Growing up in a Christian household, my family always made it seem as of God was this amazingly rich higher being. They always told me that he had a palace waiting for me in heaven and that his huge kingdom had golden roads and crystal waters. As a young girl I was obviously excited and couldn’t wait to get to heaven so that I could finally be rich. But, at the beginning of Bertolt Brecht’s play, The Good Woman of Setzuan, the Gods exchange a few words that confused this long time belief.
The first thing that came to mind when, on page 11, the Second God mentioned, “Up Above,” was heaven. But, the way they said it made it seem as if they didn’t have very much money to spare and that they stayed away from everyone’s finances. This was nothing like what I had been taught when I was younger. It really confused me at first because I kept asking myself, “Isn’t God SUPPOSED to take care of us?!” But, then I remembered that my AP English teacher, Susan Davis, told us that this play was a satire when she handed it out. But growing up, my parents always told me that it wasn’t right to “play” with things about God. So, why is Brecht doing it? Is it okay to say these things about God? Or am I just misinterpreting Brecht’s writing when he’s not really doing that what I’m accusing him of?
Works Cited
Brecht, Bertolt, and Eric Bentley. The Good Woman of Setzuan. Minneapolis, Minn.: University of Minnesota, 1999. Print.
SHIN TE: But everything is so expensive, I don’t feel sure I can do it!
SECOND GOD: That’s not in our sphere. We never meddle with economics.
THIRD GOD: One moment. Isn’t it true she might do better if she had more money?
SECOND GOD: Come, come! How could we ever account it Up Above? (11)
The first thing that came to mind when, on page 11, the Second God mentioned, “Up Above,” was heaven. But, the way they said it made it seem as if they didn’t have very much money to spare and that they stayed away from everyone’s finances. This was nothing like what I had been taught when I was younger. It really confused me at first because I kept asking myself, “Isn’t God SUPPOSED to take care of us?!” But, then I remembered that my AP English teacher, Susan Davis, told us that this play was a satire when she handed it out. But growing up, my parents always told me that it wasn’t right to “play” with things about God. So, why is Brecht doing it? Is it okay to say these things about God? Or am I just misinterpreting Brecht’s writing when he’s not really doing that what I’m accusing him of?
Works Cited
Brecht, Bertolt, and Eric Bentley. The Good Woman of Setzuan. Minneapolis, Minn.: University of Minnesota, 1999. Print.
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