Karel Čapek

“ The forcing of the secret from her by a group of people who have become suspicious of her inexplicable knowledge of their lives and affairs for generations back, lifts the play to its supreme climax, which is followed instantly by another course of mounting action, in the effort of these people to decide what to do with the secret once they have possessed it. ”

“ Through countless changes of names—always preserving the original initials—she has passed, disappearing and returning under a new name, since one cannot live indefinitely among other human beings unless one can share their physical metamorphoses. ”

“ And in the play we find her as Emilia Marty, singing woman, weary, ot her immortality but striving to recover the formula of life prolongation which had fallen into the hands of one of her lovers many years before; because Emilia feels the effect of her immortality wearing away and fears to face death, even though 350 years of life have become utterly boring to her. ”