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msand3's review against another edition
4.0
Schiller's second drama is a tale of two plays. The first two acts are awkward, clunky, and too contrived, feeling far too much like an artificial "set up." Luckily, I stuck with it because the final three acts are full of fiery, roaring action. In fact, by the fourth act I was unable to stop reading. Schiller (like the rest of his Storm and Stress peers) knows how to write rapid battle scenes unlike anything I've ever experienced in drama.
Fiesco, like Goethe's [b:Götz von Berlichingen|1330171|Götz von Berlichingen|Johann Wolfgang von Goethe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1182795114l/1330171._SY75_.jpg|1319654], is cinematic in flow with quickly-paced scenes that catapult the events to a swift and violent conclusion. It is worth working through the first two acts to experience the second half, which explores how Fiesco's quest for power causes him to lose everything he loves. Is the desire to rule as a "lion" worth sacrificing love and friendship? Can tyranny be overthrown and replaced by anything other than tyranny itself? The tragedy of Fiesco is his blindness of his own personal weaknesses. His triumph in rebellion comes at the expense of his failure to cement the bonds in his personal life -- a warning for those who strive for success while their personal lives crumble around them.
Taken as a whole, Fiesco is a great drama. It's is a prime example of the theater as a moral institution, and is a worthy follow-up to [b:The Robbers|2429943|The Robbers|Friedrich Schiller|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348964985l/2429943._SX50_.jpg|6226708], even as Schiller appears to stumble in the first couple acts coming out of the gate.
Fiesco, like Goethe's [b:Götz von Berlichingen|1330171|Götz von Berlichingen|Johann Wolfgang von Goethe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1182795114l/1330171._SY75_.jpg|1319654], is cinematic in flow with quickly-paced scenes that catapult the events to a swift and violent conclusion. It is worth working through the first two acts to experience the second half, which explores how Fiesco's quest for power causes him to lose everything he loves. Is the desire to rule as a "lion" worth sacrificing love and friendship? Can tyranny be overthrown and replaced by anything other than tyranny itself? The tragedy of Fiesco is his blindness of his own personal weaknesses. His triumph in rebellion comes at the expense of his failure to cement the bonds in his personal life -- a warning for those who strive for success while their personal lives crumble around them.
Taken as a whole, Fiesco is a great drama. It's is a prime example of the theater as a moral institution, and is a worthy follow-up to [b:The Robbers|2429943|The Robbers|Friedrich Schiller|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348964985l/2429943._SX50_.jpg|6226708], even as Schiller appears to stumble in the first couple acts coming out of the gate.
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