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1996
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96-1-026
This dictionary of literary concepts differs from Otto F. Best's well-known Handbuch literarischer Fachbegriffe (Frankfurt am Main, 1994) ( RREO 95-1-066), primarily in its more restricted coverage: Rötzer limits himself to approximately 400 lemmata versus Best's 2,000. Rötzer concentrates on concepts that are especially important to the analysis of German literature, giving particular emphasis to the question of metrics and revealing connections among topics through a good cross-reference structure. These two works complement one another: Rötzer is a good introductory dictionary and Best serves more advanced (though not specialized) needs. [hak/rm]
96-1-027
The number of literary societies in Germany has increased considerably since the 1991 edition. No longer considered to be merely of local interest, and they are now taken seriously by scholars, who, indeed, often participate in their activities. This handbook presents information about the societies collected in no other single source. The first section contains descriptions of 110 literary societies, mostly societies devoted to individual writers, and a "statistical" section, which includes some societies not described in the first section. It also lists addresses, board membership, publications, museum/archive/library, number of members, dues, etc. A separate section lists in table form yearbooks, museums and prices. The next edition should include a number of important societies that are missing (Hansjürgen Blinn's Informationshandbuch deutsche Literaturwissenschaft RREO 95-1-077 helps fill in the gaps), German-language literary societies outside Germany, and societies concerned with non-German authors. [hak/rm]
96-1-028
Autorenlexikon [Author Lexicon]. 1995. xii, 625 p. (Schriften zur Europa- und Deutschlandforschung, 1) ISBN 3-631-48646-4: DM 148.00
Studie [Analysis]. 1995. 202 p. 21 cm. (Schriften zur Europa- und Deutschlandforschung, 2) ISBN 3-631-48643-X : DM 65.00
This work consists of two parts: a historical analysis of the writers who emigrated from the GDR between the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961 and its fall in 1989, and a bio-bibliographic author lexicon, containing around 100 articles. Detailed lists of the works of the authors are included in their respective entries together with secondary criticism about their works. Both the analysis and the lexicon will retain their significance for the future study of German post-war literature and GDR literature in particular. This work ranks among the finest bio-bibliographical works ever done in German literary studies. [hak/tk]
96-1-029
39th ed. 1992 (1994). 542 p. ISBN 3-598-23370-1: DM
278.00
40th ed. 1993 (1995). 585 p. ISBN 3-598-23371-X: DM
278.00
41st ed. 1994 (1996). 597 p. ISBN 3-598-23372-8: DM
278.00
Since, with the 39th edition (1994), this work has been issued by a new publisher (Saur), it is fitting to once again examine it critically. (Previous editions were published by Aufbau-Verlag in Berlin and by Stiftung Weimarer Klassik in Weimar.) It has been highly regarded from the beginning, and one notes with pleasure that it does not exhibit any substantive changes. The familiar structure has been maintained, comprising anthologies and general works, writings by and about individual authors, and reviews. Unlike the standard German bibliography of literary criticism, Bibliographie der deutschen Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft, it also lists sound recordings, translations of primary texts, and particularly, because of its roots in the German Democratic Republic, translations into the languages of eastern Europe. With only a two-year lag, it is is remarkably current. One regrettable change is the diminished readability caused by the new double-column format. [hak/tk]
95-1-030
Vol. 1. 1835-1899. 1994. 297 p. ISBN 3-631-47055-X: SFr. 89.00
Although this work appeared at the same time as Andreas Schumann's Bibliographie zur deutschen Literaturgeschichtsschreibung, 1827-1945 (München, 1994) -- both bibliographies of German literary histories -- Fritsch-Rößler's is much more informative (Schumann is unannotated) and more inclusive. Titles are listed chronilogically. The precise bibliographic descriptions are followed by commentaries about the authors, target readership, the reception of the works, notable characteristics, and lists of reviews of the works, which are rich resources in themselves. [hak/tk]
96-1-031
This bibliography attempts to be a guide to secondary sources on contemporary Austrian literature, but as the subtitle suggests, it is very selective. Its 803 entries are divided into 12 sections; further access is provided by title and name indexes. Excluded from the selection are non-commercial dissertations and foreign-language publications (a notable exception being the listing for the American journal Modern Austrian Literature), in addition to articles, chapters, and conference papers published as part of a larger whole. This results in the deplorable elimination of some important authors, such as Julian Schutting and Jörg Mauthe, who have not had whole monographs written about them. The citations themselves are constructed with great care, but the annotations range from throw-away remarks to good descriptions to complete summaries of the books. A further drawback is the emphasis on publications from the 1980s and 1990s. [hak/hh]
96-1-032
Vol. 11. Die Nachkriegszeit 1945-1968 [The Postwar Era, 1945-1968]. Heinz Forster and Paul Riegel. 1995. 489 p. (. . ., 3351) ISBN 4-423-03351-7. DM 19.90
Another volume in a series offering what can only be called a popular treatment of German literary history. The volume owes its thickness not to the huge number of names and works that characterize the postwar period, but to the lengthy treatment--summary, interpretation and quotations--given to the works chosen for inclusion. The material offered tends to be one-sided, neglecting many of the important influences on modern literature, such as politics and history, and leaving out far too many important authors, particularly from the former GDR. Most disturbing of all is that this series leaves the reader thinking: "Now I know," rather than leading one to the works themselves. For a much more successful effort of this kind one should turn to Deutsche Li teratur: ein Abriß in Text und Darstellung (Stuttgart: Reclam,1983 ed., repr. 1995.) [hak/hh]
96-1-033
Vol. 1. Die Literatur des Früh- und Hochmittelalters in den Bistümern Passau, Salzburg, Brixen und Trient von den Anfängen bis zum Jahre 1273 [The Literature of the Early and High Middle Ages in the Dioceses of Passau, Salzburg, Brixe n and Trient from the Beginnings to 1273]. Fritz Peter Knapp. 1994. 666 p. ISBN 3-201-01611-X: öS 565.00, DM 87.00
This is the first in a planned seven-volume set, covering the time period from about 1075 to 1273, the early and high Middle Ages in Austria. By no means limited to literature in the German language, it also covers Latin and Hebrew, in genres both sacred and profane. The selection of authors (many of whom will be familiar even to the layperson), texts, and quotations work together to make medieval literature interesting and less intimidating. The volume includes an excellent 40-page bibliography and inde x of medieval authors and titles, which allows the use of this volume as a reference tool. Only the illustrations leave something to be desired, both in their haphazard selection and in their paucity. Overall, this volume is both readable and a fine piece of scholarship. [hak/hh]
96-1-034
Broderson's annotated Walter Benjamin bibliography goes far beyond the bibliographic work on Benjamin done previously by Rolf Tiedemann, the editor of the collected writings of Walter Benjamin. Its virtuosity lies in Broderson's comprehensive coverage of what is a very complicated bibliographical oeuvre. Entries are listed chronologically within several broad categories (collected writings, individual works, etc.) and include first editions and reprints produced during Benjamin's lifetime as well as posthumously. Its annotations tracing the history of the smaller texts that Benjamin was constantly in the process of revising and changing are especially valuable. A quarter of the 311-page bibliography is devoted to the seven indexes: titles, translations, reviews, correspondents, periodicals, publishers and names. This work is also very well produced. [hak/erh]
96-1-036
J. Vorderstemann presents us with a short La Roche bibliography that includes both primary and secondary sources up to the beginning of 1993. The bibliography begins with references to the papers, manuscripts and published correspondence. Most fortunately , references to graphical material have also been included: generally icongraphy is given short shrift in personal bibliographies. Taking Barbara Becker-Cantarino's recently published bibliography into account (in Mitteilungen der Deutschen Gesellschaf t für die Erforschung des 18. Jahrhunderts 17 [1993], Vorderstemann has kept the list of literary titles short. The secondary literature is divided into six sections. It is disconcerting that the publishers have been omitted from the citations. T his bibliography comes at the right time, given the resurgence of interest in La Roche and her period. [hak/erh]
96-1-037
This second edition of the Thomas-Mann-Handbuch is just as deserving of the critical acclaim accorded to the first edition in 1990. Bringing together a vast amount of scholarship, it is a magnificent accomplishment. A thousand pages of entries are divided into five chapters: 1. Thomas Mann in his time, 2. Literary and cultural history, 3. Mann's literary oeuvre, 4. Aesthetics, 5. Literary criticism of Thomas Mann. Bibliographic references are updated to 1995 and include the important works that have appeared since 1990. There are three indexes to the handbook: names, subjects and titles of works. [hak/erh]
96-1-038
This very large bibliography of international secondary sources for Christa Wolf's writings is commendable. Included are some 3,565 titles, most of them reviewed personally by Wild. The bibliography is organized chronologically according to the publication date of Wolf's works, with the exception of the chapter devoted to general topics. Sources dealing with more than one of Wolf's works appear in one section in their entirety, with a brief citation and cross-reference from other relevant sections. The transcription of titles has been done with care and includes all necessary elements to identify the work. Indexes are by author, editor, and first words of titles. This is a most useful bibiliography, especially because it covers a period during which much was written on Christa Wolf. [hak/msc]
96-1-039
Part 2. Einzeltitel [Individual titles]. Ed. Reinhart Meyer.
Vol. 1. (1700). 1993. vii, 498 p. ISBN 3-484-10692-1:
DM 198.00
Vol. 2. (1701-1708). 1993. vi, 481 p. ISBN 3-484-10693-X:
DM 198.00
Vol. 3. (1709-1716). 1993. vi, 487 p. ISBN 3-484-10694-8:
DM 198.00
Vol. 4. (1717-1721). 1994. v, 453 p. ISBN 3-484-10540-2:
DM 206.00
The publication of the second part of this work, the listing of the individual plays, has been long-awaited. (Part 1 was published in 1986.) The bibliography is chronologically arranged, usually by the date of the earliest documented performance. The first volume includes mostly undated material, anonymous works, and manuscript materials. Entries can contain information on multiple titles, cast, description of stage drawings, bibliographic evidence, and locations. It is clear that Meyer and his colleagues did their research with care. The rather large number of misprints is irritating. This bibliography will have a strong impact on research of eighteenth century literature, theater and cultural history, and in some cases it will change basic notions about this period (redressing, for example, the neglect of the theater of the Germany's Catholic south). [hak/msc]
96-1-040
This volume includes three very interesting essays about the complex relationship between the Enlightenment, the bourgeois notion of values, and the reality of the second half of the 18th century. The essays concentrate on the representation of family in contemporary drama.
The second part of this book contains Elena Vogg's bibliography of drama dating from 1750 to 1800 in the Oettingen-Wallerstein Library. The Oettingen-Wallerstein Library (now located at the university library in Augsburg) contains rich resources for all a spects of 18th century culture. For the period between 1750-1800 alone, it houses some 1500 works of German-language drama, including numerous translations from Romance languages and English. Due to its size and importance, this 200-page contribution sho uld have been published separately. It is also regrettable that certain kinds of related and relevant material, such as libretti and operattas, were excluded. The index is well-organized and well-constructed, although there are some errors. This bibliogra phy deserves recognition for both its content and form and, thanks to a generous typographical layout, it is very readable. [hak/msc]
96-1-041
This is a welcome, thorough revision of a standard work (4th ed., 1984). An overview of the secondary literature includes copious bibliographic references, brought up-to-date to 1994. [hak/rs]
96-1-042
This volume covers 143 authors who either live abroad and publish in German or are immigrants to Germany who have adopted the German language. Many of these authors are insufficiently represented in standard literary dictionaries and histories. It provides place and date of the authors' birth and plot summaries of their novels, including those published in anthologies. This is a good reference book as well as an introduction and invitation to read and discover. [hak/rs]
96-1-045
This dictionary is a translation and revision of two Dutch works by Eric M. Moormann and Wilfried Uitterhoeve. It includes about 200 often lengthy articles, of which two thirds are mythological and one third are historical figures of antiquity. The emph asis is clearly on their "modern manifestation" rather than the biographical aspect. An index to names within the articles is lacking. The articles seem to cover reception only up to the early 1980s. There is much overlap with other reference tools such as Elisabeth Frenzel's Stoffe der Weltliteratur (8th ed., 1992) and Jane Davidson Reid's The Oxford Guide to Classical Mythology in the Arts, 1300-1990s (1993) that may cover some of the material more reliably. However, this concise and affordable dictionary contains many informative entries and is at this time unique in its focus on the reception history of the classical tradition. [bb/rs]
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