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Terms
Guilders were gold coins frequently used throughout Europe (particularly in the Holy Roman Empire) from the 13th through 18th centuries.
Guilder Quotes in Mother Courage and Her Children
The Mother Courage and Her Children quotes below are all either spoken by Guilder or refer to Guilder. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Scene 2 Quotes
EILIF. I laughed. And so we got to talking. I came right down to business and said: “Twenty guilders an ox is too much, I bid fifteen.” Like I wanted to buy. That foxed ’em. So while they were scratching their heads. I reached for my good sword and cut ’em to ribbons. Necessity knows no law, huh?
COMMANDER. What do you say, keeper of souls?
CHAPLAIN. Strictly speaking, that saying is not in the Bible. Our Lord made five hundred loaves out of five so that no necessity should arise. So when he told men to love their neighbors, their bellies were full. Things have changed since his day.
COMMANDER. (laughing) Things have changed!
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Eilif tells the Commander how he managed to massacre a group of peasants and steal their oxen. He used a trick he clearly learned from his mother—haggling prices—and then took the opportunity to murder the peasants in cold blood. Not only are his actions reprehensible, but Brecht draws a clear link between them and Mother Courage’s business, which is based on the same principle: greed, self-interest, and accumulation at any cost. Worse still, Brecht shows how war rewards such viciousness, ultimately handing power to the most immoral and sadistic people. Eilif justifies his actions with the famous adage, “Necessity knows 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
Scene 3 Quotes
I’m letting you have the bullets for two guilders. Dirt cheap. ’Cause I need the money. The Colonel’s been drinking for three days and we’re out of liquor.
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The third scene begins with a particularly dark and despicable scene: an Ordinance Officer, the soldier in charge of guarding arms and ammunition, tries to sell Mother Courage bullets in exchange for alcohol. Not only is he shirking his duties, but he’s also putting his and his comrades’ lives at risk. But he doesn’t seem to care, whether because he assumes that he will die anyway or because he knows that the army is so corrupt that nobody will stop him. Mother Courage initially refuses his offer, not on the grounds of morality but rather because she would prefer not 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 err
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Guilder Term Timeline in Mother Courage and Her Children
The timeline below shows where the term Guilder appears in Mother Courage and Her Children. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Scene 1
...the Recruiting Officer’s suggestion, the Sergeant buys a belt from Mother Courage for half a guilder, hoping this will save him.
(full context)
Scene 3
...army property, which could get her in trouble. She talks the officer down to a guilder and a half, then sends Kattrin to make the payment.
(full context)
...The Colonel jealously tells her not to trust the Lieutenant and agrees to pay 200 guilders for the wagon. Mother Courage has two weeks to pay the money back if she...
(full context)
...follow through with the promise she has already made: to give One Eye the 200 guilders as a bribe to save Swiss Cheese, who is facing a court marshal in an...
(full context)
...a few minutes. Then, Yvette returns to explain that One Eye will only take 200 guilders, and Mother Courage agrees. Yvette runs off, and Mother Courage wonders if she “haggled too...
(full context)
