Constructions of melancholy in contemporary German literature
Anna O’ Driscoll
Course: PhD GermanSupervisor: Prof. Anne Fuchs
Funding Body: HII
Abstract
The aim of my dissertation is to discover why a predominant atmosphere of melancholy has reemerged in German literature since reunification and how this is manifested in the work of various contemporary authors. I will be concentrating not only on authors who are preoccupied with the transition following the fall of the Berlin Wall, in particular writers from the former GDR, such as Monika maron and Christa Wolf, but also with authors who write from a melancholy viewpoint about the events of 1968 and about the Holocaust, e.g. Christoph Ransmayr, W.G. Sebald and Uwe Timm, among others.
Research Interests
Contemporary German & Austrian literature; also earlier 20th century literature.
