| Description |
1 online resource (x, 299 pages) |
| Series |
Women and gender in German studies |
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Women and gender in German studies.
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| Contents |
Introduction: Passion and prejudice : toward a new literary canon for the German novel -- An Anglophile Fräulein and her epistolary emotions : Die Geschichte des Fräuleins von Sternheim (1771) / by Sophie von La Roche -- Reading for pleasure vs. reading for pain : Julchen Grünthal : Eine Pensionsgeschichte (1784) / by Friederike Unger -- Sympathy for the sublime : Das Blütenalter der Empfindung (1794) / by Sophie Mereau -- The legitimacy of passionate narrative and the metanarrative of anonymity : Agnes von Lilien (1796) / by Caroline von Wolzogen -- Monstrous pathos and the agony of female influence : Die Honigmonathe (1804) / by Caroline Fischer -- Adultery rewarded : women's emotions and men's indignity in Frauenwürde (1818) / by Caroline Pichler -- Conclusion: Great books, or : The laurel wreath as a mixed blessing -- Appendix A: Publication information and plot summaries, chronologically listed -- Appendix B: Biographies of the novelists -- Bibliography -- Index |
| Summary |
"Literature written by women in German during the period long known patriarchally as the Age of Goethe was largely lumped in with other unserious or artistically unworthy works under the category Trivialliteratur, literally "trivial literature." Using insights from Gender Studies yet acknowledging the need for a literary canon, Great Books by German Women offers a critical interpretation of six canon-worthy German novels written by women in the period, for which it coins the term "Age of Emotion." The novels are chosen because they depict women's ordinary yet interesting lives and, equally, because each displays formal strengths that yield prose particularly able to express emotion. The first, Sophie von La Roche's Die Geschichte des Fräuleins von Sternheim (The History of Lady von Sternheim), draws on the tradition of the epistolary novel while also finding new ways to depict empathetic emotions. The second, Friederike Unger's Julchen Grünthal, brings to the Frauenroman or women's novel the use of irony to portray a heroine's emotions during her coming of age. The next novels add lyricism to their prose to capture sensual emotions: Sophie Mereau's Blütenalter der Empfindung (The Blossoming of Feeling) imagines women's affinity for the philosophical sublime, while Caroline Wolzogen depicts female desire in her Agnes von Lilien. The fifth novel, Die Honigmonathe (The Honeymoon), by Karoline Fischer, explores the agony that extreme emotions cause-not only for women but also for men. The last novel, Caroline Pichler's Frauenwürde (The Dignity of Women) expands the focus from a young heroine to multiple mature characters while maintaining the centrality of women's talents and emotions. Finally, this study accords honorable mention to some other women's novels before concluding that the influence of these six works was in no way trivial, either in portraying women's lives and emotions or in the history of German literature"-- Provided by publisher |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index |
| Notes |
Description based on online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on February 25, 2022) |
| Subject |
German fiction -- Women authors -- History and criticism
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German fiction -- 18th century -- History and criticism
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German fiction -- 19th century -- History and criticism
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Women in literature.
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Emotions in literature.
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LITERARY CRITICISM / European / German
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Emotions in literature
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German fiction
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German fiction -- Women authors
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Women in literature
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| Genre/Form |
Criticism, interpretation, etc.
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Literary criticism
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Literary criticism.
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Critiques littéraires.
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| Form |
Electronic book
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| LC no. |
2021048923 |
| ISBN |
1800105142 |
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9781800105133 |
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1800105134 |
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9781800105140 |
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