Philidor's defense
Philidor's Defense is a radio play by Günter Eich that was broadcast posthumously on December 12, 1973 by WDR under the direction of Raoul Wolfgang Schnell . The author had withdrawn the piece fifteen years earlier and never released it.
content
The paranoid seventeen and a half year old high school student Alexander feels he is being spied on by his parents. However, it is not communicated what the object of the espionage should be, nor for whom the parents are spying.
Alexander pretends to the examining magistrate that he murdered Mr Nicodemi because of a woman's story. The listener knows better from the open-hearted narrator's comment - the mentally deranged one, of course. A woman was not involved at all, and Alexander had chosen the victim at random.
In this depth psychological study of a young person who is at war with his middle-class parents and with his environment in general, the listener must first assume that Alexander wanted to cover up the killing of any contemporary from the start. For example, Alexander feigns interest in the game of chess. The chess novice has at most a half-knowledge of the opening according to Philidor shown in the title . Alexander confesses to the listener that the game of chess serves to deceive. The daily walk to the chess opponent Richard, the best chess player among the classmates, should only demonstrate everyday life. Alexander's intended victim lives to the side of the road. On that afternoon of April 15, Alexander leaves the path, but at the last minute chooses another victim very close to the intended one.
Towards the end of the radio play, Alexander doesn't want to cover up anything. He gives no reason for the killing of the hitherto unknown person. Detained by the investigating judge, he wants only the artery cut or hang .
Productions
- December 12, 1973, WDR, directed by Raoul Wolfgang Schnell.
- December 3, 1977, SRG, directed by Hans Jedlischka.
- December 12, 1977, WDR, directed by Heinz Hostnig . Volker Roos spoke to Alexander, Paul Edwin Roth and Melanie de Graaf spoke to his parents, Reinhard Sannemann to Richard, Michael Thomas to Mr Nikodemi and Rolf Boysen to the examining magistrate (see entry in the HörDat under “Weblinks”).
reception
- Günter Eich had refrained from the work after he was accused of being constructed in private circles.
literature
Used edition
- Günter Eich: Philidor's Defense (1958) . Pp. 419–450 in: Karl Karst (Ed.): Günter Eich. The radio plays 2. in: Collected works in four volumes. Revised edition. Volume III . Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 1991, without ISBN
Secondary literature
- Ulrich Wergin (Hrsg.), Karol Sauerland (Hrsg.): Literature and Theology. Writing processes between biblical tradition and historical experience. Königshausen & Neumann, Würzburg 2005, ISBN 978-3-8260-2799-4
Web links
- The factory at HörDat .