Spring Awakening/Headscratchers
- Why, instead of risking her daughter's life and killing her grandchild in a backstreet abortion, did Mrs Bergman not simply allow a shotgun wedding between Melchior and Wendla? Both she and Melchior's parents have complete authority over their children and don't care that much what they want to do, so why not just order them to marry and have done with it? It was hardly that uncommon in the 1890s, and given that Wendla's sister has three children despite being married for two years, Mrs Bergman must have been at the very least *aware* of the possibility. Granted, Melchior's hardly flavour of the month in the town, but surely it's a better option than risking her daughter, killing her unborn grandchild, risking social humiliation if the above gets into local gossip, and would enable her to simply wash her hands of the matter. It just seems a simpler option, and despite her naivety Mrs Bergman is shown to care for and want the best for her daughter; she must have known the risks of backstreet abortions and surely an unsuitably married daughter is better than a possibly-dead one?
- It's not Plot Induced Stupidity: It's all but stated that the teachers frame Melchior for Moritz's suicide the minute they find out about it, which could be a few days to a few hours after someone found Moritz's body. Just think: Their kid's best friend shot himself in the woods, then the teachers start spreading the word that he caused it (to cover their own asses), and finally it turns out that Melchior also got someone pregnant. That situation would be chaotic in modern times, let alone a town that's stated to be extremely traditional. It would be difficult if not impossible for anyone to think logically if that all happened to them. Now for the Bergmans: They just found out that the poor Stiefel boy killed himself, and didn't Wendla used to play with him? Then they find out that Melchior Gabor was the reason, and this (especially for a heavily Christian town) would catapult him far beyond the normal "bad boy" disapproval. Considering that nearly every Christian sect views suicide as worse than murder, not least because of the pain someone would have to be in to do it, nobody would want their daughter to marry a boy who was responsible for something like that.
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