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Drum Major
The captain is Woyzeck’s superior. Like the doctor, he condescends to Woyzeck, whom he considers naïve and unintelligent. The captain also demonstrates a notable indifference or ignorance to Woyzeck’s struggle. For instance, he repeatedly condemns Woyzeck’s immoral lifestyle (Woyzeck has fathered a child outside of marriage) and his harried, anxious demeanor without considering how the unrelenting misery and harshness of Woyzeck’s life affects Woyzeck’s actions and behavior. Meanwhile the captain laments his own existential woes, like his anxiety about not being able to fill all hours of the day, failing to realize that someone in Woyzeck’s position would be grateful to have such frivolous problems.
Captain Quotes in Woyzeck
The Woyzeck quotes below are all either spoken by Captain or refer to Captain. 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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Scene 1 Quotes
Yes, Andres, the place is cursed.
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Explanation and Analysis:
This quotation comes from the play’s opening scene, which depicts Woyzeck and Andres cutting wood for the captain in a field outside town. While Andres sings a song, Woyzeck voices a number of strange, increasingly bizarre observations. He claims, for instance, that the ground is hollow and that he can hear voices coming from underneath it. Finally, he ominously remarks, “the place is cursed.” This simple observation gives the audience insight into the personality and psychology of the play’s protagonist. First, since the play is not a work of fantasy (and curses, by most accounts, do not exist in objective 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 harum
Scene 2 Quotes
What a man. He’s possessed. He didn’t even look at his child. He’ll go mad with thinking.
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Marie speaks this quotation after Woyzeck, who briefly stopped by her room to check in with her, has left. In addition to telling Marie about all the work he has left to do, he also makes a number of strange and concerning remarks that hint at apocalyptic delusions he has been experiencing. Marie’s description of Woyzeck as “possessed” gestures toward Woyzeck’s delusional thinking. Meanwhile, her observation that he failed to acknowledge their child shows that Woyzeck’s unceasing work, the misery that characterizes his life of poverty, and his weakening grip on reality compromise his ability to be a good and 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
Scene 3 Quotes
Gentlemen! Gentlemen! Observe this creature God has created. A nothing, a mere nothing at all. But see what he has achieved; he walks upright, has a coat and trousers, carries a sword. The monkey is a soldier. Though that’s not saying much, the lowest form of humanity.
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Marie and Woyzeck are wandering around a local fair. There, they pass by a barker (a carnival worker tasked with attracting audience members to the exhibits or performances) praising the talents of a trained monkey. The barker boasts that the monkey “has achieved” much: it can walk on its hind legs and wear clothing just like a human, and it even “carries a sword.” The barker declares the monkey “a soldier,” though it contends that this last point isn’t all that impressive, as soldiers are “the lowest form of humanity.” The monkey in this episode functions as a stand-in for 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 te
Scene 6 Quotes
Slowly, Woyzeck, slowly, one thing at a time. You’re making me dizzy. What am I going to do with the extra ten minutes you save? Imagine, Woyzeck, you’ve got a good thirty years yet to live, thirty years! That’s 360 months. And days, hours, minutes. What are you going to do with all that time? Pace yourself, Woyzeck.
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Woyzeck is at the captain’s place giving him a shave. But the captain is unhappy with Woyzeck’s work, feeling that he is rushing the job, and so he orders him to slow down. From there, he muses about the (to him) daunting task of filling all the hours of one’s day and, in the long run, one’s life. Not only is the captain’s advice to Woyzeck unsolicited, but it also reveals his ignorance about the suffering and exhaustion that characterizes Woyzeck’s life. The captain’s higher social rank allows him the privileges of leisure and the personal freedom that comes with 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 debiti
We poor folk – you see, Captain, it’s money, money, when you’ve got none. You can’t set a fellow like me in the world on just morals, a man is flesh and blood as well. The likes of us are unblessed in this world and in the next. I expect when we get to Heaven we’ll have to help out with the thunder.
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Woyzeck is at the captain’s place giving him a shave when the captain gets to talking about virtue. This, in turn, prompts him to attack Woyzeck’s character. The captain insists that Woyzeck, though a good man, has no morals, and he cites Woyzeck’s illegitimate child with Marie as evidence of Woyzeck’s supposed immorality. Woyzeck defends himself against the captain’s judgment, claiming that it’s unfair to “set a fellow like me in the world on just morals,” and that “a man is flesh and blood as well.” By “a fellow like me,” Woyzeck means a common person, or a person living 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 harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremq
Scene 10 Quotes
He runs through the world like an open razor, you could cut yourself on him.
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The doctor and the captain have just intercepted Woyzeck on the street to tell him about Marie’s affair with the drum major. They do so not out of concern for Woyzeck, but to humiliate him. The doctor and captain’s insinuations are deeply upsetting for Woyzeck to hear, as they effectively confirm what he has only suspected up to this point. The captain speaks the above quotation as he and the doctor watch Woyzeck run away, irate and humiliated. Notably, the captain’s description of Woyzeck as “an open razor” implies that Woyzeck is naturally volatile and prone to emotional outbursts like 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. Nis
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Captain Character Timeline in Woyzeck
The timeline below shows where the character Captain appears in Woyzeck. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Scene 5
...them, he notes, “sweat even in [their] sleep.” Woyzeck gives Marie his pay from the captain, then he says he has to leave again.
(full context)
Scene 6
At the captain’s place, the captain sits in a chair as Woyzeck shaves him. The captain orders Woyzeck...
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The captain tells Woyzeck he seems worked up, which isn’t how a good man with a “clear...
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The captain says that while Woyzeck is “decent,” he lacks morals, remarking on Woyzeck’s illegitimate child. In...
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The captain laments his struggles to be virtuous. He gets worked up on rainy days when he...
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Scene 9
The doctor asks if Woyzeck is still working for the captain. Woyzeck says he is. The doctor takes Woyzeck’s pulse and tells him to keep up...
(full context)
Scene 10
On the street, the captain runs after the doctor. He catches up to the doctor and tells him to slow...
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Just then, Woyzeck comes rushing by. The captain notices and orders him to stop, remarking that Woyzeck “runs through the world like an...
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...noting how it makes a person want to hang themselves. Then he runs off. The captain notes how fast Woyzeck runs. “Grotesque, grotesque!” he laments.
(full context)
