- In a quaint bucolic neighborhood in Prague, the local beggar, Mr. Joseph, is well-liked and well-provided for by the town's carefree inhabitants. He is old and his life is simple and his needs are few. Another beggar, however, the wicked Mother Millions, wants to cash in on the happy, simple life he enjoys. Her devious and cruel efforts to accomplish this dramatically extol how unsimple and tragic an innocent but proud beggar's life can become. And the terrible price seemingly innocent, carefree people must pay when they unwittingly help destroy something they once cherished.—Anonymous
- The Beggars Story takes place in Prague. The year is 1842, and the majestic River Vltava flows through the middle of the city dividing Prague into two distinctly different worlds. The people of Prague who dwell on either side of the river are indeed worlds apart, and not only socially and economically but in their sense of compassion and humanity as well. Though connected by the Charles Bridge, one of the most famous and impressive, man-made structures in Central Europe, the citizens of the older part of the city (called Mala Strana, or The Little Quarter) endure social ills which no stately iron bridge can repair.
Their countrys economic crisis has dealt a terrible impact upon their lives and to such an extent that almost every citizen of Mala Strana suffers the constant struggle and worry of mere survival. However, in one particular section of The Little Quarter lives Mr. Joseph, a local beggar, who apparently doesn't worry about anything at all. It is with a cheerful disposition and even pride he has learned to endure his impoverished state. For he has already lost everything worth worrying about, so he is content in knowing that he has really nothing more to lose.
Mr. Joseph is well liked by people who share the provincial town where he lives and practices his beggary. They often give him some food and even clothing when they see him walking by. The beggar even gets some tobacco from a local merchant named Mr. Herzl (although Mrs. Herzl doesn't seem to be fond of it). As his father before him, the former ferryman from Prague's famous river enjoys sniffing tobaccoan activity he sometimes shares with the local policeman Mr. Simmer. And, also as his father, Mr. Joseph tries viewing the world with optimism and being satisfied with what he has--unlike Prague's other beggar: Mother Millions.
She is intrigued by Mr. Joseph's seemingly carefree and easy life, and is tempted to possess the same happiness for herself. She would like to "secure" a better future and she sees Mr. Joseph as her means in doing so. So she relentlessly hounds the old beggar to marry her. But he continuously refuses to accept her marriage proposal. This eventually has grave consequences for him, as vicious rumors about him spread across the city, he loses his well-kept standing in the community and falls into ill-repute. Soon, his simple, carefree life meets with drastic turmoil and strife, which eventually leads to his ruin and death.
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