"The Prussian Officer" is a short story by D.H. Lawrence, published in 1914 as the title piece of his first story collection. Set in a German military garrison, it portrays the destructive relationship between a cold, tyrannical Prussian captain and his young, handsome Bavarian orderly. Driven by repressed tension and inner frustration, the captain subjects his subordinate to relentless psychological and physical abuse. The orderly endures silently, but suppressed hatred slowly consumes him. Finally driven beyond endurance, he commits an act of violent revenge and flees across the countryside. Exploring power, repression, class, and destructive authority, the story ends in tragedy for both men.
