The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui Background

The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui Background

The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui is a play that was published in 1941. It is subtitled “A parable play” and is a satirical allegory of Hitler and the Nazis rise to power before World War Two. This play was written by Bertolt Brecht, a German playwright, who actually moved out of Germany in 1933, before the play was even published. Brecht has also written poetry that called Hitler “the house painter.” He moved around, going everywhere from Paris to Prague, and he ended up in Denmark for six years. Here, he worked on another satirical work, resembling that of a Renaissance historian; Ui was about Hitler once again. The protagonist of this work was named Giacomo Ui, who was a machine politician in Padua, and Ui was published with his short story collection.

Brecht wrote The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui during the three weeks that he was waiting for his American visa in Helsinki, Finland. This play was aimed at Americans, and it was not published and produced in America until 1961. Highly satirical of Hitler's rise to power in Germany and the rise of Nazi Germany, the protagonist of the play is named Arturo Ui, and is is a made up Chicago mobster who physically destroys his opposition, a strong political statement during that time of WWII. Ui parallels Hitler, Roma parallels Ernst Rohm, Dogsborough parallels von Hindenburg, and more. Every big event in the play has a real life counterpart, and the work is a clear allegory of Hitler and Nazi Germany before WWII.

Update this section!

You can help us out by revising, improving and updating this section.

Update this section

After you claim a section you’ll have 24 hours to send in a draft. An editor will review the submission and either publish your submission or provide feedback.