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33 pages 1 hour read

August Strindberg

The Father

Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1887

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Act IIChapter Summaries & Analyses

Act II, Scene 1 Summary

Laura and the doctor discuss the mental health of the Captain. The doctor is not sure that the Captain has truly suffered a mental breakdown, but he takes detailed notes of Laura's claims because he wants documentation of every detail in case he needs to declare the Captain “certified incapable of managing his affairs” (56). In case of such a diagnosis, the Captain would lose all his civil and familial rights, including the right to decide Bertha's future. The doctor warns Laura against inflaming her husband's anger in case she does cause a breakdown. She mentions that the Captain has been rambling that he might not be Bertha's father, but claims she has no idea where he heard this rumor. Laura weeps out of worry for her husband. The doctor agrees to monitor the Captain closely for any worrying signs. He will stay at home under the pretense that he is treating Laura's mother for an unspecified illness. 

Act II, Scene 2 Summary

In a separate room, Margret reads a hymnal, becoming excited about the dark, foreboding message that “all is fleeting, all is vanity” (58). Bertha joins Margret, worried by the strange sound of someone singing that she heard in the attic. Bertha also worries about her father's poor mental health and is concerned that it will affect their Christmas celebrations. Hearing someone coming, Margret sends Bertha away. 

Act II, Scene 3 Summary

The Captain returns from his angry excursion into the cold winter night. He sits at his desk and sorts through letters as Margret tells him that the doctor is treating his mother-in-law for an illness. The Captain asks Margret about her son, wondering how she can be sure of the identity of the boy's father.

Act II, Scene 4 Summary

The Captain and the doctor talk. The Captain surprises the doctor with unexpectedly irreverent questions about zebra and horse breeding, but the doctor quickly realizes that the Captain's real theme is the resemblance between a child and its father. The doctor recommends that the Captain learn to trust women, but the Captain insists that this is not possible. He recounts instances of women being sexually unfaithful. He believes that women are naturally dishonest and villainous. The doctor warns the Captain against these “unhealthy thoughts” (60) and begs the Captain to inform him of any possible symptoms. The Captain insists that he is well and that the doctor is not his enemy. The doctor regrets that he cannot be the Captain's friend. After escorting the doctor from the room, the Captain walks to another door. He knows that Laura has been listening in to this conversation, so he invites her in. 

Act II, Scene 5 Summary

The Captain leads an embarrassed Laura into the room and insists that they find a resolution to their argument. He knows that Laura has withheld his mail; he accuses her of trying to sabotage his research, but she counters that his research causes him to neglect his other duties. The Captain also accuses Laura of trying to turn his friends against him by spreading rumors about his mental state. He insists that his mind is sound but admits that his anger could be perceived as mental instability. The Captain warns Laura that, if she succeeds in making people believe that he has lost his mind, she stands to lose her wealth and privilege. He threatens to kill himself unless she does as he says—if he commits suicide, she will not receive any life insurance payout.

The Captain expounds on his paranoid fear that Bertha might not be his child. The idea has festered inside his mind and now he cannot forget it. Both the Captain and Laura agree that they should have separated, but are “bound together” (63) by Bertha. This bond has now become a chain. The Captain remembers that when he was gravely ill, he overheard Laura and his lawyer discussing who would inherit his fortune. By the time he recovered, Laura was pregnant. Obsessed with this memory, he no longer believes he is Bertha's father. Laura accuses the Captain of losing his mind and she swears that Bertha is his child.

The Captain weeps. Laura tries to comfort him, reminding him of the times she has taken care of him in the past. She has been like a “second mother” (64) to her husband. Laura and the Captain discuss their personal interests in the marriage: Both try to dominate the other for their own advantage. They each see the other as the guilty party, the one who has exploited and lied to the other. Laura sometimes hates her husband when he acts like “the man” (65). The Captain believes that they have nothing in common because men and women are practically two different species. He believes that either he or Laura will lose the fight, as the victory of the strongest is inevitable.

Laura threatens to place the Captain under legal guardianship and thus rightfully seize all his power. He has fulfilled his role as “unfortunately indispensable father and breadwinner” (65), so now she no longer needs him. She will forge a letter to the doctor to have the Captain committed to an asylum, whereupon she and Bertha will live on his pension. The Captain throws a burning lamp at Laura as she slips out the door. 

Act II Analysis

An important motif running through Act II is the influence of science. The doctor's rigorous approach to diagnosing the Captain's health condition shows that he is a man of logic and reason: The doctor takes notes during his initial meeting with Laura, but also investigates on his own, discovering that some of her complaints are not wholly accurate. The doctor's understands the body as a machine, warning Laura that over-exciting the Captain could lead to breakdown. The Captain, meanwhile, is also interested in modern approaches to understanding the world. He probes the doctor about genetics, building on his understanding of zebras and horses to learn about human heredity. The Captain also characters his struggle against Laura as a Darwinian battle for survival of the strongest—referencing the contemporary understanding of evolutionary theory as a zero-sum competition.

This is yet another example of the uneasy cultural forces at play in Strindberg’s work. As someone who relies on the Protestant pastor for guidance and whose misogyny is rooted in both Christianity and human law, it is striking to watch the Captain cite Darwinism and natural law as guiding lights in his power struggle against Laura. In keeping with his naturalistic tone, Strindberg paints the characters as psychologically and socially complex animals, who rely less on brute strength and more on emotional manipulation and legal wrangling in their efforts to climb to the top of the proverbial food chain. Laura is the most salient example of this, as she adapts what the Captain perceives to be her hereditary shortcomings as a woman—namely, her emotional intelligence—to her environment.

Indeed, it is Laura who masters the science most relevant to her situation—psychology. She knows that to seize the Captain's assets and power, she needs to have him institutionalized, so she continues to manipulate the doctor and the Captain. Despite the doctor's rational approach to diagnosis, Laura's insinuations sow doubt about the Captain's sanity in the doctor's mind. Similarly, Laura preys on the Captain's insecurities about his status in the family to stoke his paranoia, and finally, to drive him to an act of violence that will be his downfall. Laura's tactics are subtle: She never outright states what she wants people to believe; instead, her suggestions allow her targets to feel like they've come to their own conclusions.

As the Captain slips further and further into his unstable condition, his misogynistic views intensify. His hatred of women also becomes more public: He tells Bertha and Margret, characters who show the most affection toward him, that they are enemies who cannot be trusted. The Captain's prejudices overwhelm him so he can no longer distinguish genuine concern from paranoid delusion. His misogyny actually becomes a mental health issue. 

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