Discuss the corruption of capitalist society and the brutality of humanity in ‘The Threepenny Opera’

Description

Required Text:
Brecht, Bertolt, The Threepenny Opera
I would choose the topic 1 in Instruction:
How does Brecht explore the corruption of society and the brutality of humanity? How does he tie these to capitalism? To what ends? This is a good start for Essay 2, but both the thesis and the outline will need to be made more specific. First, the thesis statement should make an argument about the play specifically, not just about “that time” of Weimar Germany, and it could be made even more controversial by saying “capitalism’s oppression and cruelty is the reason for social corruption in the play”. Similarly, in each of your body paragraph topics, it would be best to say, for example, how the capitalist system of the play makes it difficult for certain characters (not just “people”) to meet their basic needs. Finally, it’s not fully clear to me how your final body paragraph topic about the absurd ending supports your thesis about capitalism – how might that absurdity be a result of capitalism? Would you consider the ending another kind of injustice? If so, how? Answering these questions for yourself will be important for you discussion of the play’s ending.