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Balancing self with the world and others: Angela Krauß' Romanticism and novel escape from the postmodern

Hentschel, Graham N.

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2011, MA, University of Cincinnati, Arts and Sciences: Germanic Languages and Literature.

In this thesis I will examine Angela Krauß' post-Wende prose literature to show how she deals with fragmentation stylistically and thematically, ultimately leaving her narrator and the reader with a desire for balance. Stylistically, Krauß' work can be described as postmodern, but thematically it is more informed by early Romantic and specifically the philosophy of Novalis. Both the postmodern and Romantic writer embraces fragmentation in theory and artistic output, but with differing perspectives and ultimate goals. The postmodernist revels in the chaos of fragmentation as a sign of unavoidable diversity and the lack of utopian harmony. The Romantic, particularly one in a Novalisian tradition, can use it to express yearning for unity and the real possibility of transcendence. Krauß shows her Romantic take on the issue by creating a narrator with an identity profoundly affected by the fragmented nature of the post-Wende and postmodern culture in which she lives. She is in a perpetual state of searching for balance, first between East and West and then, as the immediate tension of the Wende fades, within herself and in love with other people. Though fleeting, the narrator's moments of transcendence over fragmentation are presented in earnest as escape from postmodern culture.

The primary texts that I have chosen—Die Überfliegerin (1995), Weggeküßt (2002), and Wie Weiter (2006)— write into each other. The texts trace a linear development from the sudden, peaceful, yet earth shattering moments surrounding the fall of the wall, to the identity issues that came with Westernization, and finally to finding a balanced identity in the 21st century. As these texts unfold, so does the scope widen. In Die Überfliegerin, Krauß is in the midst of the Wende and the East / West dynamic is a driving force behind action and travel between the two recently brought together hemispheres. The narrator goes on a journey that is decidedly informed by the German Romantic. Weggeküßt takes several steps forward in time and takes place about twelve years after the Wende. The narrator takes a more passive, reflective approach in an examination of herself in westernized Leipzig. She must reconnect to her surroundings by finding balance between her own Romantic tendencies and the postmodern culture of the 21st century. Wie Weiter takes place in the narrator's Leipzig apartment, which she never leaves during the main plot, but rather spends two quiet hours thinking about the past, present, and future. The narrator's memories of growing up in the GDR are centered on themes of love and finding oneness in a relationship with others.

Angela Krauß is not championing a conservative movement by allowing her Romantic narrator to live in the present, postmodern culture, but rather taking a more nuanced progressive stance. To some degree, she questions the severity of postmodern culture and asks us to question how much it has infiltrated the imaginations of the people and, further, which of those aspects are worth combating.

Katharina Gerstenberger, PhD (Committee Chair)
Harold Herzog, PhD (Committee Member)
59 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Hentschel, G. N. (2011). Balancing self with the world and others: Angela Krauß' Romanticism and novel escape from the postmodern [Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1307320622

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Hentschel, Graham. Balancing self with the world and others: Angela Krauß' Romanticism and novel escape from the postmodern. 2011. University of Cincinnati, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1307320622.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Hentschel, Graham. "Balancing self with the world and others: Angela Krauß' Romanticism and novel escape from the postmodern." Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2011. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1307320622

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)