"Like a fish in water."
Usually, this familiar image is constructed as a simile meaning the reverse. Early on Franz presses the Count on the state of his well-being and he replies thus. The Robbers is considered one of the greatest examples of lyrical dramatic writing in Germany literature and the facilitation of common language transformed into slightly tweaked meaning is one of the reasons, so this may be an example of that. Or, perhaps, this may be an example of how sayings get twisted over time.
“Switzerland, the Mecca of modern villainy.”
Spiegelberg recommends to Razmann that take a trip somewhere that has a “climate of criminality” in order to find a suitable subject for making into a villain. For no immediately apparent reason, he advises Switzerland with the accompanying metaphorical title as the target of this pilgrimage. Razmann seems equally confused countering that others have recommended Italy.
Amalia: Warrior Princess
As Franz leans in to kiss Amalia at one point, she suddenly grabs his sword and threatens to call upon the spirit of her uncle to guide the blade through his vile body. Her success at driving him out of the room in fear leads her a moment of metaphorical empowerment:
“I felt as strong as a fiery charger, fierce as a tigress pursuing the vainglorious kidnapper of her cubs.”
The Flattering Song
Karl is the idealistic son brother standing in opposition to Franz, the manipulative son. As a result, one can fairly imagine the subtext of this particular melodramatic exercise in metaphorical flattery Franz players upon his elderly father:
“Your life is the oracle I consult above all others, the mirror in which I look at all things – no duty is too holy for me to break, if it is a question of your precious life.”
L: This Play May Feature Course or Crude Language
Several different versions of The Robbers wound up being published and produced because of outcries in some communities against the rebellion against standard conventions of drama represented by the school of Sturm und Drang genre which it represents. Whether or not the somewhat racy extended metaphor is one of those lines which was excised from some performances is unknown, but it does reveal that the humor of 22-year-old writers doesn’t change too much over the centuries”
“These people wall themselves up in the belly of a tyrant, humour the whims of his digestive tract and hold their breath when he farts.”
