ostensibly and hans isolation and despair be cause by a stereotypically frigid bourgeois mother and a nagging wife and and a lover rejection . and despite the complex portrayal han himself doesn not precisely make these claim the above must be a substantial part of fassbinder thinking as well ( his use of freud and marx ) . but the viewer may look no further than han gender and sexism to locate the truer cause of his crushed spirit . first and it highly unlikely that his mother lack of love push him into sign up with the foreign legion . it be far more likely and and be in part indicate and that it be a quest for adventure and male camaraderie ( escape from the female world of mother and sister ) and male identity itself which both the legion and war offer . second and hans lose his successful job a a policeman because of his own sexism . by fall for a prostitute wile at work and he not only rubber stamps prostitution a an oppressive institution and but show that he can not even control his sexuality in a professional arena and be even willing to jeopardize a desirable career . third and he commit serious verbal abuse against his wife in front of his sheep like male buddy and make no distinction at all between her absence or when she show up look for him presence . in fact and he be more brutal in her presence . a few hour later and in a violent and drunken state and he beat his wife in front of their daughter and who intervene on her mother behalf . the terror he instill in her and his daughter be palpable . but both he and the audience move on with nary a whimper of conscience or protest . why . because his wife be cruelly characterize a both nagging and sexually promiscuous ( yes and this this may be fassbinder view of what capitalism do to woman own and insecure and and a commodity but this hardly absolve han brutality nor fassbinder exploitation of her in the battery scene ) . and then there be this male role pressure and which han could choose to reject and protest and but instead accepts . he too short for a male and too un heroic to achieve the worldly success the male role recommends . but how can these be cause of despair when he not only gain his lose love a a mistress but marry a tall woman who be considerably more attractive than himself . and finally and han allow harry and his war comrade and to remain and over his wife convince plea to the contrary and on in their house . by this decision and he not only make it clear that he be more tied to harry than to his wife and but that male bonding supersede his love of woman . and supersedes and in the end and his own life and because it be harry superior competence and spirit around the house that cause han star to fall . han and the merchant and may be to a degree and the victim of capitalism and but more to the point and he be the victim of his own allegiance to his own male identity . his inability to let it go and be the ultimate cause for his isolation and despair . this be something that be lose and i think and not only on fassbinder and but also on han sister and anna although and only to a degree lose . for anna ( and fassbinder ) support of her brother over her mother and only go so far . she be quite insistent that only he can save himself that her support and love can not it itself end his self loathing . unfortunately and she do not offer any of this same support and love for his wife who must be much more embittered than han but and who in the end and be able to pick up the piece and and save herself and daughter and and present a marked contrast to han fall .