Moral

Thoma, Ludwig, 1867-1921Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.4

Word count: 137K words
Chapters: 14

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Moral by Ludwig ThomaAuthor: Thoma, Ludwig, 1867-1921,Language: English, Class: PT: Language and Literatures: Germanic, Scandinavian, and Icelandic literatures, Release Date: Jan 1, 2004

Editor's review

Ludwig Thoma's Moral is a play with a satirical edge, built around the gap between the moral posturing of respectable society and real desire. Its strength lies in advancing conflict through dialogue and scene, writing hypocrisy, public opinion, and class respectability with wit and a sure sense of the stage; readers can watch the moral performance of early twentieth-century German bourgeois society dismantled layer by layer. As a public-domain electronic text it is short, suited to theater lovers, students of German literature, and readers interested in social satire for concentrated reading in a short time. Note the mismatch between characters' words and actions, and how the author lets criticism emerge naturally through comic scenes. Read alongside the social history of modern Germany for a clearer grasp of the satire in the play's moral rhetoric.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Theater readers who enjoy social satirical comedy and stage dialogue
Students of German literature who need modern dramatic texts
General readers interested in moral hypocrisy and the machinery of public opinion
Readers who prefer short, close reading and public-domain etexts

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting long-form narrative and finely drawn psychological fiction
Beginners unused to drama and dialogue form
Readers who need detailed notes and a Chinese translation as support

Reading tips

Read the whole play once to grasp the arc of conflict, then revisit the double meanings and ironies in key exchanges.
Try reading aloud by role to feel the rhythm of the lines and their stage effect.
After reading, consult background on bourgeois moral discourse and sort out the targets of satire.
Use notes to list where characters' words and deeds diverge, and sum up the layers of the author's critique.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is Moral a novel or a play?

From the available information, it is a literary work by Ludwig Thoma in the German literature category. The text proceeds mainly through dramatic dialogue and scene, so it is better read by scene for conflict than tracked as a novel's plotline. For specific genre information, consult the title note and classification in the ebook text.

Can I understand it without knowing German history?

The main conflict is understandable, since its core—the tension among respectability, public opinion, and private desire—is universal across contexts. Knowing the moral discourse and class habits of early twentieth-century German bourgeois society deepens appreciation of the satire's target. A brief introduction to the period before reading is recommended.

Is this electronic edition suitable for classroom teaching?

It is short and dialogue-centered, suitable for close reading as a dramatic text or for discussion of social satire. Since public-domain electronic editions usually lack detailed notes, teachers may supply background and vocabulary explanations; students can read scene by scene, then discuss character motives and moral discourse in class.

Comments

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About the author

Thoma, Ludwig, 1867-1921 Author

Ludwig Thoma (1867–1921) was a German-language writer active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The library holds six of his works, including Der Postsekretär im Himmel, und andere Geschichten; Nachbarsleute; Erinnerungen; Moral; and pieces in volumes seven and eight of Deutsche Humoristen. These titles show him to have been skilled in short stories and essay-like narratives, often drawing on everyday life and provincial manners, with a humorous and satirical tone that gently mocks the situation of ordinary people and social conventions. His memoir Erinnerungen records personal observations and the spirit of his time, offering clues to the background of his writing. Public information about his life and literary standing is limited; this note sketches his work only from the titles held, focusing on theme and style for readers' reference.