Key Facts
full title · The Threepenny Opera
author · Bertolt Brecht
type of work · Play
genre · Drama
language · German
time and place written · Berlin, 1928
date of first performance · August 31, 1928
tone · Dark humor
setting (time) · Mid-nineteenth century
setting (place) · England
protagonist · Macheath
major conflict · The middle class members of society are more crooked
than the low-class crooks and criminals.
rising action · Polly Peachum angers her father when she marries Macheath,
the biggest crook in England. The marriage negatively impacts the biggest
foundation for panhandlers in the country, and Peachum vows to get
revenge.
climax · Betrayed by his close friend, Tiger Brown, Macheath
is caught for the first time, although he eventually escapes.
falling action · Betrayed by his former lover Jenny, Macheath is caught
for the second time and sentenced to be hanged.
themes · The arbitrariness of values; the conflict between self-interest
and love; the competitiveness of the capitalist system; the brutality
of humans
motifs · The alienation of the audience; irony; the thin line
between criminals and honest people
symbols · Kid gloves; the moon; sex
foreshadowing · Repeated assertions about the friendship between Macheath
and Brown; mention of Lucy at Macheath's wedding; Jenny's reading of
Macheath's palm
