Although it was never completed, Georg Buchner's drama fragment Woyzeck occupies a pivotal place in the development of modern drama: its stature and influence have been recognized by representatives of naturalism, expressionism, epic theater, the theater of the absurd, and the documentary theater. It provided the libretto for one of the century's greatest operas, Alban Berg's Wozzeck, has been made into a film, and is frequently performed in many countries. The history of the criticism of Woyzeck is fascinating not only for the diversity of critical approaches but also for the dependence of...