The Old Lady's Visit

Friedrich Dürrenmatt


The Visit


A tragic comedy

Güllen is bankrupt. The coffers are empty, the economy is in shambles, the buildings are dilapidated, important trains have long since passed the town by, and the citizens have been reduced to poverty. Their hope rests on Claire Zachanassian, a billionaire returning to her hometown. Years ago, she became pregnant by her great love, Alfred Ill; he disowned her, and after a trial rigged by false witnesses, she was driven out of town, penniless and disgraced. Decades later, she offers the people of Güllen the salvation they’ve longed for: one billion for the town—on one condition. Alfred Ill must die. At first, the people of Güllen indignantly reject the offer as immoral. But soon, loans are taken out, new purchases are made, and plans for the future are forged. Prosperity seems within reach, and Alfred Ill senses that his fellow citizens’ attitude toward him is changing irrevocably. Now the question arises: Can money really buy everything, even a human life? Claire’s offer is not only an act of revenge and an attempt to make the past fade from memory; it is an experiment that shows how corruption can exert a powerful pull and how the desire for money can transform an entire community.

How much greed can a society endure before it loses its humanity? What remains of a social community—or even love—when the lure of wealth overshadows all other values?