"The Broken Jug"

It is court day. And village judge Adam is visibly battered – much like the jug after which the story is named. The events of that night that led to this are shrouded in darkness. And as far as Adam is concerned, it should remain that way for heaven's sake. For around the broken jug unfolds a trial in which he plays a crucial role both as judge and as perpetrator: he himself was the one who sexually assaulted the young Eve that night and broke the jug in his flight. Adam is the perpetrator – this is clear to the audience from the very beginning. Thus, the charm of the play does not derive from the outcome of the story, but from the progression of the plot and the pleasure of watching Judge Adam entangle himself in the web of his false trails and his arbitrary and peculiar jurisprudence, how he stumbles and ultimately falls. Kleist describes all this with great comedic insight. It is a confusion game about power and abuse of power that is still relevant today.