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The First Constable
The Second Constable is the low-ranking officer who takes over for the First Constable in the play’s second and third acts and serves as an assistant to Pissani, the Superintendent, and the Maniac (in his disguises as Magistrate Malipiero and Captain Piccini). In fact, the Second Constable is played by the same actor as the First Constable, just with a ridiculous moustache, and Fo makes several jokes about their similar appearance. This functions as a foil for the Maniac’s constantly shifting disguises and suggests that people who join the police give up their sense of individuality and personality to become interchangeable pawns. Indeed, like the First Constable, the Second Constable is gullible and simple-minded, and his unconvincing lies frequently create problems for his colleagues.
The Second Constable Quotes in Accidental Death of an Anarchist
The Accidental Death of an Anarchist quotes below are all either spoken by The Second Constable or refer to The Second Constable. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Act 1, Scene 2 Quotes
MANIAC: (To CONSTABLE again) You got a brother who works here?
CONSTABLE: No.
MANIAC: (to STAGE MANAGER) Remind me not to appear in these cheap touring productions again. Can’t even afford a decent-sized cast.
VOICE OFF: Sorry (name of actor) …
PISSANI: For Christ’s sake. Do you mind?
MANIAC: Sorry, it’s the touring.
PISSANI: The greasy breakfasts!
MANIAC: The nylon sheets. Where were we?
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The Maniac points out that this new Constable is obviously being played by the same actor who played the last Constable, just now with a moustache. He takes the opportunity to poke fun at the production team itself (even though, in many performances, Fo is the one leading it). And then he and the actor playing Pissani commemorate about their sorry, rootless lives as professional touring actors. In this conversation, as in countless other moments throughout the play, Fo makes the actors appear to break character. It is all scripted, even though it is written in order to seem spontaneous. Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia solu
PISSANI: The second version.
CONSTABLE: What second version do you want?
SUPERINTENDENT: That one.
CONSTABLE: No. That’s the second first version.
PISSANI: Well where’s the first second version?
CONSTABLE: Here.
All three give file to MANIAC
ALL THREE: The second version!
MANIAC: So there has been a re-writing of events.
SUPERINTENDENT: A slight correction.
MANIAC: Yes?
SUPERINTENDENT: We corrected the time of the original interrogation in which we employed the…
MANIAC: The lies?
SUPERINTENDENT: … Er deception strategy. The session ended at eight instead of nearly midnight as previously stated.
MANIAC: You moved everything forward four hours.
PISSANI: Except the fall from the window. There were witnesses to that.
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After the Maniac concludes that the policemen broke the rules by lying to the anarchist and declares that they will have to face punishment for it, they conveniently produce this “corrected” version of their testimony. In theory, this new narrative is supposed to exonerate them by proving that their lies and manipulation ended four hours before the anarchist’s suicide (and so couldn’t have caused it). The cover-up is so shameless that it is hard to believe something like it could ever work—until one remembers how corrupt the Italian police are supposed to have been in this era. Indeed, the officers’ Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur.
MANIAC: Besides being evident garbage your stories lack the tiniest vestige of humanity. No warmth. No laughter. No pain. No remorse. SING! (Guitars) For God’s sake. Show a human heart beating beyond the sordid tangle of lies you have left in your wake. Before it is too late, give the public something to believe in. SING! (Cast begin to sing) Sing and they may forgive the superficial facts. Three tortured human souls, albeit they are policemen, singing their suspect’s song with him to cheer him through his darkest hour. The song of anarchy itself. “Our homeland is the whole world. Our law is liberty. We have but one thought, revolution in our hearts.”
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At the end of Act One, the Maniac makes another prescient accusation against the police: besides being liars and brutes, they are also inhuman. In becoming mercenaries for the state, professional torturers and manipulators, they have given up their very humanity. They are so cynical and brainwashed that they only know how to lie and manipulate—they can no longer relate to ordinary people’s emotions, experiences, and values because they only see ordinary people as pawns to use for their own political ends. In this way, the police couldn’t be any more different from Fo and his actors—who dedicate their lives Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic
Act 2, Scene 1 Quotes
PISSANI: I was just scaring him. You are the nutter!
SUPERINTENDENT: I’m a nutter!?
CONSTABLE: Please.
PISSANI: Well you bloody pushed him, chum!
SUPERINTENDENT: Did I? Did I? That is a laugh alright! All on my own, was I!
Suddenly all three realise at the same instant that the MANIAC is listening. They freeze. Slowly turn. The MANIAC has a beatific smile. Pause. No one speaks.
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The Constable claims to have pulled off the anarchist’s shoe while trying to save him from jumping out the window. This bald-faced lie immediately runs into a problem: the anarchist died with both shoes on. The Constable comes up with a twisted lie about galoshes, but the Superintendent runs out of patience, and the policemen end up arguing about who is in charge and who ordered what. The Maniac patiently watches while the policemen accuse each other of being the crazy one. Eventually, Pissani blurts out the information that everyone has been waiting for: the truth about who killed the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus ha
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The Second Constable Character Timeline in Accidental Death of an Anarchist
The timeline below shows where the character The Second Constable appears in Accidental Death of an Anarchist. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1, Scene 1
At Bertozzo’s orders, the Constable pulls out his handcuffs. But the Maniac quotes the penal code and declares that the...
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Holding the handcuffs, the Constable starts chasing the Maniac around the stage, but the Maniac threatens to bite him and...
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Bertozzo sends the Constable to lock the window. Then the Maniac threatens to jump down the stairs, so Bertozzo...
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...Bertozzo admits that the Maniac has even driven him crazy. Bertozzo grabs the Maniac, has the Constable open the door, and declares that the Maniac is free to jump down the stairs...
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Act 1, Scene 2
...tape recorder inside, and stands by the window. Inspector Pissani enters the office with a Second Constable —who is played by the same actor as the First Constable, just now with a...
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The Second Constable tells Pissani that a haughty newcomer wants to talk to him. Pissani greets the Maniac,...
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...Maniac formally introduces himself as Professor Marco Maria Malipiero from the High Court. Pissani and the Second Constable recoil in surprise; Pissani admits that he wasn’t expecting to meet the Magistrate yet. The...
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...lawyer would bomb a courthouse and only a corpse would bomb the Unknown Soldier’s grave. The Constable enthusiastically agrees.
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The Maniac asks who wrote in the transcript that “the anarchist smiled disbelievingly”—the Superintendent and Second Constable point at Pissani, who takes the blame. The transcript blames the anarchist’s “raptus” on his...
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...he will charge them with instigating the man’s suicide. At the Superintendent and Pissani’s behest, the Constable insists that neither man was present in the interrogation room when the anarchist died.
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...At the Maniac’s urging, they agree that they all felt moved by the anarchist’s sadness. The Constable claims to have given the anarchist Juicyfruit gum, and the Superintendent says he left the...
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Act 2, Scene 1
The Maniac, the Superintendent, Pissani, and the Constable finish singing. They briefly celebrate while the stage manager brings them coffee. Then the Maniac...
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...why the officers didn’t stop him. Pissani claims that the anarchist was too quick, and the Constable admits that he grabbed the man’s foot, but “his shoe just came off in my...
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...shoe inside the one that came off. The Superintendent calls this idea “deranged.” Pissani and the Constable suggest that the anarchist was wearing galoshes.
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...but then he realizes that “the Professor’s quick thinking” would be helpful during the interview. The Constable proposes that the Maniac pretend he is someone else. The Maniac suggests a police psychiatrist,...
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The Constable brings Maria Feletti, the journalist, to the stage. The Superintendent introduces himself and Pissani, and...
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...detonator,” Bertozzo assures the others. Pissani returns the glass eye to the Maniac, who asks the Constable to bring water to wash it.
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Meanwhile, the Constable brings the Maniac his glass of water. The Maniac drops the eye inside and washes...
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...Feletti throws the Maniac’s first wooden hand over her shoulder and into a filing cabinet—which the Constable promptly closes on his own fingers. Unaware of the irony of his words, the Superintendent...
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...who the Maniac really is. He screams, “It’s him!! It’s that fucking maniac!” The Superintendent, the Constable , and Pissani jump on Bertozzo to shut him up. All the while, the Maniac...
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...false leg.” The Superintendent apologizes to Feletti for Bertozzo’s “mordant epilepsy,” and then Bertozzo seizes the Constable ’s gun and tells the other police to stand in a line at the front...
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