The Weimar Period was a very turbulent time in the context of German history. The people of Germany were facing a vast array of sickening hardships that took a heavy toll on every person within the societies moral. Some of the issues that were affecting every citizen in Germany during the Weimar Period were the vast amount of debt that Germany was facing, the ever looming racial prejudices being propagated against the Jewish population, the horrifying memories and reminders of what the German people had to experience during the devastation caused by World War I, and secrecy. All of these factors that contributed to the bleak side of the German Weimar Period manifested themselves in many forms including art, photography, and popular culture. However, one of the most influential ways in which these issues were addressed was through the new medium the people just began to have available for them, film. While many films that were created throughout the Weimar period reflected the feelings and concerns of the German people, one of the best examples of these films can be illustrated within a comedic silent movie The Finances of the Grand Duke. In the film The Finances of the Grand Duke, all of the overarching issues that were facing the German People are manifested and critiqued. In this paper, we will illustrate how many of the issues facing the German people during the Weimar Period manifested themselves within the film The Finances of the Grand Duke, and explain how these illustrations would have affected German audiences during the film’s release in 1924. In our paper, we will be arguing that a film from the comedy genre can just as well relate these issues to the Weimar Republic audience just as well as a serious expressionist film.
The first issue that the German people were forced to face during the Weimar period, which was also illustrated within the film The Finances of the Grand Duke, was the thick blanket of debt covering every man, woman, and child throughout German Society. This debt that was felt by everyone was mostly caused by the intense period of hyperinflation that swept over Germany during the early 1920’s. However, the worst part of hyperinflation took place during 1923; one year before The Finances of the Grand Duke was released, but at the same time when it was being filmed. So the resonance is extremely relevant to a German audience.
Hyperinflation is basically, “a situation where the price increases are so out of control that the concept of inflation is meaningless” (Hyperinflation, 2012). This economic phenomenon basically meant that the currency being used in Germany during the Weimar period was virtually useless due to the vast amount of money that was being printed off by the German Government. During this period of hyperinflation people throughout Germany, who were normally dependent on a steady stream of income to sustain their everyday lives, were forced to take drastic measures in order to provide the necessary means for their families, “they sold furniture, clothing, jewelry and works of art to buy food” (Scientific Market Analysis, 1970). By having the German people scrounge for things to sell in order to feed their loved ones, not only made many people during the Weimar period fear for their future, but also created a lack of trust that they had in their Government.
Since Germany had borrowed so much money to pay off their war debts, they needed to start printing more money for circulation in Germany. However, this led to an inevitable inflation. There was no limit set on how much money the government could print, so they just kept printing more and more. The value of money then depreciated immensely, and there was no way to back it up in gold. The prices of goods were doubling in just a few hours, and items like a loaf of bread were being sold for 200 billions marks. One major issue is that the money in Germany was not holding up against other foreign currency. Their paper money was worthless.
It is interesting to note that the government set up foreign exchange controls. This led to a flourishing black market of transactions as you can imagine. We can definitely relate this to our film, The Finances of the Grand Duke, when Bekker, a foreigner is attempting to buy Hermosa Point from the Grand Duke. This Bekker character is a shifty fellow, and clearly only in the business to exploit this sulfur rich land and its people.
Another way we can relate our film to this phenomenon is by comparing the price of bonds and mortgages at the time. During 1923, the price of bonds fell more than cash. The inflation caused a wipe out of all mortgage debt. In The Finances of the Grand Duke, there is a scene in which most of the Abacco bonds are bought up from London, Paris, and Rome. Also, according to scholar Michael Kosares, “those who held real estate throughout managed to save the capital thus invested.” Since the Duke does not see his land, and sticks it out, he eventually comes out fine in the end.
This hyperinflation also affected the economy because wages were dropped. Initially, unions did get increases, but they could not keep up with how fast money was being printed. Some people were getting paid three times a day, and still did not have enough money to live on comfortably. When people did not go out and buy goods, then this caused business to close down, which led to a collapse in the German economy. The government reissued a new form of marks in an attempt to save the economy. It did work, but it took awhile for everyone to get back on his or her feet.
The debt felt by the German people manifested itself within the context of The Finances of the Grand Dukeby having the main character in the film, The Grand Duke of Abbaco, being threatened with mountains of debt that could make him loose his beautiful island. Furthermore, by portraying the main character in the film as being a high class member of society who, like many of the regular citizens in the German Republic, holds the fear of losing what he has due to economic circumstances, the viewers of the film can relate to him more easily. However, the film is able to maintain a sense of humor by having the main character act carefree towards the impending threat of him losing his precious land.
Another example from the film is all the times that small debts are repaid to people. Even if it were on a small scale, it still rings true to a German audience. When Philip Collins is sitting outside at the café with Olga, he buys her a cognac. He also gets her a train ticket. Later on in the film, she feels it necessary, to “settle her debt,” with him. The specific use of this wording on this intertitle was no mistake; it was a direct link to the mass amount of debt that the country was in at the time this movie was being filmed.
We mentioned earlier that hyperinflation created a lack of trust in the German government. Film critic David Kalat says that The Finances of the Grand Dukereflects this. All of the references to Dukes and Princesses calls for an oligarchy based government. Could this be the type of mentality that would eventually led to Hitler’s rise in power? There was a need for a father figure for the country.
The second theme in The Finances of the Grand Dukethat was very prevalent throughout the Germany during the Weimar Period was the anti-Semitic propaganda being fueled towards the Jewish population. In Germany during the 1920’s the Jewish people were being messily persecuted against. This can be seen throughout many of the expressionist films during this time period, such as Nosferatu, where the villain in the movie is given many Jewish stereotypes in order to fuel the hatred towards the race. However the main reason for the hatred of the Jews during the Weimar period was due to the economic crisis that the people were forced to go through, “in times of economic scarcity and decline, anti-Semitism has been more prevalent both in Germany and other Western nation” (Legge, 1996). Meaning that the stage set by hyperinflation as well as the debt many people were becoming buried in lead the people of Germany to label the Jewish population as the scapegoat for all of their country’s problems. Furthermore, it also enabled for the Jews to be labeled as the exact opposite of the values that the German people held sacred.
We need to point out here that The Finances of the Grand Dukewas not written by Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, but simply directed by him. So, we cannot be relating any of these issues solely towards him, but the collective staff. This film is based off of a series of detective novels written by Frank Heller, or Gunnar Sener, which was his pen name. The main character of his books was in fact named Philip Collins, a character also in our film. He was what we would call an anti-hero. He was a criminal that did dastardly deeds for the greater good, not unlike a modern day Robin Hood. We can see this character in our Philip Collins as well, especially when he disguises himself as a chimney sweep in order to forge a letter to help out the Duke of Abacco.
These novels written by Frank Heller though were extremely laden with anti-Semitic undertones. According to Lotti Eisner, F.W. Murnau took out a lot of those criticism when he adapted the novel, “The Grand Duke’s Finances,” into his film. However, there are definitely still some instances where the Jew can still be picked out of the crowd. For instance, when the Marcowitz character comes into frame, the musical motifs instantly change to that of Jewish sounding tunes. It sticks with the comedic themes, while still holding all symbolism.
In the film, The Finances of the Grand Duke, the Jews are further morphed into the villains of German society by the way in which the villains in the movie are represented. The first way the Jews are seen in the film, is through the actions and motivations of the main villain. One key factor of this portrayal of the antagonist that amplifies the racial stereotypes towards the Jews is that he is an international businessman motivated by greed at the expense of the innocent. The internationalism of the villain in this film is significant because of the German idea of the international Jew. Although the original idea of the International Jew was from Henry Ford, the German people utilized it in order to make the Jewish people an easier scapegoat for their problems. The International Jew basically turned the Jews in to the villains by implying that they are taking over the world through global economic means that are all based on their own desire to make more money (Ford, 1922). Needless to say, this anti-Semitic depiction of the Jewish people is easily propelled through the actions and the motivations of the villain in the film, in that he want to strip mine a part of Abacco at the expense of the people living there so he is able to make a lot of money.
The second way that the Jewish population is illustrated as evil within the context of The Finances of the Grand Dukeis through the physical characteristics of the main villain’s three henchmen. The henchmen in this film are significant because they are a true manifestation of not only how the German people envisioned the Jewish people, but also because they act as a complete juxtaposition in what the German people wanted within their race. In order to comprehend the similarities between the henchman in this film, and the propagated racial stereotypes following the Jews, I thought it would be very beneficial to compare the similarities between the two images.
The image on the left is a Nazi propaganda poster that implies that the Jew’s number one priority, or god, is making money. This propaganda poster clearly enforces the stereotypes associated with the Jewish people as well as enforces the racial prejudices that the German people felt towards the Jews in order for them to make them into the scapegoats for their problems. The image on the right is a still shot taken from a scene towards the end of The Finances of the Grand Duke,where the evil henchmen are accosting the Grand Duke’s faithful assistant. Both of the images seen have very similar physical characteristics. Traditionally the German view of the Jew, “included stereotypical views of Jewish physical attributes (such as a big nose and general grotesqueness) and personal characteristics” (Legge 1998). The stereotypical idea of the Jewish nose can be seen in both pictures, as well as a lack in athleticism seen in all the subjects in each portrayal. Furthermore, the characteristics of the henchmen are all exaggerated by the use of makeup around their eyes. Making them appear more villainous and evil. The use of makeup in order to create the illusion of evil provides a key argument as to how the film aligns the Jews with the villains in order for the general public to further allow racial stereotypes.
The third theme that is created within the movie The Finances of the Grand Dukeis the subtle reminders of what the German people had to go through during the horrors of World War I. The first way that this reminder is illustrated within the film is when the villain, Bekker, first offers to buy the land from the Grand Duke in order for him to strip the land for sulfur. After he makes his offer, The Grand Duke reflects on the offer with a vision that depicts a once beautiful area of the island torn apart with the people of the area dying of disease that has been brought upon them. This scene is especially close to Murnau because at first, it depicts an idyllic pastoral setting with its countrymen enjoying the land. Murnau was brought up in a pastoral setting such as this and has a high value for its beauty. If you are familiar with other Murnau films this should be of no surprise, he often has very beautiful cinematic shots of land, like the opening of this film for example. In Nosferatu, the jagged countryside where the vampire lives is gorgeous, but has some frightening undertones nonetheless. The dreamlike sequence in this film is definitely beautiful at first, until a huge smoke cloud comes billowing overhead, causing the countrymen to fall down in to a coughing fit. The scene looks very much like a battlefield that has just been struck by a cannon, or possibly chemical warfare.
The shot in the sequence is actually a replication of the baroque paintings done by Spanish artist Bartolome Esteban Murillo. In the painting below, we can pick out some similarities. First of all, the country setting is almost exactly the same as in the film. The clothes that the people are wearing are very pastoral and utilitarian. Also, they have produce in a basket. In Murnau’s film, a woman is also putting grapes into a woven basket. Murnau was a very well educated artist and art historian himself at the Heidelberg University, so you can see why he would include such things.
This scene is significant in two ways. The first is the depiction of the scene itself. By showing imagery that loosely illustrates some of the horrors that the veterans from World War I have seen, the audience is able to make a direct tie to the war. This is not unlike the film Nerves that we watched. Veterans from the war constantly have flashbacks of the horrible events from the war, and these dramatic depictions help to emphasize that point of psychological damage that was inflicted on the German people.
The second way in which the villain’s request can be tied to the events of World War I is because of the significance of the material that he actually wants to mine and profit from, sulfur. Sulfur is significant because, “sulfur mustard was used as a chemical weapon in World War I”(North Dakota Department of Health, 2012). Having the main villain in the film align with an ingredient that was once used to try to kill World War I veterans is significant in two ways. The first is that it allows the viewer to draw ties to the horrors they witnessed during the war. The second is that it allows for the villain in the film to create a subtle tie as one of the reasons for World War I. Meaning that the German people can blame the war on the Jewish people as well, making them a scapegoat for yet another problem that the German people were facing.
Another way in which the film The Finances of The Grand Dukereminded people of the war was from one of the final scenes in the film when the island of Abacco is left in unfathomable and utter chaos. The imagery from this scene is very similar to the events that occurred towards the end of World War I during the Kiel Mutiny. Bekker has convinced a group of three criminals that if they kill the Duke, he would give them a reward. So when the Duke makes it back to the island, all these criminals attack him. We see him tied up to a chair, and all hell breaks lose when we see people climbing on top of one another and men swinging from wall fixtures. Philip Collins again steps up to the plate and saves the Duke with one gunshot. This scene is most definitely reminiscent of a revolution and uprising.
The Kiel Mutiny is significant because it began the German Revolution, which eventually ended World War I and started the Weimar Republic (Duffy, 2009). The chaos of the mutiny itself as well as the political events following it, are subliminally represented within the context of this scene in the film because with the disappearance of the Grand Duke, the leader of the island, the people are flown into a chaotic frenzy that mimics the lack of leadership during the Kiel Mutiny. This is just another example of that new emotion that was emerging for a need in new leadership and government.
The last theme that we wanted to bring up is the idea of secrecy and deceit. During this time in history, Germany was operating under the laws established in Paragraph 175. This was a law basically against homosexual activity. People in Germany could be thrown in jail, and even in some case, put to death for admitting their sexual preferences. F.W. Murnau was facing some issues himself because he was a closeted homosexual. He lived his life trying to keep this a secret for safety reasons. This emotion of deceit can be pulled from a number of Murnau films. One that comes to mind that we screened was the The Last Laugh. The doorman is ashamed of his demotion and tries to hide the fact that he is now a lowly matron. Like most of his character, Murnau too is living a secret life.
In The Finances of the Grand Duke, there are a number of instances of mistake in identity and secrecy in general. The scene where Philip Collins is attempting to forge a note is interesting, because he disguises himself as a chimney sweep in order to not be recognized. His character on the whole is very suspicious though because he has a number of aliases. We are introduced to him as being a professor, then as a writer. He can so seamlessly slide in and out of a number of social groups, without being pegged as irregular.
Another character, Olga, is also lying about her identity up until the end of the film. We know her as Olga, Mrs. Pelotard, and as the Russian Princess. Olga also has to disguise herself a number of times to get away from descendants of Ivan the Terrible. Collins dresses her up very masculine by giving her a beard and glasses with a hat. This reminded us a lot of the movie, I Don’t Want to Be a Man, where Ossi dresses up like a gentleman and fools all of the socialites.
By making this film a comedy, Murnau helped to make it an escapist feature for the German audience. Although, he later disowned the film entirely, we think that at the time, people enjoyed a little get away. His reasoning for not liking this film probably comes from the fact that he had to cut more than half of it. What we have now is a series of 6 chapters. On the audio commentary, David Kalat compares it to the serial adventure novels at the time. This is definitely applicable because the inter titles set up all of the scenes before hand, and all of the chapters leave you with a cliffhanger. It is for sure not a traditional narrative like Murnau is known for creating.
Either way, it is entertaining for the audience, and we think just as well plays up on the themes that can be seen in all of the serious expressionist films. They may not be as blatant and obvious as say a film like Nosferatu, but we think that if you look closely you can pick out some similarities between the Weimar Republic and The Finances of the Grand Duke. Themes such as debt, Jewish prejudices, effects of the war, and deceit, all can be seen throughout this silent comedy.
Works Cited
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Legge, Jerome. "Exploring the Symbolic Racism Thesis: The German Sense of Responsibility for the Jews."Polity 30.3 (1998): 531-45. Print.
Legge, Jerome S. "An Economic Theory of Antisemitism? Exploring Attitudes in the New German State."Political Research Quarterly 49.3 (1996): 617. Print.
"Sulfur Mustard (Mustard Gas)." North Dakota Department of Health. Web. 9 May 2012. <www.ndhan.gov>.
