Copenhagen (Masterplots II: Drama, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Michael Frayn
- First Published: 1998
- Type of Plot: History; problem play
- Time of Work: September, 1941
- Setting: The home of Niels and Margrethe Bohr, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Principal Characters: Werner Heisenberg, Niels Bohr, Margrethe Bohr
- Genres: Drama, Problem play, War drama, History play
- Subjects: World War II, Nazism or Nazis, Morality or morals, Atomic bomb, Physics or physicists
- Locales: Copenhagen, Denmark
The Play
The action of Copenhagen concerns a visit made by the German physicist Werner Heisenberg to the Copenhagen home of Niels Bohr in September, 1941. The play is actually several retellings of the same event, with variations in each telling. As the play opens, Bohr and his wife Margrethe are inside their house discussing the reasons for Heisenberg’s visit. Exposition makes it immediately clear that all three characters in the play have long been dead, and that they are reliving the events of the visit. World War II is raging, and the Germans are occupying Denmark....
[The entire page is 2082 words long]
See Also:
See Also:
- - Copenhagen summary and study guide in the eNotes.
- Add Copenhagen to your favorites