely asks Moritz whether he first felt them because of a dream, and Moritz tells him that he had a dream about "legs in sky-blue tights climbing over the lectern." For a few moments the boys discuss how another friend dreamt of his mother, then go into further detail about their fears surrounding these new feelings.

When he awoke from the dream, Moritz says, he did not understand what was happening to him - he thought he had a disease, and the only thing that calmed him down was beginning his memoirs. Melchior says that he was prepared to experience such things, but still felt a bit ashamed. Moritz is surprised that Melchior knows so much, as Melchior is almost a year younger than he, but Melchior explains that it happens to different boys at different ages. Moritz seems almost angry at the difficulties associated with becoming an adult, and once again he begins discussing the question of why they were born at all.

Melchior realizes that Moritz does not know "how" he got here, since he does not know about sex. Moritz admits that he is indeed ignorant in these matters, though he knows that he has "disgusting" feelings towards girls - he just does not know how that relates to the fact that he was born. Melchior offers to tell him all about it, and Moritz admits that he looked through the encyclopedia for an explanation but could not find anything. Melchior starts to explain reproduction to him, but Moritz interrupts, insisting that he cannot possibly think about such things when he has so much homework to do. Melchior suggests that Moritz come to his house: he will help Moritz with his work, after which he will explain the mechanics of reproduction. Moritz refuses, but asks Melchior to put the explanation in writing if he absolutely must. That way he'll come upon it "unexpectedly" and have no choice but to read it, thereby expunging his guilt. He suggests that Melchior include a few illustrations, and Melchior agrees, but wants to know whether Moritz has ever seen a naked girl. Moritz says that he has, so Melchior decides that illustrations will not be needed. Moritz refers to a school trip where he snuck off to a "different room" in an Anatomical Museum. At the end of this section, the boys part.

Analysis

It is interesting to note that Wedekind chose to begin Spring Awakening with a scene about Wendla, rather than Melchior or Moritz. Many interpretations of the play focus primarily on its male characters - a poor choice considering Wedekind's signals that Wendla is equally important. This scene introduces one of the models of the parent-child relationships that will be prevalent throughout the play.

Mrs. Bergmann is torn between the practical necessity of recognizing that Wendla is growing up and her desire to keep Wendla young and innocent. She has made Wendla a longer dress because Wendla has grown so much since her last birthday that the dress she now wears is too short for her.

Mrs. Bergmann: The dress isn't too long, Wendla. What do you expect? I can't help it if my daughter is an inch taller every spring. A big girl like you can't go around in a little girl's dress.

Wendla objects to the garment so strenuously that Mrs. Bergmann eventually gives. It seems that she is heartened by the fact that her daughter doesn't want to grow up too quickly. However, it becomes apparent that this wish extends beyond the normal desire to keep her children close when Mrs. Bergmann refuses to offer Wendla the knowledge and information that should go along with her longer dress. In this scene, Wendla tells her mother that she thinks about the possibility of her own death, especially before she goes to sleep at night. Wendla's recognition of the inevitability of death is a clear indication of her impending adulthood, but rather than acknowledging and discussing Wendla's fears, Mrs. Bergmann prefers to keep her innocent - even if that means denying the reality of Wendla's maturity.

The scene at least partially predicts later events of the play when Wendla begins to tease her mother, telling her:

You can think yourself lucky if one fine morning your little precious doesn't cut her sleeves off or come home in the evening without shoes and stockings. -- When I wear my penitential robe I'll be dressed like the queen of the fairies underneath. . .

Wendla's developing sexuality is implicit in her speech, although Mrs. Bergmann is unwilling to recognize it. By keeping Wendla in her child-like dress, ignorant of her own development, Mrs. Bergmann leaves Wendla unguarded against the obstacles and difficulties she may soon have to face.

Scene ii is representative of Melchior and Moritz's conversations throughout the play, but it also sheds light on the overall structure of the play. The boys' conversations move rapidly from topic to topic, and it is rare that the boys are even talking about the same thing. In this way Spring Awakening does not thoroughly explore a few themes or ideas, but rather touches on many, suggesting two sides of an argument or complicating an assumption. One might say that Wedekind is encouraging readers and audience members to think about an idea, rather than telling them what they should think.

Two of the primary themes touched on in this scene are sexuality and education. Melchior and Moritz not only reveal elements of their developing sexuality and their reactions to these changes, but also explore the question of how they do learn versus how they should learn about these uncomfortable topics. Moritz gives voice to one notion when he admits that he "was sure [he] must be suffering from some internal complaint." He says that when he has children they'll "sleep in the same room from the start. If possible in the same bed. Boys and girls. I'll make them help each other dress and undress...Brought up like this, they'll be, well, less disturbed than we usually are." Moritz is suffering from a lack of knowledge, and so he believes that ideally children should be brought up being perfectly aware of and comfortable with each other. Moritz's ignorance is so complete that he went looking for answers in an encyclopedia, Meyer's Lexicon: he doesn't seem to understand that this information is generally hidden as much as possible.

Melchior, coming from the perspective of someone who is at least moderately more knowledgeable, is more aware of practical considerations. He points out that the problem with Moritz's child-rearing scheme is "when the girls have babies, what then?" He believes that "there's some kind of instinct at work." Melchior has gleaned his knowledge "partly from books, partly from pictures, partly from observing nature."

Wedekind does not suggest that one boy has been brought up in a better way than the other, or that one boy is dealing with adolescence better than his friend. Melchior and Moritz's conversations and actions demonstrate that adolescent sexuality is fraught with complications, conflict, and even danger; at the same time, Melchior and Moritz prove one basic thing: "The stirrings of manhood" cannot be prevented from appearing, whether or not Melchior or Moritz understands them.

Two other ideas are touched on briefly in this scene. Melchior and Moritz discuss whether "the sense of shame is simply a product of upbringing." It is already clear that Moritz has too great a sense of parental authority, and that his own personal desires and fears mean little in comparison to his desire to please his parents. Finally, a joking discussion of a black cat crossing the road foreshadows future contrasts between religion and superstition.

Thea, Wendla, and Martha are walking down the road together, commenting on the wild weather and how it affects them. Wendla, clearly the ringleader, suggests that they go to the bridge to see the flooded waters. She also mentions that the boys have a raft on the river and that Melchior almost drowned the night before. Thea and Martha make disparaging comments, insisting that Melchior can swim, but Wendla corrects herself, saying that if he had not been able to swim he would have drowned. Thea comments that Martha's braid is coming undone, and Martha informs the others that she hates her hair; she's not allowed to wear it short like Thea's or loose like Wendla's because her parents forbid her to do so. Wendla says that she'll cut Martha's hair, but Martha says that her father would beat her for it and that her mother would lock her up for three days.

Martha then goes on to tell her friends about her most recent altercation with her parents: she had threaded a blue ribbon through the trim of her nightdress (something both other girls are allowed to do), and in response to this "transgression" her mother pulled her out of bed by her braids. Her father then came in and ripped off her nightdress, forcing Martha to sleep naked on the floor in a sack. Wendla says that she wishes she could take Martha's place, and asks Martha what they beat her with. Martha doesn't really answer, changing the subject slightly to ask Thea and Wendla whether their mothers think it's "indecent to eat in bed."

Martha talks about how when she has children she'll treat them differently, comparing them to flowers in a garden. Thea says that she'll dress her children in pink clothes with black stockings. Wendla seems surprised that Martha and Thea are so sure they'll have children; after all, not every woman they know has children. Martha offers Aunt Euphemia as an example, but Thea explains that she has no children because she's not married. Then Wendla names her Aunt Bauer, who has been married three times, but has never had children.

Martha asks Wendla whether she'd want to have boys or girls, and Wendla insists that she only wants boys. Thea says that girls are boring, and Martha says that if she were a boy she'd never want to be a girl. Wendla says that she would never want to be a boy, but that she only wants to have boys, because it must be much better to be loved by a man than by a girl. Martha and Thea begin teasing Wendla for being so proud of herself for being a girl, but she shakes off their jests, insisting that if she was not a girl she would kill herself so she could come back as one - an interesting digression from traditional religious ideas.

Wendla's outburst is cut off when Thea notices Melchior passing by and comments on how handsome he is. Martha suggests that he looks like a young Alexander the Great, and Thea starts joking about how little she can remember about Greek history. Wendla offers that Melchior is supposed to be third in his class, and Thea says that he could be first if he wanted. Martha mentions that she thinks Moritz has a more "spiritual" look, and the other girls are surprised. Wendla comments that Melchior told her once that he didn't believe in God or Heaven.

Melchior and some other boys are playing in the park in front of their school. Melchior wants to know where Moritz is, and George and Otto report that he's going to get in enormous trouble, because they saw him sneaking into the Faculty Room. The boys excitedly discuss how he got in and how he will be punished when he's caught. Then they see him coming, and Melchior comments that Moritz is white as a sheet. Moritz tells them jubilantly that he's been promoted to the next grade, and the boys realize that he was not caught looking through the files. Moritz explains that for the last three weeks he's been waiting for his moment, and today the door was unlocked. He went in, turned to the right page of the register, and read his name on the list of students that are to be moved on.

Hanschen asks whether Ernst Robel has gotten a promotion as well, and Moritz says that he has. Roberts says that's impossible, because if both Moritz and Robel were admitted, the class would be too big. Moritz explains that at the end of the first term one of them will have to leave, that their promotions are only provisional; however, now that he's come so close "to the edge," he insists he will buckle down and study. Otto bets him five marks he'll be the one to go, but Moritz insists that he is going to succeed, for if he hadn't gotten his promotion he was going to shoot himself. The boys react with disgust, calling him a show-off and a coward. Melchior ignores them and suggests that Moritz come with him to the keeper's cottage. The other boys are annoyed at Melchior's reaction, but he continues to ignore them. As they depart, two of their teachers, Starveling and Bonebreaker, pass by. They comment that it is strange that their best and worst students can be such good friends.

Melchior and Wendla meet in the woods. Melchior is extremely surprised to see Wendla. Melchior says he might have taken her for a dryad in the woods, but Wendla doesn't seem to understand the joke. She asks what he's doing, and he says he's having his own thoughts. Wendla is looking for woodruff, a plant her mother uses to make wine. She found a basketful under the bushes, but now she's a little bit lost, and she doesn't know what time it is. Melchior tells her it's half past three, and Wendla is relieved. She spent a long time lying by the stream, dreaming, and she was worried it might be much later.

Melchior suggests they lie under the oak tree a bit longer, and says that he will carry her basket home for her afterwards. Melchior asks Wendla about her visits to the poor. He wants to know whether she wants to go, or whether her mother makes her go. Wendla says that her mother sends her, but that she genuinely loves going, even though (as Melchior says) the houses are not very pleasant places and the men seem to hate her. Wendla says that it makes her happy to be able to help those less fortunate than she. Melchior wants to understand whether she visits the poor because it makes her happy, or because they are poor. Wendla insists that she visits them because they are poor, but that she can't help it if doing so gives her pleasure.

Melchior then asks whether a man can help it if it doesn't give him pleasure to help the poor. Wendla simply replies that it would give Melchior pleasure. Melchior is still interested in his philosophical conundrum - he wants to write it up and send it to their Pastor. If the pastor can't explain it to him, then Melchior will refuse to be confirmed. Wendla thinks that's a poor idea because it will only hurt his parents. Melchior expresses his frustration at all of the wickedness and hypocrisy he sees around him that makes it impossible for him to be happy and content.

Melchior then asks Wendla what she had been dreaming about before he came upon her. Wendla tells him that she dreamt she was a poor child who had to beg all day for money and food, and when she went home her father would beat her if she had not brought enough money. Melchior says that Wendla has gotten all that from children's stories, but she insists that her friend Martha is beaten night after night. She says that she often cries into her pillow thinking about Martha and wishes she could take her place for a week. Melchior says that someone should report Martha's father, but Wendla is not interested in practical advice. She confides to Melchior that she has never been beaten and wishes she knew how it felt. Melchior says he does not think it makes children better. Wendla asks Melchior whether he would like to hit her with a switch from the tree. He refuses, but she continues to goad him. Finally, he hits her once, but she cannot feel anything through her skirts. She pulls up her clothes and he hits her leg, and she taunts him for "just stroking" her. Finally, Melchior throws away the switch and beats her with his fists until she yells. He runs away, crying desperately.

Analysis

The beginning of scene iii foreshadows later events in the play, for the manner in which Wendla talks about Melchior suggests her preoccupation with him. The scene ends with Wendla calling Melchior handsome and revealing that she has made an effort to find out information about him. Thea's knowledge that Melchior could be first in his class if he tried suggests that all the girls are aware of Melchior's superiority; however, it is clear from Thea's attitude that there is already some special relationship between Wendla and Melchior. These few interchanges prepare the audience for the events that later transpire between Wendla and Melchior.

As the girls begin to discuss Martha's hair and her recent punishment, Wedekind provides a contrast to Melchior and Moritz's discussion about adolescent male sexuality. It is clear that Martha's parents are terrified of the idea that Martha will somehow become corrupt. She is not allowed to wear her hair short or loose - hairstyles that make Wendla and Thea look more attractive. When she threaded a ribbon through her nightdress, she was punished because her actions suggested that she wanted someone to see her in her nightdress and think she looked attractive. Indeed, Thea has threaded a pink satin ribbon through her nightdress because her mother "maintains that pink suits [her]." Ironically, Thea is completely oblivious to the implications of this ribbon, as she goes on to comment:

If I have children I'll dress them all in pink. Pink hats, pink dresses, pink shoes. Only the stockings - the stockings shall be black as night.

Martha, however, tells the girls that when her mother discovered the ribbon, her father came in and ripped off her nightdress, so Martha ran outside naked. She came back inside only because of the cold. It is this story that sets off Wendla's questions about Martha's beatings. Wendla's later ruminations on Martha's suffering circle around this story.

Melchior hazarded earlier that girls of the same age must probably have the same urges as boys; however, this scene suggests that girls are kept far more ignorant than boys. None of the girls can make any sense of the fact that a married woman might not have children.  The discussion of this quandary begins an exploration of how men and women are different, and of how they perceive each other. The girls think men are better off, or perhaps superior. However, the fact that women have babies certainly affects their relationship with or perception of gender.

Thea and Martha's teasing about Wendla's pride returns to the idea of her as a match for Melchior.  Both Wendla and Melchior are more independent than the other characters, and are less afraid to disagree with those around them.  Another reminder of Melchior's supposed atheism simply drives home the fact that Melchior does not bow to any idea of external authority. 

Scene iv stands out in Spring Awakening because it is primarily concerned with plot, rather than with ideas or conflicts. Moritz's discovery that he has one last chance to live up to his parents' expectations, but that he must beat Ernst Robel to do so, sets up many of the later events in the play. However, the interactions between Moritz and the other boys do shed interesting light on the theme of education in Spring Awakening.

The system of education in place in Spring Awakening pits the students against each other: Moritz is in competition with his classmates not just for grades or awards, but for the very right to continue his education. This system helps explain the boys' excitement as they wait for Moritz to be caught breaking into the Faculty Lounge. These boys are not impressed by his daring, or amused by his prank; they simply want to see him caught and marvel at how great his punishment is going to be. As soon as the boys learn that they are not going to get to bear witness to Moritz's humiliation, they look for a new way to secure their own positions. When, to their astonishment, they learn that both Ernst and Moritz have been promoted to the next grade, they react with jeers. Otto bets five marks that Moritz will fail because his own sense of security comes from undermining Moritz's.

The manner in which Moritz must go about acquiring knowledge is also presented as highly irregular. In order to learn that he has passed to the next grade, Moritz is forced to sneak into the Faculty Lounge and read the file for himself. He doesn't feel he has the option to simply ask a teacher. Once Moritz has read of his promotion, he feels as certain of it as if his name has been written down in the Book of Judgment. Moritz is unable to cope with or compete within this system. He does not have normal access to information - even information about himself.

Moritz's inability to function within this hierarchy is underscored by the end of the scene. Melchior rescues Moritz from the other boys' teasing by removing him from the scene. Melchior possesses all of the abilities that Moritz lacks, benefiting from education without being controlled by it. His superior abilities enable him to bow out of the power plays of the other students. Being friends with Melchior should give Moritz access to some of that power, a fact which even the teachers notice; however, Moritz is either unwilling or unable to reap the benefits of his positive social relationships within the confusing and painful sphere of his school.

Melchior constantly references Greek and Roman myths, concepts, and stories. By doing so, he reminds his audience of his intelligence, education, and independence. Melchior is connected with the pagan primarily to distinguish him from the Christian - he serves no master besides himself. This does not mean that Melchior must do wrong, but it does mean that Melchior is dangerously exposed to the possibility of making mistakes.

Wendla clearly has a stronger sense of authority than Melchior does; however, that does not mean that she always obeys it. Wendla has come to the forest to gather woodruff for her mother, but has spent most of the time dreaming. So much time, in fact, that she is now worried she has gone too far. It is interesting to note that as much as Wendla dreams of being punished, being beaten, she has no desire to displease her mother. She treads on the edge of disobedience, as if she is titillated by the possibility of punishment.

This meeting is the first of two pivotal interactions between Melchior and Wendla. This one serves to establish their attraction for each other. For Melchior, Wendla is a tantalizing combination of the conventional, the good, and the daring. Wendla dreams of being beaten, but she also goes to help the poor because her mother asks her to. She lies under a tree with Melchior, but she tells him that he should get confirmed to please his parents. Most shocking of all, Wendla tells him that she loves helping the poor, then begs him to beat her with a switch. Wendla is the living embodiment of the contradictions that Melchior gets so much satisfaction from exploring. In some ways, Melchior's relationship with Wendla is similar to his relationship with Moritz. Melchior enjoys teaching others; he enjoys being a figure of authority. Unlike Moritz, however, Wendla has knowledge of her own that she can communicate to Melchior. Explicitly, he wants to ask her about her experiences with the poor, but unconsciously, Melchior probably wants to learn from Wendla whether girls really do feel the same things that he and Moritz have begun to feel.

Wendla consciously admires Melchior because he is smart and popular. However, Wendla may also be drawn to Melchior because she senses he has the knowledge that she so desperately wants to acquire, and Melchior is independent and rebellious enough to give her that knowledge, even if he does so in an unexpected manner. Wendla yearns to be beaten, but this desire for an intense physical experience is clearly linked to a yearning for sexual experience, or at least sexual knowledge.

It is evening, and Moritz and Melchior are sitting on the sofa in Melchior's study. Moritz is telling Melchior why he has been upset all day. He fell asleep in his Greek class, and was surprised he did not get punished by their teacher, especially because he was almost late. He had been working extremely hard: he conjugated verbs all morning and stayed up until 3AM the night before. He keeps falling into melancholy moods, but he's able to shake himself out of them because he knows that he has "won a victory over" himself.

Melchior offers to roll him a cigarette, but Moritz says that he does not smoke. He goes on about how hard he means to keep working, for Ernst Robel has failed six times since the vacation and he's only failed five times. He does not feel bad wishing for Robel to fail, because he does not think Robel or his parents will care very much. There are lots of other things Robel can do, but Moritz's parents will be devastated if Moritz fails out of school. Moritz feels the possibility of failure hanging over his head all the time, so he is constantly reminded of how hard he needs to work. He is aware that the smallest mistake could have terrible consequences for him. Melchior agrees that life is so hard that even he sometimes feels quite like hanging himself. He then wonders aloud where his mother is with their tea. Moritz comments that the tea will do him good, because he's feeling rather woozy and peculiar. He almost seems to be falling into a trance.

Moritz begins repeating to Melchior a story his grandmother often tells him about a beautiful queen with no head, who was one day conquered by a king with two heads. The king's two heads quarreled all the time, so the chief court magician took off one of the king's heads and gave it to the queen. It suited her admirably, and the two got married. Moritz realizes he's been speaking nonsense, but admits that lately he cannot get the headless queen out of his head. Every time he sees a beautiful girl, he can't help but picture her without her head.

Melchior's mother brings in the tea and asks Moritz how he's doing. He says that he's fine, but she states that she doesn't think he looks well. She tells him that his health is much more important than how he does in school - he should relax and take long walks. Moritz replies that he can work while he walks, but then remembers that he would still have written work to do. Melchior says that they will do all their written work together from now on.

Melchior then tells his mother that one of their classmates, Max von Trenk, has died of a brain fever. When Hanschen, another classmate, reported to their teacher that Max had died in his presence, Professor Hart-Payne commented only that Hanschen still owed two hours of detention, and that he could serve it now. Mrs. Gabor notices that Melchior is reading Faust, and expresses concern that he's too young to read such a thing. Melchior is surprised, because he says it's the most beautiful book he's ever read. Mrs. Gabor says he's old enough to decide for himself, but that he should be careful all the same. She leaves, telling Melchior to call her if they need anything else.

Moritz comments that Mrs. Gabor was speaking about the "business with Gretchen," and Melchior says they barely talked about that in class. Melchior says he doesn't think that the tragedy has anything to do with sex. If Faust had just promised to marry Gretchen and then abandoned her it would have been just as bad. He seems almost disgusted by the fact that everyone around him seems obsessed with sex. Moritz admits that since reading the essay Melchior left him, he too feels that the world revolves around sex. He read it with the door bolted, and felt as if he were recollecting something he already knew, like a song or a memory. He was most affected by what Melchior said about girls. He feels that to suffer wrong is much "sweeter than to do wrong," and he wishes that he could be made to suffer. Melchior comments that he wants to fight for any bliss that he gets, or else he won't feel that he deserves it. Moritz comments that that doesn't seem like bliss to him. Girls don't have to fight for bliss; they just get to enjoy it, like gods. They don't even notice it until it's already upon them, and then they simply let it lap over them. A girl's pleasure seems better to him. Melchior tells Moritz that he doesn't want to think about it.

The next scene begins with Wendla's mother coming home, calling for Wendla. She tells her that she must go to her sister's house and take her a basket, because the stork has brought Ina a little boy. Wendla is very happy, and comments that this explains her sister's never-ending "influenza." Wendla is excited that she is now an aunt for the third time. Mrs. Bergmann comments that having such fine boys is a byproduct of living near the church; Ina only got married two years ago, and already she has three children. Wendla questions her mother about the stork and whether her mother has seen it, but her mother is evasive, suggesting that Wendla pin a rose on her dress. Mrs. Bergmann tells Wendla that Ina will give her all the details, and even tell her whether the stork flew in the window or came down the chimney. Wendla suggests that they ask the chimney-sweep, and Mrs. Bergmann is horrified at the thought. Wendla keeps teasing her mother until Mrs. Bergmann finally tells her that she's just being childish.

Wendla replies that she is indeed extremely childish - after all, she's an aunt three times over, and still doesn't know exactly where children come from. Her mother, she says, can't expect her to believe in the stork when she's fourteen years old. Mrs. Bergmann is completely overcome by Wendla's forthrightness and refuses to tell her the truth, trying to hurry her into her coat and shoes and get her out of the house. Wendla - less teasingly this time - threatens to ask the chimney-sweep, and Mrs. Bergmann seems to give in, but says that they will talk another day. Wendla continues to beg, and suggests that she hide her face in her mother's lap so that her mother can talk as if she were alone. Mrs. Bergmann tries to think of something to say, then finally tells Wendla that in order to have a child a woman must love her husband "as [Wendla] at [her] age [is] incapable of loving." Wendla is confused and frustrated, but her mother refuses to elaborate. She sends Wendla off, noting that Wendla's skirt is definitely too short for her now, and resolves to add a strip of "flouncing" to the bottom when she has a chance.

Analysis

In some ways, Act II, scene i is just a continuation of Act I, scene v. Moritz continues to struggle in school. He clings to his "superiority" over Ernst Robel - Ernst has failed six times, Moritz only five - unaware of how meaningless such a small difference really is. Moritz's refusal to take a cigarette from Melchior suggests that Moritz is in the process of losing the ability to think for himself. Rather than relieving his feelings with small acts of rebellion, Moritz feels that he can only succeed by gaining control over every aspect of his behavior. Moritz's attempts, however, are both futile and dangerous. In attempting to transform himself into the perfect member of the system, Moritz only makes himself more vulnerable to eventual failure. It is wholly clear to the audience that Moritz cannot succeed, for how long can he go on without sleep, exercise, or sustenance? Moritz's obsession with the headless queen both foreshadows his own end and underscores the connection between sex and violence that is present throughout the play.

Melchior's mother seems to position herself as the voice of reason and support when she tells Moritz that his health is more important than his schoolwork. However, Mrs. Gabor's tendency to always allow Melchior to make his own decisions seems a little dangerous. Moritz seems more aware than Melchior does of the dangers that Mrs. Gabor is speaking of, for he is honest about the intoxicating effect that reading and thinking about sex has on him. Melchior's refusal to admit that the sexual aspects of Faust interest him is a little troubling.

Mrs. Bergmann's actions in scene ii speak to her total inability to confront the realities of sex. She demonstrates an almost laughable naiveté about the fact that her daughter has born three children in two years (and thus must have been pregnant when she got married), and sees no hypocrisy in continuing to talk to a fourteen-year-old girl about the stork.

Wendla's total lack of agency in this situation is underscored by the fact that she must literally beg her mother for the information she lacks - although her directness during this conversation is truly striking. She very nearly mocks her own mother for her silence on the topic of sex. Wendla's mother is the consummate hypocrite: she dresses up her daughter and pins roses to her dress, literally doing her best to make her enticing, but sends her out into the world with no understanding of the effect she may have on men. Likewise, she recognizes that she must add a strip to Wendla's dress to make her daughter look less provocative, but is unwilling to admit to herself - or to Wendla - why such a thing is necessary.

Hanschen Rilow slips into the bathroom, carrying a small reproduction of Vecchio's Venus. He begins speaking to the figure in the painting, telling her how beautiful she looked when he first saw her in a shop window, and how happy Vecchio must have been when the real girl was lying on his sofa. Hanschen asks her to visit her in her dreams as he prepares to dispose of her, assuring her that it is an extremely painful act for him, and that he is by no means tired of her. He talks of the other pictures he has disposed of in a similar way, most of them different women from Greek myth such as Io, Galatea, and Leda. Hanschen tells Desdemona - the woman in the painting - that it is his fault she must die, for he is weak in the face of her femininity. He considers whether one ought not to feel sorry for Bluebeard, who murdered so many women, for surely it was harder on him then it was on them. However, he assures Desdemona that he will gain strength and rest more easily when she is gone. He will find some other picture to replace her, one that does not "eat at [his] brain" as she did. He asks her why she continues to press her legs together, to behave so chastely at this last moment. He kisses the picture one last time, and, reciting a few lines of poetry, he drops it into the toilet and shuts the lid.

In scene iv, Melchior is lying on his back in a hayloft when Wendla suddenly climbs up the ladder. Wendla asks him to come outside - they need his help with the wagon because a storm is approaching. Melchior angrily rebuffs her, but she refuses to leave. He threatens to throw her down the ladder, but this only makes her more determined to stay. She asks him once more to come to the meadow, for being soaked cannot be more unpleasant than remaining in such a damp and muggy place as the hayloft. Melchior responds that the hay smells wonderful, and then suddenly tells Wendla that he "can see the poppy gleaming at [her] breast" and "hear her heart beating." Wendla tells him not to kiss her, for only people who love each other kiss, but Melchior cuts her off. He says that there's no such thing as love, that they don't love each other at all, and even as Wendla continues to protest he grabs her and rapes her.

The next scene opens with Mrs. Gabor writing a letter to Moritz. As she recounts in her letter, she has decided how to reply to the missive that he sent her 24 hours earlier. She cannot provide him with the cost of passage to America, as he has requested. Not only does she not have the money, but she thinks that if she did it would be a mistake to give it to him. She says that she would be happy to write to his parents and explain that Moritz worked as hard this term as he was capable of working, and that they must forgive him for having failed. She also writes that she is not pleased with the allusion to suicide that he made in his letter. She considers it an attempt at blackmail, and unworthy of Moritz. She hopes that when this letter reaches Moritz he will already have rethought his hasty reaction. She reminds him that he should not equate his performance in school with his worth as a human being, and no matter what she hopes he will go on being friends with Melchior. She then writes that she hopes to hear from him soon, calling herself his "still devoted motherly friend."

Wendla, having slipped into her family's garden early in the morning, muses aloud. She is looking for violets, because she does not want her mother to question why she is smiling. She feels as if the ground is a "plush carpet," and thinks about how well she has slept. She murmurs that she is ready for her "penitential robes," referring to the long dress her mother had given her at the beginning of the play. She wishes someone would come along that she could tell the whole story to.

Analysis

Hanschen's struggle with the painting in Act II scene iii is high drama - he wrestles with his sexual feelings towards the painting, speaking to it directly as he condemns his own desires. To Hanschen, the painting is no mere pornography: it is a work with which he has a deep and abiding relationship that means far more than sex. Indeed, Hanschen even declares "my heart is breaking" as he prepares to dispose of Vecchio's work. The painting is literally eating away at his psyche: his sexual feelings are so strong that they threaten to overwhelm every part of him and leave him mad, his "poor brain" dissolved from lust. Here, Wedekind perfectly lances the fervor of youthful sexuality while comically underscoring the helpless dramatics that characterize the internal battles of adolescents.

The rape scene is one of the most controversial in Wedekind's work. It is all the more devastating because of how palpable Wendla's innocence is: even as Melchior grabs her with the intent to rape her, she protests that only people who are in love kiss one another. Further, the fact that (in the written text, at least) the rape is only evident through the fact that the two characters repeatedly call out each others' names speaks to their personal relationship, and to the intimacy that perhaps could have grown between them and flourished into a real relationship had Melchior's needs not gotten in the way. In this scene, Melchior and Wendla's very real sexual chemistry comes to a frightening - even tragic - climax.

Mrs. Gabor is an interesting character in Spring Awakening, as she is perhaps the only adult who displays a true desire to communicate with the children, to understand where they are coming from. She is willing to talk to them like friends and to consider their needs and desires. Nevertheless, even Mrs. Gabor fails to perceive the reality behind Moritz's "veiled threat" of suicide. This blindness may speak to Wedekind's belief that regardless of how hard they may try, adults are fortunate enough to view the travails of youth with the safety of hindsight, and are simply incapable of recalling - or relating to - the depths of despair to which adolescents can sink.

Wendla's reaction to her rape is fascinating, and tells us a great deal about the extent of her naivete. It is almost as if she does not realize that she has been raped: she knows so little about sex that she cannot grasp the fact that Melchior has violated her. She wants someone whom she can "throw [her] arms around and talk to" - but presumably she wants to recount the excitement and passion of the previous night, not the terror. Conversely, this scene may indicate how much more developed Wendla is than her mother in terms of her attitude towards sex: she is capable of seeing it for what it is, and is no longer tied to the idea that sex and love must be linked.

It is dusk, and the sky is slightly overcast. Moritz is wandering around outside, talking to himself. He tells himself that he never promised to live, and acknowledges that he can't stand this anymore. He doesn't blame his parents for his misery, but it is they who are responsible for bringing him into the world. He doesn't understand why he should go on suffering just because that is what one is "supposed" to do. He tries to reason out the issue, telling himself that if someone gave you a present of a mad dog, you'd give it back.

Moritz then changes tack for a moment, commenting that the weather is cooperating with his plan, because the grey skies that have hovered overhead all day have not developed into rain. He becomes almost poetic: he remembers the last time he danced, and he thinks about his partner, recalling how low her dress was and wondering what was underneath the fabric. Moritz then begins to regret that he has not had sexual intercourse. He admits to himself that he would like to feel that kind of passion, and that he is probably missing a fundamental life experience. He decides that when he is dead he will pretend that he has done it, for there is something shameful about having failed to experience lovemaking. He grows melancholy and tells himself not to cry, not to think of his funeral, but then he cannot help it. He thinks about what his friends and teachers will do, and wonders whether he will have a gravestone. He looks back on the happy parts of his life, and decides that Melchior and the other people he's met are, for the most part, incredibly decent. He decides that when he dies he will think of whipped cream.

He begins to speak metaphorically, comparing his walk to an archaic Greek story of sacrifice. He speaks of how "grave faces beckon" and dismisses the idea that suicide is a sin. Just as Moritz seems to be building to a climax, he is surprised by Ilse, who appears out of the fog, asking him what he has lost. Ilse tells him she's come from town and is going home after having been away for four days. She asks Moritz to walk with her. Moritz asks her where she's been, to which she responds, "Where Priapus reigns." Moritz doesn't understand the reference, so she clarifies her answer, explaining that she's been at the houses of a series of artists who are painting her. She tells Moritz about her escapades with the different painters, telling him that she spent the last four nights with four different men. She asks Moritz whether he's still in school, and he tells her that he's leaving that term. She congratulates him, then starts reminiscing about how she, Moritz and Wendla used to play robbers. She asks about Wendla and Melchior, and Moritz tells her that Melchior "philosophizes."

Ilse mentions that Wendla brought her mother some jam while she was sitting for an extremely ugly artist - she was portraying Mary, mother of God. She asks Moritz whether he has a hangover, and he says that he has. He tells her that the landlord at the inn where they drank left Arabella, the beer-maid, alone with them all night. Ilse laughs at him and tells him she's never had a hangover, even at the last Carnival, when she didn't sleep for three days or nights. She then tells him about how she met Heinrich when he stumbled over her passed out in the snow, and moved in with him for two weeks. She tells Moritz that she had to dress up and pose for him, and that all the while he told her he was going to kill her and discussed the different ways he could do it. In the mornings, Heinrich would bring a pistol to bed and threaten to shoot her. Moritz asks whether he's still alive, and she replies that she doesn't know. Instead, she tells him about the mirror over the bed that gave her terrible dreams. She ran away one day, dressed in men's clothes, and the police picked her up. They took her to the station and all of her artist friends came to rescue her, so now she's faithful to them.

Moritz begins to leave Ilse, but she asks him to come to the house to drink warm goat's milk. She starts to tease him as if he were still a little boy, but Moritz insists he must go home to do some work. As he leaves, Ilse calls out another memory of their past before going inside. Moritz declares aloud that he could probably have had her at a word. But he wasn't in the mood, he insists - though it was a pity to miss the chance. He starts thinking about what he'll say after he's dead, and decides that he'll say he had a mirror over his bed, and that he made a girl walk across the carpet dressed up in different clothes, just like Heinrich did to Ilse. He also decides that he'll say he killed her. Moritz begins to scream about Ilse, about how he wishes he was her, how she is a "child of fortune, child of sunshine." He calms down for a moment, and begins to wonder how he's gotten to the place where he now finds himself. He notices how tall the reeds are, and takes out Melchior's mother's letter and burns it. He notices that the sun has gone down, and decides that he won't go home again.

Analysis

As Moritz talks himself into suicide, his speech communicates several things to his audience. First of all, it is immediately clear that when he spoke of suicide to his friends and Mrs. Gabor, he was not showing off or attempting blackmail. There is no sense that Moritz feels that he must go through with his plan simply because he has mentioned suicide. Wedekind seems to have a very modern understanding of the idea of suicide, recognizing that speaking of suicide is quite often a serious warning sign, and that it never helps to take it as a joke or a sign of weakness.

This scene, perhaps more than any other, reveals why Melchior and Moritz are such good friends. Moritz philosophizes about death in the same ironic, detached tone that Melchior uses when speaking about sex. Melchior doesn't understand why the world is so obsessed with sex; Moritz doesn't understand why it is so obsessed with life. Even now his greatest regret is that he has no personal experience of sex, but this longing is no tawdry desire for pleasure. Rather, Moritz seems to recognize what Melchior does not: that sex can be the most meaningful of human experiences.

Moritz works through all of the standard arguments about suicide - he doesn't believe that life is a gift one has to accept merely because it has been given. He is not under the illusion that his life has been particularly hard, or that he has had no happiness. One the one hand, Moritz's speech must arouse the audience's sympathy, but on the other hand, Moritz fails to give any reasonable explanation for his suicide. He does not in any way explain why life is a "mad dog."

Ilse's appearance onstage initially seems to suggest that Moritz is saved. Surely this conversation, so full of life and struggle and happiness in spite of suffering will prevent Moritz from going through with his plan. As Ilse describes her experiences with Heinrich to Moritz, however, Moritz becomes obsessed with one question: is Heinrich alive? When Ilse cannot answer, Moritz seems to withdraw. Despite Ilse's attempts to connect to Moritz both through past memories and her willingness to be honest with him, Moritz will not return her gestures. Rather than saving him, his encounter with Ilse only turns Moritz more firmly towards suicide.

Moritz's obsession with Heinrich makes sense, for Heinrich shared Moritz's suicidal tendencies and obsession with sex, but unlike Moritz, Heinrich experienced "everything" in life. Moritz wants to know whether Ilse saved Heinrich, whether passion saved him. However, not only does Ilse not know, she dismisses Heinrich as if he were nothing. Moritz tells himself that if anyone "afterwards" asks him about his sexual experience, he will tell Heinrich's story as if it were his own.

Moritz's reaction to Ilse also gives the reader a small clue as to the fundamental reasoning behind Moritz's suicide. Moritz screams that Ilse is a "child of fortune, child of sunshine." Moritz doesn't believe that events have conspired against him; he simply believes that he is doomed. Whatever happens to Ilse, she will survive and flourish, for she is a "child of fortune." Moritz sees nothing for himself but further despair.

Just before he shoots himself, he burns Mrs. Gabor's letter, but his reasons for doing so are unclear. Perhaps he is angry at Mrs. Gabor for failing to save him, or perhaps he is angry with himself for having approached her for help. Moritz's closing words are "I won't go home again now." Wedekind does not include the actual suicide, but merely leaves his audience with the knowledge that Moritz is committed to his final action.

The next scene begins with the teachers of the school - Calflove, Thickstick, Starveling, Bonebreaker, Stickytongue, and Flykiller - sitting around a table in the Faculty Room. Rektor Sunstroke is at the head of the table, and Catchemquick, the porter, is near the door. Sunstroke is lecturing the other teachers about the expulsion of a student. He feels that expulsion will make up for the harm that this student has already caused, as well as protect against future harm. He also comments that they must protect the school from a "suicide epidemic." When he asks if they have any comments, Thickstick asks him to open a window. For a few minutes the teachers argue about the window, as one of the two has been blocked up, and the other is above the head of Flykiller, who does not wish to have a window opened. Finally, they take a vote and decide not to open a window.

Sunstroke continues to make his case for expulsion, arguing that the Department of Education will blame them if they don't act swiftly and decisively. He comments that schools where a quarter of the student body has committed suicide have been "suspended" by the Minister of Education. He allows that this student might deserve some leniency, but feels that the situation is simply too serious to allow for it. He tells Catchemquick to bring the student up.

Stickytongue returns to the discussion about the window, and he and Flykiller argue until Sunstroke points out that the student has arrived. The student is Melchior. Sunstroke declares that after Rentier Stiefel learned of Moritz's suicide, he searched Moritz's room and discovered a filthy document that he believes may have destabilized Moritz's mind. The twenty page document, entitled "Copulation," was in dialogue form and extremely pornographic. It included detailed pictures and was "teeming with shameless indecencies."

Melchior tries to interrupt, but Sunstroke does not allow it. He goes on to say that Moritz's father gave them the document in question. They promised to look into the matter, and used handwriting comparison to determine that Melchior was the author. They decided that they should interrogate Melchior in order to prove that he was the guilty party. Again Melchior tries to speak, but Sunstroke tells him that he is only allowed to answer their questions with a "yes" or a "no". He begins interrogating Melchior, but after only a few questions a stuttering Stickytongue interrupts to argue that Melchior has only expressed serious thoughts about serious events, and that he "had the m-m-makings of a N-na-natural Scientist!" Stickytongue and Flykiller begin to argue again until Sunstroke interrupts them and continues his interrogation. He asks Melchior directly whether he is responsible for this "indecent document," and Melchior asks him in return to point out "one indecency." Sunstroke reiterates that Melchior can only answer "yes" or "no", and the interrogation quickly dissolves into Sunstroke wholeheartedly condemning Melchior and sending him from the room.

The next scene is set in a graveyard in the rain. The Pastor, Moritz's father, some family and friends, Rektor Sunstroke, Professor Bonebreaker, and the other boys from the school stand around the grave. Nearby, Ilse and Martha watch the proceedings. Pastor Skinnytum gives an angry sermon about how Moritz committed a grave sin, and declares that his actions should be a reminder to them all that there is no forgiveness for suicides. When he is done, Moritz's father begins to shovel earth over the grave, declaring that Moritz was "no son" of his. Rektor Sunstroke tosses down earth, fervently agreeing with the words of the Pastor, and Professor Bonebreaker utters a few final insults as he turns the soil.

These harsh words continue as the funeral breaks up. The event ends with Rektor Sunstroke and Professor Bonebreaker assuring Moritz's father that Moritz wouldn't have gotten his promotion in school. After they have left, Hanschen throws in his own spadeful of dirt and tells his friend to "rest in peace." He seems genuinely sad. The other boys discuss the suicide, wondering whether the pistol has been found, if he actually killed himself, and even how he did it - with a pistol, or with a rope. They begin discussing rumors about the condition of the body - some say that it had no head left at the end. Otto comments that Hanschen owes him five marks because he lost the bet about who would keep their place in school. Hanschen tells him that it's his fault Moritz killed himself, but Otto doesn't take him seriously.

The boys begin talking about their homework and wander away. Martha and Ilse now approach the grave and begin tossing in flowers. They say they will bring lots of fresh ones and plant roses on the grave. Ilse tells Martha she was just across the bridge when she heard the shot. She heard him say "parallelepipedon" just before he shot himself. Then she shows Martha the pistol: she took it out of Moritz's hand when she went by the next morning. Martha asks her for it, but Ilse says she'll keep it "as a souvenir." Martha asks Ilse whether it was true that his head was gone. Ilse tells her that "his brains were hanging from the willow branches."

Mr. and Mrs. Gabor are discussing Melchior. Mrs. Gabor insists that Melchior is being made to pay for Moritz's suicide because they need someone to blame. Mr. Gabor tells her that for fourteen years he's allowed her to make the decisions about how the children are raised, but now he will have his way about Melchior. Mrs. Gabor insists that she will not allow him to put Melchior in the Reformatory. She thinks that a "good boy" will be turned into a criminal if he is surrounded with other criminal natures. She doesn't see what Melchior has done that merits this punishment, and insists that she won't stand for it.

Mr. Gabor begins arguing his case, telling his wife that they have to accept this disappointment just as they accepted their happiness. He talks about how what she sees as "naughtiness" is a much more serious flaw. He spends a long time explaining to Mrs. Gabor why Melchior's actions indicate a serious vice rather than a childish mistake, and finally tells her that she loves Melchior so much because she sees herself in him, but that she must be strong for her son.

Mrs. Gabor refuses to listen, insisting that Melchior is not responsible for what happened to Moritz, and that the very fact that he wrote such things only demonstrates how much of a child he is. She tells him that she will leave him if he puts Melchior in a Reformatory. Mr. Gabor doesn't back down: he tells her that no matter what, he is going through with this, and that he will do his best to comfort her if she will let him. Mrs. Gabor continues to rage that she will not let this happen to her son. She is sure it will destroy him and that he will follow in Moritz's footsteps. Finally, Mr. Gabor tells her why he is so certain that Melchior is utterly corrupt. He explains that earlier that day a woman brought him a letter someone had sent to her daughter. The woman had opened the letter, which was purportedly from Melchior, telling the girl how sorry he is for what happened, and professing that he will pay the consequences. He also tells her that everything will be easier now that he has been expelled. Mrs. Gabor refuses to believe that the letter is from her son, and even Mr. Gabor seems to think that the letter is a forgery, but they both suddenly accept that even if Melchior didn't write the letter, the events it alludes to are both true and known to others.

Mr. Gabor tells his wife that if they send Melchior to another school the same kind of thing may happen, and now Mrs. Gabor accepts that he is right. Mr. Gabor continues to declare that the Reformatory will correct the way that Melchior has been raised and crush the malignant tendencies that have come out in him. Finally, he mentions that he has independently confirmed the truth of the letter, for Melchior has written to his brother asking to borrow two hundred marks in order to pay his way out of the country.

The next scene opens with Melchior in the Reformatory, standing around with several other boys. They are playing a game where they stand in a circle around a coin masturbating, and whoever ejaculates onto the coin first gets the coin. The other boys are enthusiastic, but Melchior refuses to participate, and the other boys make fun of him. Melchior says to himself that he should join them. If he doesn't make any friends, he believes he'll go crazy. He feels certain that he will either die or escape, and either is fine with him. He considers that one of the boys, Ruprecht, has been friendly to him, and decides to tell him some stories in exchange for his advice.

As the boys finish up, they shout "summa cum laude!" Ruprecht claims the coin, but the others dispute his win, and several of the boys eventually chase after him. Melchior is now alone, and he thinks about his escape, Wendla, and Moritz in a confused, mixed-up way. He wonders whether Wendla hates him, but then his thoughts turn to how he'll get a key to his cell. He decides he'll fake an epileptic fit during the service. He considers climbing out the window, but then he sees Dr. Procrustes enter. The doctor is speaking to a locksmith, telling him to put a grating of wrought iron on the window of the fourth floor.

Analysis

In the next scene, Wedekind villainizes both Rektor Sunstroke and most of the teachers almost to the point of comedy. The most vicious statement is Rektor Sunstroke's comment that they "have a duty to protect this institution from the ravages of a suicide epidemic which has already broken out in various other schools." Sunstroke believes that the teachers' job is to protect the school from any damage that the students can do to it. He doesn't appear concerned with protecting the students, nor with the possibility that something about this institution is what is driving these students to kill themselves.

The scene becomes almost implausibly ridiculous when the teachers interrupt Rektor Sunstroke's speech to engage in an argument about whether or not to open a window. The sheer banality of their argument cannot help but be compared to Melchior and Moritz's conversations, which were filled with philosophical arguments, discussions about books, and musings on everyday phenomena. Rektor Sunstroke and several other teachers insist that Melchior's behavior is depraved, and that he must be expelled to protect the other students from his influence. However, Melchior's expulsion not only indicates the puritanical and repressive nature of his community, but also signifies that the sole purpose of this educational institution has become self-protection, rather than education. By expelling Melchior, Rektor Sunstroke performs multiple functions: he appoints a scapegoat for Moritz's suicide, protects the school from accusations of depravity, and maintains the power structure of the institution. Melchior is dangerous because he is (or was) successful within the hierarchy of the school, but is also willing to exercise his own judgments upon that structure. By removing him, Rektor Sunstroke maintains his authority.

An interesting symbolism is inherent in the fact that Melchior is condemned for authoring a work that others consider profane. He is not allowed to defend himself or interpret his own work, and any possible positive interpretations are ignored. While this was Wedekind's first play, he was certainly aware of the reaction it would get, and the idea of the censored artist must have been in the forefront of his mind.

The theme of religion dominates this scene in Spring Awakening. Organized religion, represented by Pastor Skinnytum, Rektor Sunstroke and Moritz's father, is contrasted with the classical pagan beliefs represented by Ilse and Martha. In this scene, Pastor Skinnytum focuses on the idea of punishment, rather than forgiveness, and positions Moritz as a warning to others rather than as an object of pity. The funeral becomes almost a mockery of itself as the elements of tradition are carried out without the usual feeling behind them.

As the funeral ends, Moritz's suicide appears to degenerate from a tragedy into mere misbehavior. When Rektor Sunstroke tells Rentier Stiefel that Moritz would surely have failed out of school, this is his way of comforting him - Rentier Stiefel should not be sad that his son is dead, because one way or another, Moritz was going to shame him. Moritz's school friends speak about his suicide the way they speak about other school pranks. They discuss it for a few minutes, and then they are distracted by their own fears and worries.

Martha and Ilse are utterly foreign to the regular order. Their status as outcasts - one an abused child, the other the closest thing to a prostitute the village contains - allows them to stand apart from the religious community and ignore traditional ideas about punishment and shame. Unlike the others, they truly mourn Moritz. Ilse and Martha act out a pagan ritual of death, one that is supported by the substance of feeling. By filling Moritz's grave with flowers and promising to return with more, Ilse and Martha make a real attempt to keep Moritz's memory alive.

The next scene revolves around themes of women and men, authority, and punishment. Mr. and Mrs. Gabor have established a certain power structure in terms of their responsibility for Melchior. Mr. Gabor tells his wife,

for fourteen years I have observed in silence your "intelligent" methods of bringing up children. They were at variance with my ideas. My own conviction has always been that a child is not a plaything, that a child is entitled to our most solemn and serious attention, but I told myself that if the charm and intelligence of one parent could replace the serious principles of the other, then, possibly, they might deserve to do so.

Mrs. Gabor is completely opposed to the idea of punishing Melchior, for she refuses to see his actions as a crime. She focuses on the fact that Melchior is being made a "scapegoat" for Moritz's death, and does not believe that Melchior's "treatise" could have had anything to do with Moritz's suicide. Mr. Gabor, however, insists that "women are not qualified to judge of such matters. Anyone who could write what Melchior wrote must be rotten to the core." Mr. Gabor's actions demonstrate that in this community Mr. Gabor's control of his family is assumed and complete. However, the fact that Mr. Gabor at least feels that he must persuade his wife suggests that on an individual level the power structure is more flexible.

Mr. Gabor is successful in winning his wife over to his side, because he is able to prove that Melchior has not only written about sexually depraved things, but has actually committed a sexually depraved act. Mrs. Gabor's convictions are undermined by her horror at Melchior's actions. She believes that she is responsible for the event, and bows to Mr. Gabor's judgment even though her arguments against the Reformatory are untouched by Mr. Gabor's counter-arguments.

The Reformatory symbolizes both a true form of moral depravity and the logical consequences of this society's educational and social systems. The boys in the Reformatory are the product of secondary schools, as indicated by their shout of "summa cum laude!" They display the same competitive spirit valued by Melchior's school friends. However, thanks to their punishment, these boys have embraced the coarse sexuality that Melchior supposedly displayed in his writing. If Melchior were to stay at the Reformatory, one must assume that he would soon either kill himself or turn into one of these boys. Dr. Procrustes indirectly comments on the strength of their desire to escape when he tells the locksmith that one boy climbed out of the skylight in an attempt to get away. The boy was killed, leading one to wonder whether the incident was a true attempt at escape, or merely an escape by way of suicide.

Mrs. Bergman, Ina, and Dr. Fizzpowder are gathered around Wendla, who lies in bed. Dr. Fizzpowder is asking Wendla questions and explaining his advice to her mother. He tells Mrs. Bergmann that Wendla's illness is very similar to that of a Baroness he successfully treated. As he directs Wendla to take Blaud's pills as many times a day as she can stand, he explains why he made these choices for the Baroness as well. He encourages Wendla to eat as much as she can and get as much exercise as she can, and assures her that her symptoms will soon cease.

After the doctor has left, Ina stands by the window and tells Wendla that the plane tree has changed color, and that she must soon leave. She has to meet her husband and buy some clothing for her children. Wendla tells her that she is generally so very happy, but then she "get[s] the toothache" and she feels so miserable; her mother's reaction, she says, only makes her worse. Ina asks her if she can readjust her pillow, then Mrs. Bergmann comes back into the bedroom, happily telling Wendla that her "vomiting will die down" and everything will be fine. Ina agrees that Wendla will soon be well and kisses them goodbye.

Once Ina has left, Wendla asks her mother what the doctor told her outside the room. Mrs. Bergmann insists that he said only that the Baroness also fainted, which is a normal symptom of anemia. Wendla insists that it's not anemia, it's dropsy, and she feels sure she's going to die. Mrs. Bergmann insists that she won't die, but finally admits that Wendla is pregnant. Almost hysterical, she asks Wendla why she has done this to her. Wendla doesn't understand what her mother is talking about, but Mrs. Bergmann only continues to accuse her. Finally, it becomes clear that Wendla doesn't know how it happened; she admits that she and Melchior were in the hay, but insists that she never loved anyone but her mother. Her mother finally understands, and Wendla asks her why she didn't tell her what sex was when she first asked. Mrs. Bergmann says she couldn't have done anything differently; she'd only done as her own mother had done, and now they must hope for the best. Wendla hears someone at the door, and when Mrs. Bergmann opens it she sees Mother Schmidt. She tells her she's come at the right time and invites her inside.

The setting of the next scene is a vineyard: Hanschen and Ernst are "at the uppermost vine trellis, beneath the over-hanging cliffs, rolling in the drying grass." Ernst and Hanschen have been eating the grapes, and at are commiserating in their fullness. Hanschen makes a comment about the future, and Ernst describes a vision of himself as a "worthy pastor" with a wife, a library, and all the privileges that come with such respectability - though at the end his vision of "girls bring[ing] apples in through the garden door" becomes a bit lewd. Hanschen counters this by describing a life of pure sensual enjoyment. He argues that adults don't really consider respectability a worthy goal at all; they want the same things that he wants now. He argues that he wants to be rich; he wants to be one of the men who "skim the cream" rather than one of those who "knocks it over and bawls" or "churns it up and sweats."

Ernst agrees, and they continue along in this vein until Hanschen asks Ernst if he is "starting over," referring to the fact that the boys have masturbated to completion just before the beginning of the scene. Hanschen suggests that when they are old they will remember this moment as incredibly beautiful, and their double entendres continue until Hanschen kisses Ernst on the mouth. Ernst seems relieved and happy, saying he hadn't thought anything was going to happen. Hanschen suggests that "virtue" is overrated, and Ernst tells him that they are certainly not virtuous, but he was never happy until he knew Hanschen, and that he loves him. Hanschen tells him not to be "sad" and to think about how it will all seem when they are older.

Analysis

The scene between Wendla and her mother is both one of the saddest and one of the funniest in the play. Dr. Fizzpowder's obsession with his aristocratic patient, his rambling and unintelligible advice with its bevy of contradictions, and his gentle affection for Wendla create a picture of a bumbling country doctor who relies more on people's respect for his medical authority than on any actual knowledge. While this scene cannot help but undermine the idea of medical authority, it seems likely that the real target of Wedekind's pen is the village itself. While the village represents an enclave against unhealthy city living, the provincialism bred by this separatism leads to a lack of progress.

The tragic nature of this scene is heightened by Wendla's continued ignorance of what is going on around and inside her. Wendla's belief that she is dying recalls Moritz's fear that something was seriously wrong with him when he was only experiencing his first erection. Wendla and Moritz's only understanding of the physical is of health versus sickness. When their bodies undergo changes, they both believe that they are dying. Wendla's continued ignorance also sheds some light on Melchior's theory that "if you took two kittens...and shut them up together for life...sooner or later the she-cat would become pregnant." Melchior believes that sex is an instinctive act for people as well as cats, but what Melchior doesn't ask is whether the she-cat, or the girl, would ever understand what caused the pregnancy. Wendla may have instinctively understood what Melchior did to her, but she needs more information to understand that Melchior's rape led to her pregnancy.

When Mrs. Bergmann invites Mother Schmidt into the house, the audience might guess that she is there to administer an abortion. At that point, one should make note of the fact that Mrs. Bergmann had hoped to convince Wendla that she had anemia and bring about an abortion without her noticing. Despite everything that has happened, Mrs. Bergmann still wants to keep Wendla in a state of ignorance - or at least to allow herself to remain ignorant of what Wendla knows.

This scene is distinct from others in the play because it seems to infringe on the capabilities of stagecraft. Wedekind suggests the presence of a "cast of thousands," and Hanschen and Ernst must be separated from the others by a wide expanse of space. One possible explanation is that Wedekind expected Spring Awakening to be a "book drama": a play that is primarily read, rather than performed. Wedekind must have been aware of the controversy this play would create, and probably suspected that it was not likely to be performed as written. These suspicions proved correct, because for decades this play was only performed in a drastically censored version. This scene was typically cut from performances in Germany until the modern day.

While the scene would have been cut primarily for its depiction of homosexuality, it is also one of the bitterest satires of village social mores. Hanschen and Ernst reveal a serous lack of moral understanding, one which clearly results from the moral vacuum they were raised in. Hanschen believes, and convinces Ernst, that respectability, honesty, and integrity are all lies made up by adults to help them be happy with their own lives. He insists that the ideal life, the one that everyone would live if they could, is that of the thief who "skims the cream" rather than working for it. In the context of the play as a whole, one cannot be surprised that Hanschen would feel this way. In this scene, it is especially clear how Wedekind uses the voices of children to unleash a devastating critique of his society.

At the same time, Hanschen and Ernst provide the audience with a modicum of hope. Spring Awakening contains a great many deaths, and a great many blighted futures. One must wonder whether Martha will survive her father's beatings, whether Ilse will survive her love affairs, and whether a suicide epidemic will overtake this school, as well. Ernst and Hanschen, however, seem vital, happy, and alive. Though their views of the future may be twisted and sad, they do see a future for themselves. These boys are not afraid of growing up.

Melchior climbs into the town graveyard late one night in November. He has escaped from the Reformatory, and says out loud that "they" won't follow him here. The people from the Reformatory are looking for him in the places one looks for degenerates, such as brothels. He recognizes that he's in some trouble, for his clothes are a mess and he has no money. This is the hardest part of the journey, and suddenly Melchior wishes that he'd never run away. His words become confused: he asks why "it" had to happen to "her," and then begins to abuse himself verbally. He acknowledges that he is envious of those dead people in the graves, but that he is not brave enough to join them.

He begins searching for one grave in particular, and the atmosphere begins to affect him. He sees Wendla's tombstone, which claims she "died of Anemia," and proclaims "Blessed are the pure in heart." Melchior calls himself her murderer, but knows he must get away. Suddenly, Moritz Stiefel appears carrying his head under his arm. He tells Melchior to wait, for he won't get another chance quite like this one. Melchior is surprised, but oddly at ease with the scene. Moritz tells him that he, Melchior, knocked over his cross when he climbed the wall. Now Melchior reacts, insisting that this thing isn't Moritz. Moritz tells Melchior to take his hand, saying that the dead sit and watch the living, and are constantly entertained by what they see. He lectures Melchior on the superiority of being dead, and promises Melchior that if he just takes his hand, he will experience it too.

Moritz begins talking to Melchior about watching his own funeral and how entertaining it all was. Melchior is slightly horrified, and Moritz's words grow bitter. He tells Melchior that people deserve to be laughed at, that they cannot be forgiven for their ignorance. Melchior asks him if the dead can "forget," and Moritz says that they "can do anything." Moritz begins to list all of the things they see and understand, from beggars' contentment in their poverty to the parents who have children in order to demean them. Once more Moritz presses Melchior to take his hand, reminding him that this is a miraculous opportunity. Melchior says that if he takes Moritz's hand, it will be because he has no courage left, and he hates himself.

Suddenly a man in a mask enters the stage. He tells Melchior that he is too weak to make such a decision and tells Moritz to "go away." As he shoos Moritz away, the man asks him why he's carrying his head. Moritz says that it's because he shot himself. The man dismisses him, treating him as if there was nothing strange about his wanderings outside the grave, just something vaguely pathetic. Moritz begs to be allowed to stay, just for a little while, and the man forces him to admit that everything he said was a lie. The man turns to Melchior and tells him to trust him and he will make sure he survives. Melchior asks the man whether he is his father. The man suggests that he would surely know his father by his voice, but Melchior disagrees. The man tells him that his father is currently busy with his mother, and that he will help Melchior understand; he tells him that hunger is the cause of his hopelessness. Melchior seems confused about whom to believe, but he vehemently disagrees that a good meal will fix his problems. The man assures Melchior that Wendla did not die in childbirth, but rather from abortion pills given to her by Mother Schmidt. Melchior wants to know who the man is, but the man says that unless Melchior trusts him he will never know him. Melchior threatens to give his hand to Moritz unless the man tells him who he is, but now Moritz tells him that the man is right and that Melchior should go with him.

Melchior tries to question the man to see if he is trustworthy, but he learns nothing concrete, and the man grows weary of his questions. Finally, Moritz threatens to leave if they don't stop fighting. The man and Moritz begin discussing Moritz's suicide, which he now very much regrets. The man tells him that his beliefs about his parents were wrong, and it becomes clear that the man was present at Moritz's death and almost succeeded in talking him out of it.

Moritz decides that he must now retire, and Melchior says goodbye, having apparently decided to put himself in the masked man's hands. Moritz asks Melchior's forgiveness, and the man in the mask tells him to find peace in the fact that he has "nothing" while Melchior must hold onto his "enervating doubt about everything." Melchior tells Moritz he will never forget him, and he and the masked man depart. Moritz, alone, decides he will go put his grave to rights, lie down in it, and "smile."

Analysis

In this last scene, Melchior's actions reaffirm his position as the moral center of the play. It is possible to forgive Melchior for all of his bad actions because, unlike the other characters, Melchior understands both his crime and his punishment. Melchior yearns to make reparations for his misdeeds. He searches for Wendla's grave so that he can wallow in his guilt - and perhaps even build up the courage to kill himself. Wendla's grave reads "Blessed are the pure in heart," indicating that, unlike Moritz, Wendla was allowed to take her secrets to the grave. For Melchior, these words must be a painful reminder of the exact nature of his crime against Wendla.

Melchior's encounter with Moritz forces him to confront his longing for death head-on. Moritz gives him every opportunity to give in to his longings, and indeed, Moritz's argument for death is persuasive at first. Death seems to give Moritz what he never had in life - the distance required to distinguish between actual worth and the appearance of worth. When Moritz says, "I was among the mourners at my funeral. A most entertaining experience!" one can almost imagine him laughing at the petty, cruel human beings more interested in the tenets of their religion than in the death of a child. Of course, once Moritz says, "I bawled with the best of them, and then slipped over the cemetery wall to hold my sides laughing," he unwittingly reveals that he did not attend his own funeral, for no one shed a tear at the event.

Melchior is truly tempted by Moritz's offer only when Moritz holds out the possibility of oblivion. If Melchior could be certain that death would allow him to forget everything he's done and everything he's lost, he might have the courage to go through with it. This possibility does not exist for the audience: Moritz's lies, his inability to rest, negate any chance that suicide could allow one to forget. When the man in the mask appears onstage, Melchior and Moritz's discussion becomes purely academic. It is clear that Melchior is not going to kill himself, and that the man in the mask is going to intervene.

The question on everyone's lips - Melchior's, Moritz's, the audience's - is, of course, who is the man in the mask? There is no satisfactory answer to this question. Wedekind's language is loose, open to interpretation. However, some theories are better supported by the text then others. For example, some suggest the man in the mask is the author himself, a theory supported primarily by the fact that Wedekind played this role several times. Others suggest that he is God or the Devil, a possibility that should be examined further. Several elements of the scene lend credence to the idea that the man in the mask is God. First, Melchior asks the man whether he is his father. The man says that he is not, but suggests Melchior knows that, because he would have recognized his father by his voice. Melchior denies this fact: his father is both present and forgotten, infinitely close and infinitely distant - the paternal image of God. Similarly, later in the scene, when Melchior insists he needs to know who he is, the man in the mask replies, "You can't get to know me unless you entrust yourself to me." This proposition seems close to the religious notion that each Christian has an individual relationship with God, that the Christian soul knows God by entrusting itself to God. The final piece of evidence in favor of this theory is Moritz's ardent desire to stay with the man in the mask. He begs: "Please don't send me away...Don't send me away. Please! Let me join you for a while. I won't cross you in any way." As a lost soul, Moritz would yearn for the presence of God the way he seems to yearn for the man in a mask.

While this evidence may seem quite compelling, Wedekind makes it clear that there can be no decisive resolution of the matter. First of all, Melchior seems to realize that the figure is neither God nor the Devil, for he says to Moritz, "Where this man is taking me I don't know. But he is a man..." Second, and most importantly, although Melchior is ultimately "saved" by his meeting with the masked figure, this "saving" seems completely removed from any religious component. Nothing about the final scene of the work redeems the fact that religion is ridiculed throughout Spring Awakening.

If Spring Awakening ends with any kind of positive action, with any kind of moral center, it can be found in the man in the mask's final words to Moritz and Melchior: "To you the soothing consciousness that you have nothing, to you the enervating doubts about everything." Life may be difficult and messy and full of guilt, it may consist solely of "enervating doubts about everything," but it is nevertheless superior to death. This statement resonates with the play as a whole, for while Spring Awakening seems to criticize everything and to undermine all authority, all beliefs, and all kinds of families, it does not ultimately suggest that they are worthless.

• Biography of Frank Wedekind
• About Spring Awakening
• Character List
• Major Themes
• Glossary of Terms
• Short Summary
• Full Summary and Analysis
• Summary and Analysis of I, i - I, ii
• Summary and Analysis of I, iii - I, v
• Summary and Analysis of II, i - II, ii
• Summary and Analysis of II, iii - II, vi
• Summary and Analysis of II, vii
• Summary and Analysis of III, i - III, iv
• Summary and Analysis of III, v - III, vi
• Summary and Analysis of III, vii
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