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The rock musical, "Spring Awakening" raises a range of interesting questions. Specifically Wedekind focuses on the at the time taboo topic of the complexities of adolescent sexuality and growing up. This is part of the author's larger criticism of German narrow-mindedness and lack of imagination on the part of parents and teachers in a very conservative culture. The author is higly critical of German schools at the time and depicts a teacher's brutal treatement of his students. The play pleads by implication for greater tolerance and a more realistic recognition of the sexual nature of boys and girls in their teens-- at the time a taboo topic and one thar\t is still controversial in our society today.
The play highlights how tragic the failure to be honest about such problems can become.
It is true that German schools at the time were strict. And corporal punishment was administered. This was not unlike the situation in the home. The situation was similar throughout most of Europe and America at the time. I do not know if corporal punishment was more severe in Germany than other countries. Perhaos this was the case, but we do not know of any actua; proof that this was the case, Judged on contemprary standards this would be seen as cruel and repressive. And the society was sexually repressive. Thus the issues Wedekind raises are fair ones to consider. What
Wedekind does not provide in his play, is the quality of education provided by German schools at the time. Nor does his play address the fact that many German children recalled their teachers with considerable respect and affection.
The play touches on some basic philosophical issues. Rock mussicians in particular like to pursue the theme of pure, innoncent youth, repressed by cruel, authoritative society. And some authors have connected authoritative German schools and parents with the degree to which Germans accepted the NAZI dictatorship. There is an alternative phiosophica view, that humans are by nature savage and need to be tamed by society. This view comes out in Goldings
Lord of the Flies. A reader's assessmrnt of 'Spring Awakening' will probably be determined by where he falls in this classic debate.
Wedekind of course did not have the advantage of hindsight. He did not have the opportunity to experience the much more open school and social environment in German or American schools after World War II. The people who staged the rock musical of course did. The director and actors in this production see themselves as being edggy and provative. This would have been the case when Wedekind wrote the play. It is not the case today. The eddy presentation is the other side of the issues raised. The production ignores the full imact of losening social contraints. With its represiveness, German schools were among the best in the world. The youth graduating from German schools were prepared to pursue productive lives. Compare this to the American inner-city schools where Discipline virtually does not exist. Young peopke graduate who are barely literate. There are constant reports of assults in the schools. Sexual repression is another issue. But it is more the children in modern American schools that are likely to torment other children. Teachers and parents are likely to be much more sympsthetic. Or look at the number of abortions than teenage girls are having. Wedenkind raises the specter of teenage girls dieing because abortions were illegal. This is a fair concern. What rock musicals and the larger Hollywood community do not mention. is tragic development in inner city schools. Black youth today are aborting more pregnancies than having babies--something like 60 percent. This is a level approaching genocide. Is so it must be the first time in history that an ethnic group has chosen to commit genocide on itself. These are facts that the stock answers presented in the rock musical production ignore. We have no problem with raising these issues, but we wonder where are the musicals about the problems associated with other side of the issues that Wedekind raises.
The play is only about the damage narrow-minded bourgeois attitudes can do to children during their
rearing. Certainly is is a fair question to ask and consider. But one has to ask why or their know plays about the other part of the question. Part of the bourgeois attitudes criticised here is making sure that children get a good education and that they take their studies seriously to prepare themselves. Our question is, whu are there no rock musicals about youth who make no effort to prepare themselves for a productive life? Nor do we see rock musicals about all the lives ruined because of dysfunctional schools or the millions of lives lost through abortions as a result of our sexually open society. The artistic community only seems willing to provide a narrow range of ideas. And we do not see any appreciation for the fact that the fact that the bourgeois society being criticiased (both in Germany and America) were the envy of people all over the world. Scientific and technical advances were propelling astonishing increases in productivity. Much of this was die to the educationalmsystem bring criticized here. And material success was attracting immigrants from other less prosperous countries. America is well known for immigration, but immigrants also flowed into Germany as well, albeit to a much smaller extent. There are of course no rick musicals celebrating the huge acconplishments that for the first time in human history was making it possible for the average person to lead confortable lives.
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