Watch on the Rhine

by Lillian Hellman

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Characters Discussed

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Fanny Farrelly

Fanny Farrelly, the head of a distinguished Washington family. She eagerly awaits the return of her daughter, Sara, who has spent many years abroad with her German husband, rearing a family and helping him in his anti-Fascist efforts. Fanny disapproved of the marriage but is now eager to make amends. She is out of touch with what has been happening in Europe, but she responds well to Kurt’s explanation of his activities on behalf of the men and women who have opposed Adolf Hitler. Fanny is so moved by Kurt’s humane efforts on behalf of his fellow human beings that she conspires with him in the murder of Teck de Brancovis, who plans to inform on Kurt to the German embassy.

David Farrelly

David Farrelly, Fanny’s good-looking son, who has struggled under the shadow of a famous father. David falls in love with Marthe de Brancovis and helps Kurt survive Teck’s scheme against him.

Marthe de Brancovis

Marthe de Brancovis, Teck’s attractive wife, an American who has tired of her husband’s gambling and his generally dissolute life. She is a guest in Fanny’s home and falls in love with her son David.

Teck de Brancovis

Teck de Brancovis, a Romanian nobleman who gambles away his funds and decides to turn in Kurt Muller to the German embassy, which is sure to pay Teck for his efforts. Teck is suave but contemptuous of Americans, including his hostess, Fanny.

Kurt Muller

Kurt Muller, Sara’s husband and the play’s hero, a vulnerable man. His hands have been broken in torture, and he dreads returning to Europe, even though he knows that he must leave to rescue his compatriots who are in jail or are facing imminent extermination by the Nazis. Kurt is eloquent yet modest about his role in history. He impresses Fanny with his sincerity and determination and is instrumental in arousing her awareness of the threat to civilization that Fascism poses.

Sara Muller

Sara Muller, Kurt’s dedicated wife, who has had to brook her mother’s displeasure over her marriage. She wins Fanny over, however, with her dedication to Kurt and her family. Sara, in fact, articulates many of the emotions and opinions that Kurt keeps to himself. In this sense, she is his interpreter, saying in her own words what it has meant to follow him and to dedicate herself to his cause.

Bodo Muller

Bodo Muller, Kurt and Sara’s precocious child. Like Sara, he often expresses in blunt fashion opinions about freedom and democracy that Kurt only implies in his manner and halting speech. Bodo injects some humor into the play with his youthful sense of importance.

Babette Muller

Babette Muller, the middle child in the Muller family. She is much like her mother, supporting the family’s political commitment and feeling a solidarity with her father.

Joshua Muller

Joshua Muller, Kurt’s son. As the oldest child in the family, he feels a special responsibility for carrying on his father’s mission.

Characters

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Anise

Anise is a sixty-year-old French woman employed as the Farrelly family’s maid. As the play begins, she is seen organizing the household's mail. She is a dignified woman who frequently stands her ground against Fanny Farrelly’s domineering behavior. Whenever Fanny becomes anxious or agitated, Anise advises her to "compose" or "contain" herself. Anise often involves herself in the family’s affairs, leading Fanny to label her a "snooper," a term Fanny says indicates "an interest in life."

Countess Marthe de Brancovis

Marthe de Brancovis, in her early thirties, is the daughter of a...

(This entire section contains 1959 words.)

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friend of Fanny’s. She and her husband, Count Teck de Brancovis, have been residing with the Farrelly family. Marthe is in a tense relationship with her controlling husband and confesses during the play that she is in love with David Farrelly. She tries to explain her marriage to a man she professes never to have loved by revealing that her mother compelled her to marry him at seventeen. She admits that she complied with her mother’s demands out of fear. Reflecting on her timid nature, Marthe admits, "maybe I’ve always been frightened. All my life."

However, Marthe begins to find strength through her connection with David, which encourages her to confront her husband, Teck. When Teck questions her feelings for David, she initially retorts that it is none of his concern. After Teck continues to press her, she confesses her love for David. Her growing defiance is evident when Teck mentions his plans to play poker at the German Embassy and rekindle ties with the Nazis, to which Marthe sarcastically responds, "Your favorite dream, isn’t it . . . that they will let you play with them again." She starts to assert herself when Teck inquires if she has developed political beliefs, stating she is uncertain but is sure she dislikes the Nazis. Her newfound courage also leads her to oppose Fanny, whom she believes has controlled David’s life and tried to mold him into his father’s successor.

Count Teck de Brancovis

Count Teck de Brancovis is a striking forty-five-year-old Romanian, married to Marthe. Fanny remarks that Teck was "fancy" when Marthe wed him, but he is no longer so, though he remains "chic and tired . . . the way they are in Europe." Hellman offers limited details about his background. It appears he has had previous ties with the Nazis, as Marthe criticizes him for his desire to reconnect with the Germans at the Embassy. Marthe warns him not to waste his efforts on them, suggesting "they seem to have had enough of you. . . . It would be just as well to admit they are smarter than you are and let them alone."

Teck, much like Kurt, is an expatriate, but his reasons differ. Kurt alludes to why Teck left his country when he mentions that Teck wishes to return, "but they do not much want" him back. Teck uses this shared experience to persuade Kurt to give him money, claiming, "we are both men in trouble. The world, ungratefully, seems to like your kind even less than it does mine."

Despite their similarities, Teck is Kurt’s ethical antithesis. He intimidates his wife and attempts to profit by betraying another person's life to secure money and a way back to his homeland. Although Teck seems to possess a conscience, it doesn't stop him from engaging in blackmail. When Fanny confronts him, expressing her disgust at his demands, Teck acknowledges the situation "is very ugly... I do not do it without some shame, and therefore I must sink my shame in money."

Teck demonstrates his cunning by planning to extort Kurt after unlocking a suitcase full of money and uncovering Kurt’s true identity. He also seeks to involve Kurt’s naive children. When Teck questions Bodo about his father's skills as an electrician and "as good with radio," Kurt realizes Teck's intention to gather incriminating information and sternly instructs Teck to direct his inquiries to him.

David Farrelly

David Farrelly, a thirty-nine-year-old attorney working at his late father’s firm, initially comes across as pleasant yet feeble. He confesses, "Mama thinks of me only as a monument to Papa and a not very well made monument at that. I am not the man Papa was." His mother largely controls his life. However, his affection for Marthe and the harsh realities of Kurt’s predicament compel him to assert himself.

David starts to assert himself against his mother, who disapproves of his interest in Marthe. He refuses to end his relationship with her. His feelings for Marthe also lead him to confront Teck. When Teck questions David about Marthe, David curtly tells him that it is none of his business. The tension between the two escalates when Teck reveals his plan to blackmail Kurt. After Teck offers his opinion on the German character, David retorts angrily, "Oh, for God’s sake, spare us your moral judgments." As Teck outlines his blackmail plot, David approaches him menacingly, declaring, "I’m sick of your talk. We’ll get this over with now, without any more fancy talk from you. I can’t take much more of you at any cost."

David faces his most significant challenge when he has to deal with Kurt's murder of Teck. At first, both he and his mother are in shock. However, when Kurt presents them with two options—either to report him immediately or allow him two days to flee—David quickly assures him, "Don't worry about things here. I'll take care of it. You'll have your two days." By the play's conclusion, David has transformed into a self-assured man, stepping out from beneath his father's shadow.

Fanny Farrelly

Fanny, the 63-year-old head of the Farrelly family, is high-strung but fundamentally kind-hearted, although she tries to dominate everything within her reach. Her need for control has driven a wedge between her and her daughter. When Sara first married Kurt, Fanny cut ties with her daughter because, as David explains, "they didn’t let her arrange it." She has been more successful in exerting her influence over her son. Constantly, she reminds him that he doesn't measure up to the image of her cherished late husband, and for most of his life, David has allowed her to wield this power over him. Marthe confronts Fanny about her domineering behavior towards David, saying, "I am sick of watching you try to make him into his father." Marthe compels Fanny to acknowledge the harmful effects of her treatment of David by comparing Fanny to her own mother, who pushed her into a loveless marriage. Marthe concludes that while Sara "got away," David has been stifled by his mother's control. She tells Fanny, "I don’t think you even know you do it and I don’t think he knows it, either. And that’s what’s most dangerous about it."

Joshua, Sara's son, highlights Fanny's ignorance about the difficulties her daughter and family have endured, noting that his grandmother "has not seen much of the world." Fanny admits to this lack of awareness by the end of the play and acknowledges her newfound understanding of the family's harsh realities when she tells David, "We are shaken out of the magnolias, eh?"

Fanny's resilience, much like David's, is most evident at the conclusion of the play when Teck attempts to extort money from Kurt. Initially, she offers Teck money to persuade him to leave Kurt alone. Later, she, like her son, must confront the reality that Kurt has just committed murder. Though initially stunned, she quickly regains her composure and assures Kurt of her support. She gives him the money she had intended for Teck, instructing him to use it for their cause. Her bravery, coupled with recognizing the same trait in her son, strengthens her connection with David. After they resolve to assist Kurt, David cautions her, "We are going to be in for trouble." Fanny, however, confidently replies, "We will manage. I’m not put together with flour paste. And neither are you—I am happy to learn."

Joseph

Joseph is the middle-aged Black butler for the Farrelly family. Like Anise, he is unafraid to challenge Fanny's dominant personality.

Babette Müller

Babette, the twelve-year-old daughter of Sara and Kurt, is part of a family that has lived a nomadic life. Despite this, the children are well-educated and fluent in multiple languages. Babette and her brother Bodo are deeply distressed when they learn their father must return to Germany without them.

Bodo Müller

Bodo, the nine-year-old son of Sara and Kurt, is deeply committed to his father's cause. This is evident when he tells his grandmother, "if we are to fight for the good of all men, it is to be accepted that we must be among the most advanced." Bodo shows his philosophical side when his mother and grandmother argue, advising them to avoid anger and instead focus on something meaningful, "for the good of other men." He shares a special connection with Fanny, recognizing their shared traits of strong opinions and kind hearts.

Joshua Müller

Joshua, at fourteen, is the oldest and most pragmatic of the Müller children. After his father incapacitates Teck, Joshua remains calm and assists in moving the body to the terrace where Kurt ultimately kills him.

Kurt Müller

Kurt, a "large, powerful," forty-seven-year-old German, is married to Sara. For the past seven years, he has been involved with the anti-fascist underground, risking his life. His bullet scars and broken bones bear witness to his suffering in the fight for the cause. He became politically active in Germany after witnessing the suffering of his people and the murder of twenty-seven men in a Nazi street fight. This led him to decide not to "stay by now and watch."

He displays deep affection and concern for his family, yet prioritizes his dedication to the cause above all else. He endangers both his family's well-being and his own by refusing to be blackmailed by Teck. Kurt clarifies that the money was not intended to secure his own life or provide comfort for his family, even though it could have helped feed them. He shows his stoic character when Fanny questions why he must bear the responsibility of fighting the Nazis despite having a family, arguing that anyone could find an excuse to avoid committing to the cause.

His primary focus is on "saving lives and furthering the work" of others resisting the Nazis. To achieve this, he is willing to commit murder, despite the anguish it brings to him and his family. In trying to justify his actions, he asks Fanny and David, "does one understand a killing?" He likens his actions to the necessity of killing in wartime. However, he acknowledges, "I have a great hate for the violent. They are the sick of the world. Maybe I am sick now too." Bernard F. Dick, in an article for American Writers Supplement, observes that when Kurt apologizes to his children for the murder, he references Jean Valjean from Les Miserables, inviting a comparison "between the theft of bread and the murder of a fascist." According to Dick, this allows Kurt to both accuse and absolve himself simultaneously.

Sara Müller

Sara Müller, Fanny’s daughter and Kurt’s wife, demonstrates her independent spirit by ignoring her mother's wish for her not to marry Kurt. Although she becomes nostalgic for the comforts of her childhood upon returning to the Farrelly home, she tells her family that she has lived a happy and fulfilled life despite its challenges. She fully supports Kurt’s risky endeavors and remains composed after he kills Teck, tidying the room as if she has handled such responsibilities before.

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