Scene 1, (p. 7) can be viewed as Mother Courage being a caring mother simply fearing the death of her child,
“Sergeant: I could use something else. Those boys are healthy as young birch trees, I observe: chest like barrels, solid leg muscles. So why are they dodging military service may I ask? Mother Courage: Nowt doing, sergeant. Yours is no trade for my kids.’
However, her words can also depict that she is simply taking from the war, but not giving, (p.9)
“It’s to fatten up your kids but you won’t invest in it?”
Mother courage is profiting from the war, and this can be seen as an act of protection as a mother to keep her family alive. However, in the last scene of the playwright, after the death of all her children, Mother Courage still continues to make money off the war. This implies that reason for her profiting from the war is not for her children but simply for herself. The actions therefore of her keeping Eilif from the war should not be seen with sympathy as Mother Courage is simply taking from the war, which evidently is not for her children, and also she is not giving in return.
The scene where Swiss Cheese dies is another strong example where sympathy results only from Mother Courage’s actions of greed. Taking place in chapter 3, (p.42) Swiss Cheese is killed because of Mother Courage’s greed to sell the cart for a higher price,
“Yvette: Well, you got what you what you asked for, with your haggling and trying to keep your cart. Eleven bullets they gave him, that’s all.”
Some sympathy can be shown towards Mother Courage as her son has just died; however, her greediness is one of the sheer reasons for the death of her son. If Mother did not bargain the price for her cart, and barter for a higher a price, the life of Swiss Cheese could have been saved.
It is evident that Mother Courage may be sympathised with because of her being represented to be a caring mother who has lost her son. When in reality she has simply brought upon the death of Swiss Cheese onto herself as if it was not for her greed in the negotiation between the selling of the cart, the sympathy resulting from the death would not have occurred.
Yet again, in the last scene of the playwright, (p.87) the acts of Mother Courage’s greed results in the sympathy of her situation.
“Peasant: If you’d not had gone into town to get your cut it might never of happened.”
This is another clear example of greed from Mother Courage as this was just after Kattrin had died. For her mere greed in money, Brecht has punished Mother Courage to lose her daughter, Kattrin. From her death, the audience may feel a rush of sympathy for Mother Courage, however, just like her loss in all her other children, Mother Courage has brought the sympathy onto herself because of her greed.
From these examples, it is evident that Brecht has used the punishment of the loss of her children for her greed. It can be seen that for each act of greediness she displays, a consequence is followed with. The greed to take from war but not give, she loses Elif, the greed to bargain the price of the cart results for the death of Swiss Cheese and for the greed of sheer money she loses Kattrin.
This suggests that Bertolt Brecht wants to communicate that his intension was not to create a mood of sympathy for Mother Courage, but rather a punishment. Though one may seem unusual to have absence sympathy for someone who has lost their children, Bertolt Brecht is communicating the message that the greed of Mother Courage is the reason for the sympathy the audience is feeling.
Though Mother Courage may seem like the good mother looking out for her children, analysis shows that this is not the case. She is merely the greedy business woman who is punished with the loss of her children for the reason of her greed and in return the audience feels some sympathy. However, the sympathy is only the result from her greed which has created the loss in the first place.