The Transformation of Failure
A critical analysis of character presentation in the novels of Wolfgang Koeppen
©1984
Others
283 Pages
Series:
American University Studies , Volume 25
Summary
This study of Wolfgang Koeppen's two pre-war and three post-war novels demonstrates a continuity both in Koeppen's thematic concerns and in the underlying development of his characters throughout the five novels. Often the novels have been treated as works of pessi- mistic social and political criticism: by contrast, this detailed analysis of the unique creative inner lives and the corresponding spiritual development of the characters - with the exception of Johannes von Süde in Die Mauer schwankt - demonstrates the narrator's positive assessment of the characters and the increa- singly optimistic tendency of the novels.
Details
- Pages
- 283
- Publication Year
- 1984
- ISBN (Softcover)
- 9780820400471
- Language
- English
- Published
- New York, Bern, Frankfurt/M., Nancy, 1983. 283 pp.