The Robbers

Description

The Robbers was the first drama written by Friedrich Schiller. It was originally published in 1781 and was first performed in Germany in 1782. It was very popular and made Schiller an overnight success. It tells the story of Karl and Franz Moor, sons to Count Maximilian of Moor - two brothers who not only have very different characters, but who are also treated very differently by their father. Franz is the least favourite and spends his time thinking of ways of how he can claim his father's inheritance, which, as the youngest son, he currently has no right to. This of course, means getting both his brother and his father out of the way. His scheme is immediately strengthened when he forges a letter to his father, falsely detailing all the bad things his brother is doing whilst studying in another city, a result of which is the Count disinheriting his oldest son. This leads to event after event, where each brother fights for their own survival with the circumstances they have found themselves in - one by their own doing, the other by someone else's.

The five-act play explores power, masculinity, personal liberty, and good and evil.

№ 73 in Anne Haight's List of Banned Books.

This book has 109 pages in the PDF version, and was originally published in 1781. This translation by Alexander Fraser Tytler was first published in 1792.

Production notes: This ebook of The Robbers was published by Global Grey on the 23rd July 2021. The artwork used for the cover is 'View of Neuschwanstein Castle' by Hubert Sattler.