Vor Sonnenaufgang: Soziales Drama

by Gerhart Hauptmann

"Vor Sonnenaufgang: Soziales Drama" by Gerhart Hauptmann is a social drama written in 1889. The play depicts a wealthy farming family's descent into alcoholism and decay after discovering coal on their land. Helene, the only daughter educated away from home, suffers in this environment until a visiting economist arrives to study local workers. Their developing romance faces a devastating obstacle when he discovers her family's alcoholism, believing it hereditary. The work marked the breakthrough of naturalism in German theater.