The ending of “Judgement” is the realistic outcome of a man who is depressed from not getting his father’s approval. Georg is character who looks up to his father and has followed his father’s footsteps all his life. The story concluded with Georg committing suicide by jumping off a bridge. Just before this, the last words Georg’s father told were “I condemn you do death by drowning!” Depending on the type of person you are, hearing those words from your father can have various different extreme effects on you. Georg being a person who cared a lot of his father’s opinion, decided that he will never get his father’s approval and took those words for their literal meaning. Georg’s final words to the reader were; “But dear parents, I have always loved you”. This shows us that Georg not getting his parents approval is the absolute cause of his decision to commit suicide. The ending of this story was a realistic ending of a depressed man who could not get his father’s approval.
-William Dayan
The last line of the story, “At this moment, almost endless traffic rolled across the bridge” is highly significant to the story as it seems to signify a rush of traffic which can be equivalent to the weight of Georg’s life suddenly pushing at him at once. As William mentioned above, “Judgement” can be considered as the realistic outcome of a man who is depressed from not getting his father’s approval, and the rush of traffic could show the rush of unfulfillment that Georg had felt from not being able to feel like he had made his father proud. Georg’s last moments, “He cried softly: ‘But dear parents, I have always loved you’, and let himself fall down” proved that in the end his parents were always dear to his heart, and that is what may have driven him to his end. The line at the end is significant as it shows these inner feelings of Georg, a perfect parallel in his last moments.
-Sabera Qazi
When thinking about who can be held responsible for Georg’s decision at the end of the story, it can only be Georg himself. As William and Sabera have mentioned above, indeed Georg seems to be driven to suicide as he had always strived for his father’s approval and never received it. While it is possible to blame it on his father, it can also be completely Georg’s fault. Georg had always kept himself distant from his father as we can see when he stumbles upon his father’s room. “There was no necessity for him to go there, since he had daily contact with his father in the business, and they ate lunch together in an eating house. In the evenings, each of them catered for himself.” It is clear here that Georg and his father had a more business relationship rather than a personal family like one. Perhaps if Georg had made more of a effort to talk to his father in a personal way and spend more time with him outside of work, he would have found the satisfaction that he needed. From this it can be concluded that only Georg can be responsible for the decision he makes at the end.
-Brian Baigorria
I can see why it would be Georg’s fault for his own death, but I don’t think he is solely responsible for this. He was raised in an environment that lacked nurture. He didn’t feel the love that he wanted and needed, which leads him to always seeking attention from his parents and gain approval, especially from his dad. Georg, in my opinion, has a twisted mentality due to the way that his environment has shaped him. He is heavily influenced by the words and thoughts that belongs to his dad, and if his dad had not told him to go kill himself, I don’t think Georg would’ve committed suicide. The words of his father were like the triggers of a gun; once fired and hits someone, the result is death. Of course, Georg was the one who made the final decision, but I don’t think he was mentally competent at the time that he made the decision, so I don’t think he should be held responsible for his own death.
Sabera–
I agree with your opinion that his parents were always dear to his heart, and that is what may have driven him to his end and that was said through Georg’s last moments, “He cried softly: ‘But dear parents, I have always loved you’. I believe this is significant because through all the experiences that he faced with his father, he still managed to show emotion and he loved his father even though his father became the root cause of his suicide and even after his father condemned him to death.