2 h 49 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 69 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 69 pagesAbout this book
What becomes of a romantic heroine’s ideals when a soldier climbs into her room carrying chocolate instead of cartridges?
In Bernard Shaw’s three-act comedy Arms and the Man, Raina Petkoff dreams of military glory in her family’s comfortable Bulgarian home. Her fiancé, Major Sergius Saranoff, is the hero of a cavalry charge. Then Captain Bluntschli, a Swiss soldier serving in the Serbian army, climbs onto her balcony seeking refuge.
Bluntschli wants to survive, not look noble. His empty pistol and precious chocolate challenge everything Raina admires about soldiers. Around them, the Petkoff household guards its social standing, while the proud maid Louka wants a better place in the world. Sharp talk and awkward entrances turn love, honour and class into lively comic arguments.
What you’ll discover
- Chocolate instead of cartridges Meet a hungry soldier whose practical choices make military glory look very different.
- A bedroom under siege Step into Raina’s room as gunshots outside bring an unwelcome stranger to her balcony.
- The burden of heroism Watch Sergius struggle with the grand role his celebrated cavalry charge gives him.
- Pride above and below stairs Follow Louka’s ambition as she pushes against the place her employers expect her to accept.
- Comedy with awkward entrances Enjoy hidden objects, sharp exchanges and sudden arrivals that put fine ideals under pressure.
Is it for you?
This is for anyone who enjoys witty comedy, plays about ideas, or stories that laugh at heroes. It suits students meeting Shaw for the first time. If you want battle scenes or a solemn war drama, you may find it less suited.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A Romantic Household Waits for News
- A Stranger Climbs In at Night
- Chocolate Creams Instead of Cartridges
- The Heroes Come Home
- Honour, Love and Class Are Put on Trial
- A Comedy Built on Reversals
Who’s who
- Raina PetkoffA young Bulgarian woman who loves high ideals and is engaged to a war hero, and who must face the gap between her dreams and real life.
- Captain BluntschliA practical Swiss professional soldier in the Serbian army, who carries chocolate, avoids needless risk and just wants to survive the war.
- Major Sergius SaranoffRaina's dashing fiancé and the hero of a cavalry charge, who struggles with the part that glory has made him play.
- LoukaThe Petkoffs' clever and proud maid, who resents her low rank and wants a better place in the world.
- Catherine PetkoffRaina's mother, a stately and ambitious woman who cares about her family's standing and loves the idea of a hero in the family.
- Major PetkoffRaina's father, a cheerful and simple officer who returns from the war more interested in his coffee and his old coat than in glory.
- NicolaThe Petkoff family's calm manservant, who believes in knowing his place and thinks that humble service is the way to rise.
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- Audiobook
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- 15-minute summary
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- Paperback
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Poetry & DramaFree to read
Arms and the Man
by Bernard Shaw· 1898
A fugitive soldier challenges a young woman's dreams of heroism.
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Language: Deutsch
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A Romantic Household Waits for News
The play opens in Raina Petkoff's bedroom in a small Bulgarian town, on a night in the middle of the war. Raina is young, proud and fond of fine feelings. She has been reading poetry and thinking about her fiancé, Major Sergius Saranoff. Her mother, Catherine, bursts in with exciting news. Bulgaria has won a battle at Slivnitza, and Sergius led the cavalry charge that decided it.
Catherine tells the story with delight. The Bulgarians charged, the Serbs broke, and Sergius rode at the front like a hero from an old tale. Raina answers with great feeling. She says she is almost afraid that real life cannot match the high ideals she and Sergius share. She feels that they are made for something nobler than ordinary people.
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The author
Bernard Shaw
1856–1950 · Irish playwright and critic
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) was an Irish playwright and critic. Born in Dublin, he moved to London in 1876 and later lived in Ayot St Lawrence, Hertfordshire, where he died. His plays include Arms and the Man (1894), Man and Superman (1903), Major Barbara (1905), and Pygmalion (1912).
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What is Arms and the Man about?
It is a comedy set during the Serbo-Bulgarian War. A young Bulgarian woman engaged to a hero hides a fleeing enemy soldier in her room, and his plain talk begins to undo her ideas about war and love.
What does the title Arms and the Man mean?
The title echoes the opening of Virgil's Aeneid, an epic poem about a warrior hero. Shaw uses it ironically, because his play shows a soldier who values food over weapons and sense over glory.
Why does Bluntschli carry chocolate instead of bullets?
He is an experienced professional who knows that food is more useful than ammunition on a long, tiring campaign. The chocolate also shows that Shaw wants the audience to see war as it is, not as legend.
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