In ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’ Brecht undertakes a redefinition of motherhood. The true mother is no longer she who has borne the child, but she who is most useful to it: “What there is shall go to those who are good for it, / Children to the motherly, that they prosper”. Brecht’s notes to the play, which speak of ‘motherly instincts’, show even more clearly the ‘natural’ alliance he believed existed between women and motherliness, which may, however, be thwarted by adverse social conditions: “The motherly instinct of the peasant woman, who accepts the foundling child against the will of her husband, is limited and conditional” (Lennox, 91).
The modern European theatre was a space containing a plethora of ideas and techniques and was very experimental in nature. Bertolt Brecht, one of the forerunners of the modern drama, can be discussed as a primary contributor to it. Brecht was a German, Marxist playwright who contributed new ideas to theatre. He developed a new technique through his art, known as the ‘epic theatre’, which changed the way one looks at drama. Brecht transformed the idea of drama and what it entailed. Drama, for Brecht, should not only be for mere entertainment but should be a medium of educating and enlightening the mass to critique, question and be rational in their approach. “Brecht’s theatre would be ‘epic’ rather than ‘dramatic’, would not perpetuate dramatic illusion and spectatorial identification, but would encourage thoughtfulness and reasoned action in the audience” (Smith, 491). It provided the audience with a sense of political awareness, and required an amount of objectivity on the part of the viewers. This form of theatre which fostered the rational side of the audience came to be popularly known as an ‘epic theatre’ in the canon. Brecht was the pioneer figure in popularizing this form of drama, along with the likes of Erwin Piscator, Vladimir Mayakovsky and Vsevolod Meyerhold. The ‘epic theatre’ required certain techniques which Brecht employed in many of his plays. “The technical devices of alienation serve the main purpose by establishing a distance between the audience and the play, so that the spectators may be constantly reminded that they are viewing a play (hence an object lesson) and not a real event” (Alter, 61). The alienation effect aided Brecht in achieving his objectives. The alienation effect was a central tenet in Brechtian theatre. He stood as a prominent exponent of the v-effect. In ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’, the use of a narrator acts as an alienating force. The form of a parable with political undertones also helps raise a sense of political awareness which the epic theatre aimed at. The presence of songs by the chorus also creates a ridge between the audience and the characters. Brecht being a modern playwright, believed in the concept of ‘make it new’. He echoed T.S. Eliot’s modern thought throughout his works. Modern drama diverged from the traditional Victorian sentimentality and delved into the life of the modern society, where the bourgeoisie became the center. In ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’, Brecht advocates Marxist ideology in dealing with the issue of motherhood. The central conflict which covers the play lies upon the concept of the ideal mother. Brecht critiques and rethinks the idea of motherhood in this play, and puts forth an argument between biology and sociology in determining the stronger claim towards motherhood, by adding the Marxist flavor to it. This paper will analyze the very central debate which surrounds the play. Is the biological mother supposed to be the ideal mother for a child? The question which Brecht aimed at answering through ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’.
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‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’ rethinks the entire notion of motherhood which has often been certified to biology. Motherhood is predominantly viewed as a biological construct. This myth is debunked by Brecht through his characters in the play. Grusha and Natella Abashwili embody the two sides of the argument. Michael, the child who is left behind by Natella and taken in by Grusha, becomes the object of the conflict which is eventually resolved by the ‘chalk circle’ test. Brecht, like most of his plays, makes women the central characters. His other popular dramas also have female characters at the center, like ‘Mother Courage’, and ‘The Good Person of Setzuan’. On the basis of these, one might also call Brecht a feminist, but his feminism is not devoid of certain fixed socially constructed identities which are associated with a woman. For instance, he believes that biological motherhood is not necessarily the strongest one, but he fails to dissociate the concept of motherhood with gender. As Sara Lennox in the article comments, “No men in the play are shown to possess motherly feelings in any way analogous to those of such women figures. The present sexual arrangement of childcare is thus presented as a natural one, though in the society Brecht envisions it may no longer derive from the fact of giving birth”.
The characters also demonstrate class struggles and inequalities in the play. Grusha epitomizes the modern working-class peasant class who struggle for a living and are looked down upon by the aristocrats. Brecht is well-versed in Marxist studies and employs the same in his play. The character of Natella Abashvili not only portrays a biological mother figure, but also becomes an epitome of the shallow, materialistic mentality which plagues the high-class aristocracy in modern times. The entire journey of Grusha and Michael show not only how Grusha earned her right to be claimed as Michael’s true mother, but also uncovers the hardships which a peasant girl has to face in order to raise a child. The immense amount of sacrifice which is required on the part of Grusha to raise Michael on her own, only highlights the class inequality which persisted in the society. Grusha is advised not to take the abandoned Michael, but she does it anyway, as her maternal instincts overpower her class and social reality.
In the play we see the relationship between Grusha and Michael blossoming at the cost of the sacrifices made by the former. Brecht advocates how motherhood should be earned by love, care and sacrifices. The character of Grusha evolves from a young, peasant girl to a mature, caring mother of her adopted child. Brecht narrates the developmental stages which Grusha goes through in order to achieve her status as a fit mother for Michael. She makes ample sacrifices for Michael and this is what constituted an ideal mother for Brecht. Grusha takes the abandoned Michael which initiates her journey into an ideal motherhood. She buys milk for Michael which becomes her second developmental stage in nourishing Michael. The intrusion by the musicians in the play highlight Grusha’s maternal side towards Michael: “In the corn fields the rosy dawn/ Is merely cold to one who has not slept. To the fugitive/ The merry clatter of milk pails from the farm where the smoke rises/ Sounds menacing. Carrying a child, she/ Feels its weight and little else” (Brecht, 169).
Grusha’s constant conflict between her maternal instinct and her own survival instinct is vivid in the play. She decides to part with him, much against her will, because she can no longer sustain him. This forms a drastic contrast with her counterpart, Natella Abashwili, who abandoned her son even if she had the money and resources to raise him properly. Therefore, Brechtian idea of motherhood supported the sociological approach rather than the biological one. Grusha passes the test of motherhood further when she risks her life for Michael, adding to her list of sacrifices made. She also marries against her own wish, even though she knew it might jeopardize her relationship with her lover, Simon. Unlike the narcissistic, self-obsessed Natella who abandons Michael and is more concerned about material wealth, Grusha is portrayed as a metaphorical Mary. Brecht shows Natella as the careless, biological mother who has no concern for her child, even though shares the same blood as him. She only claims Michael for the property which is to be acquired in his name. Even her claim of motherhood lies on a materialistic, and economical approach.
The concept of motherhood is thus contested through the play and the dilemma is finally solved at the end after the verdict by Azdak is passed. He gives Michael to Grusha with the help of the Chalk circle test, and produces one of the rare happy endings by Brecht. The speech by the first lawyer will become significant in analysing both sides of motherhood as shown by Brecht: “…Of all human ties of blood are the strongest. Mother and child: can there be any closer relationship? May a child be taken from its mother?”. Grusha narrates her hardships and posits her claim over Michael which aids Azdak in his judgement and also redefines the concept of motherhood from its usual reductionist biological approach. “I brought him up the best I knew how, I always found him something to eat. He had a roof over his head…I let myself in for all kinds of trouble for his sake, and expenses too. I didn’t worry about my own convenience”.
Thus, ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’ rethinks the concept of motherhood through a Marxist lens. Brecht’s epic theatre allows the audience to witness the loopholes of upper-class modern society. According to Brecht, one who sacrifices and is concerned about her child’s well-being is an ideal mother. Motherhood had a sociological function for him. He rejects the mere blood ties in determining a true mother. He portrays Grusha as the well-deserved mother of Michael, even though she belonged to a lower class. To adapt the lingo of Simone De Beauvoir, I would opine - “One is not born, but rather, becomes a mother”. Brecht believed in the same idea that one has to earn the ideal of motherhood by means of sacrifices, showcasing human sacrifices and prioritizing the child over anyone and Grusha ticked all these boxes in the play and hence, emerged victorious. As Brecht comments, “Grusha changes slowly, under the weight of sacrifices, and through the sacrifices, into a mother of the child, and, in the end, after all the losses she has risked or suffered, she fears, as the ultimate loss, that of the child”.
Works Cited
- Alter, Maria P. “The Technique of Alienation in Bertolt Brecht’s ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’”. CLA Journal, vol. 8, no. 1, 1964, pp. 60-65. JSTOR. Web. 18 November. 2019.
- Brecht, Bertolt, et al. “On ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’”. TDR (1967-1968), vol. 12, no. 1, 1967, pp. 88-100. JSTOR. Web. 18 November. 2019.
- Brecht, Bertolt, et al. “The Caucasian Chalk Circle. London: Methuen”. 1963. Print.
- Lennox, Sara. “Women in Brecht’s Works”. New German Critique, no. 14, 1978, pp. 83-96. JSTOR. Web. 18 November. 2019.
- Smith, Iris. “Brecht and the Mothers of Epic Theatre”. Theatre Journal, vol. 43, no. 4, 1991, pp. 491-505. JSTOR. Web. 18 November. 2019.
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