Thomas BernhardAuthor :
Paperback
Published : Thursday 1 November 2001
Description
Thomas Bernhard (1931-1989), a literary figure of international acclaim and arguably Austrias greatest post-World War II writer, became the first of his generation to expose unrelentingly his countrys pathological denial of complicity in the Holocaust. Bernhards writings and indeed his own biography reflect Austrias fraught efforts to define itself as a nation following the collapse of the Habsburg monarchy and the trauma of World War II. Repeatedly he scandalized the nation with novels, plays, and public statements that exposed the convoluted ways Austrians were attempting to come to terms with their Nazi past-or defiantly avoiding doing so. This book, the first comprehensive biography of Thomas Bernhard in English, examines his life and work and their intricate relationship to Austrias geographical, political, and cultural transformations in the twentieth century. While Bernhard was the scourge of his native culture, Honegger explains, he was also a product of that same culture. Appreciation of his controversial impact on his society is possible only through an understanding of the contradictions, the shame, and the achievements that mark Austrians self-perception in the postwar years. Honegger shows that for Bernhard the theater was not only a profession but also a paradigm for his life, and that performance was the primary force animating his writing and self-construction. Even after his death, Bernhards carefully constructed biography continues to fascinate, shock, and expose the Austrian culture at large.
You may also like ...
by
Hardback
23 Apr 2024
Modern and contemporary fiction: general and literary
€29.25
Extended stock – Dispatch 5-7 days
by
Paperback
06 Jul 2023
Literature: history and criticism
€17.54
Extended stock – Dispatch 5-7 days
by
Paperback
13 Jan 2021
Literary essays
€15.20
Extended stock – Dispatch 5-7 days
by
Hardback
29 Sep 2020
Plays, playscripts
€19.88
Extended stock – Dispatch 5-7 days
Reviews