Character background
Moritz grew up in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, in the 1890s. He lived as an only child with his kind but not very supportive mother, and his strict and judgmental father. He wasn't alone, though. He had his friend Melchior Gabor, and when they were younger they played with Wendla Bergmann and Ilse. His childhood was pleasant, as all childhoods should be, but it all went wrong when he hit puberty.
Moritz was haunted by horrible nightmares. He dreamed about the legs of a woman, and these dreams haunted him night after night. He lost sleep over it, and his school work suffered as a result. He would fall asleep in class, or fail his tests and assignments. He confided in his best friend, Melchior, who offered to write him a detailed essay on sex (with illustrations in the margins) in hopes that that would help.
The essay only made the dreams worse. His performance in school continued to decline. He just barely passed the midterms and though he worked hard, he was expelled before the end of the school year. His father was disgraced, and very nearly disowned him for his failure. In an act of desperation, he wrote to Melchior's mother, asking for money so that he could run away to America and begin a new life there. She refused, and he was heartbroken.
Not knowing what else to do or where else to turn, Moritz stole his father's gun and ran off to end his life. Before he was able to, his old friend Ilse came across him. They spoke of their days as children together, and she tried to convince him to come home with her. Determined to at least succeed at suicide, if nothing else, he refused on the grounds that he had too much work to do. She declared that the next time he saw her, she'd be lying on a trash heap.
Moritz regretted his decision not to go with Ilse, and ruminated briefly on his missed opportunities in life. He recollected his thoughts and steeled himself, stating that he was ready now. He would be an angel. And so, with that thought in mind, Moritz placed his father's gun in his mouth and ended his life.
His story doesn't end there, however. He attends his own funeral, watching as his old classmates come to pay their respects, such as they were. Mostly they discussed how he died, and complained about school work. He watches as his father spits on his grave and shout that Moritz was no son of his, he never liked the boy anyway.
A few months later, Melchior returns to the graveyard to meet with Wendla, only to find that she died as well. Moritz sees that Melchior is about to commit suicide and at first, tries to convince him to go through with it. However, he realizes that he really doesn't want that for his friend and stops him, offering words of encouragement. As long as Melchior keeps them in his heart, their deaths weren't in vain.
Moritz is taken after Melchior leaves, and he is alone by his grave once more.