Author： Burns B.
Publisher： Springer Publishing Company
ISSN： 0028-2677
Source： Neophilologus, Vol.86, Iss.3, 2002-07, pp. : 437-453
Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.
Abstract
The article is a comparative examination of two works of German literature on the motif of the ex-convict: Theodor Storm's novella Ein Doppelgänger (1886) and, some fifty years later, Hans Fallada's novel Wer einmal aus dem Blechnapf frißt (1934). The writers' interest in the controversial subject of reintegration and recidivism springs from diametrically opposed starting points, for Storm was a lawyer and judge, while Fallada was an ex-felon, but they share a humanitarian commitment to the plight of the disenfranchised. This study analyses the factors in each work which motivate the protagonist's return to crime, and considers how the respective portrayals reflect contemporary attitudes to law and social order. It is argued that both authors through their creative writing challenge false assumptions about crime and punishment, and anticipate the gradual modern implementation of progressive ideas in the care and resettlement of offenders.
Related content
Language Policy, Vol. 10, Iss. 3, 2011-08 ,pp. :
Access to resources
Recommend
Evidentiality in illness narratives
Pragmatics and Society, Vol. 9, Iss. 3, 2018-01 ,pp. :
On the nature of personal narratives of high quality
By HK Ulatowska
Advances in Speech Language Pathology, Vol. 6, Iss. 1, 2004-03 ,pp. :
Hunters and Crocodiles. Narratives of a Hunter's Bard
Babel, Vol. 39, Iss. 4, 1993-01 ,pp. :
Romanticism and Slave Narratives: Transatlantic Testimonies
By Leask N.
Review of English Studies, Vol. 53, Iss. 211, 2002-08 ,pp. :