How we cite our quotes: (Act.Scene.Line)
Quote #1
Fair in Soho.
The beggars are begging, the thieves are stealing, the whores are whoring. (P.2-4)
The stage directions set the scene for the play. In this case, at a fair in Soho, the setting is saturated with dirty deeds. All of the activities that make up the background of the play are illegal. Get the feeling you're in a bad part of town? That's kind of the idea.
Quote #2
On a beautiful blue Sunday
See a corpse stretched in the Strand.
See a man dodge round the corner…
Mackie's friends will understand. (P.17-20)
Not to beat a dead horse, but here we go again with the contrast between the sound of the song and its content. The now-familiar tune of "Mack the Knife" might make you think of Ol' Blue Eyes, but if you read the verses you'll see how the real, horrible results of rampant criminality are part of the song's charm.
Quote #3
POLLY. But you can't be meaning to have our wedding here? Why, it is a common stable. You can't ask the vicar to a place like this. Besides, it isn't even ours. We really oughtn't to start our new life with a burglary, Mac. Why, this is the biggest day of our life. (1.1.22-26)
Polly might seem innocent until you remember that she's a character in a play by Brecht, so you know that her words have to be significant. She protests that her life with Mac begins as a criminal act, stealing not only the furniture but the space itself. It's like their entire marriage is illegal (or at least just not legal—sorry, Polly!).