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1
Why does Claire rename her husbands, her butler, her eunuchs, and her henchmen? What might this suggest about the relationship between power and dehumanization?
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2
By the end of the play, has Claire truly bought herself justice? At what price?
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3
What is the reason for Guellen's impoverished state? How does this reason propel the conclusion of the play?
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4
Of what crime or crimes is Ill guilty? Does he ever achieve redemption?
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5
How do Claire, the townspeople, and Ill relate to "the rule of law"? Do they consider themselves "above" the law, or do they submit to its dictates?
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6
What is significant about the scene at the railway station where Ill attempts to escape Guellen?
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7
How does this play criticize the Church?
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8
Why does Claire keep Ill's body? What might this mean for her string of marriages?
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9
What is the role of the press in the play? How do they interpret the events taking place in Guellen? How does Duerrenmatt appear to view the press?
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10
What is significant about the fate of the black panther that Claire has brought with her to Guellen?
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11
Guellen is a "just" community. Agree or disagree?
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12
Why do the Schoolmaster's humanist values ultimately fail?
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13
Claire says to the Doctor and the Schoolmaster: "Feeling for humanity, gentlemen, is cut for the purse of an ordinary millionaire; with financial resources like mine you can afford a new world order. The world turned me into a whore. I shall turn the world into a brothel." Why is this speech significant, and what does it reveal about the effect of wealth?
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14
What is the significance of Claire's butler, both as a symbol and as a plot device?
The Visit
by Friedrich Duerrenmatt
The Visit Essay Questions
