The Literary Politics of Bettina Von Arnim from 1830 to 1852
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ENVISIONING AN IDEAL STATE: THE LITERARY POLITICS OF BETTINA VON ARNIM FROM 1830 TO 1852 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Kathleen M. Hallihan, M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 2005 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Barbara Becker-Cantarino, Adviser Professor Bernd Fischer ______________________ Professor John Davidson Adviser Germanic Languages and Literatures Graduate Program ABSTRACT Despite Bettina von Arnim’s (1785-1859) interest and participation in the Vormärz political discourse of the 1830s and 40s in Berlin, scholarship has traditionally focused on the literary aspects of her earlier texts, largely ignoring her later, politically charged works. My project explores Bettina von Arnim’s use of mythological and heroic imagery in her later writings, as it relates to her vision of an ideal governmental structure, which is based on the figure of the Volkskönig or “People’s King.” One of the many new ideas on government discussed in intellectual circles during this period, von Arnim’s Volkskönig model of government called for a strong and moral monarch, who would value the welfare and development of his subjects above all else. I bring attention to the discrepancies between von Arnim’s call for a strong monarchy and her desire for progressive social reform, which demonstrate the tensions between the author’s cultural background in Romantic thought and her involvement in Young German and Young Hegelian intellectual discourse. The presence of such tensions illustrates not only Bettina von Arnim’s problematic role as an emerging female voice with her own formative concepts of nationhood, but the general complexity of nineteenth-century German debates on government. ii Dedicated to my husband, Jason M. McAninch iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish many heartfelt thanks to my adviser, Professor Barbara Becker-Cantarino, for her intellectual support and encouragement since my first year in graduate school, as well as for her continued faith in me throughout this process. Without her understanding and guidance, this dissertation would not have been possible. I am also grateful to professors Bernd Fischer, John Davidson, Nina Berman, and Harry Vredeveld for their discussions, support, and feedback at various stages of this process. I also wish to extend special thanks to Susan Huntington for her holistic, practical, and inspirational support of me and my project, as well as to my colleagues (especially Elliot Slotnick) at the Ohio State University Graduate School for their support and encouragement during the last three years of my writing. Special thoughts of gratitude go out to my family and friends, who supported the completion of this degree in ways too many and varied to enumerate: Mom and Dad, Jason, Kris, Janeen, Fred, Joanna, Wendy, Colleen, Kent, Nathan, Dave, Heath, Carolyn, all the ABD folks, Gary, Kathy, Brigitta, Sharon and Tom, Jürgen, and Stephanie. Finally, thank you, Fiona Elizabeth, for helping me set my priorities. iv VITA January 9, 1971 .......................................Born – Massachusetts, USA 1993..........................................................B.A. International Relations and German, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 1996..........................................................M.A. Germanic Languages and Literatures, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 1997..........................................................Fulbright Research Fellow, Bonn, Germany 1994 – 2004 ..............................................Graduate Fellow, Teaching, and Research Associate, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH PUBLICATIONS Research Publication 1. Hallihan, Kathleen. “Following Bonaparte. Images of Napoleon in the Works of Bettina von Arnim.” Colloquia Germanica. 36,2 (2003): 97-117. 2. Hallihan, Kathleen. Rev. of Selbstsorge als Staatskunst: Bettine von Arnims politisches Werk, by Ulrike Landfester. German Quarterly 75.3 (2002). FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Germanic Languages and Literatures v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract........................................................................................................................... ii Dedication.......................................................................................................................iii Acknowledgments .......................................................................................................... iv Vita ................................................................................................................................. v List of Abbreviations......................................................................................................viii Chapters: 1. Introduction 1.1 Summary of Topic.......................................................................................... 1 1.2 Major Questions............................................................................................. 2 1.3 Methodology .................................................................................................. 3 1.4 Survey of Scholarship.................................................................................... 6 1.4.1 Retrieval and Editing of Bettina von Arnim’s Documents ................. 7 1.4.2 The Contextualization of Bettina von Arnim as a Politically Active Writer ............................................................................................ 13 1.4.3 Interpretations of Bettina von Arnim’s Stylistics ............................. 18 1.5 Findings....................................................................................................... 24 1.6 Expected Contribution to the Field ............................................................... 26 1.7 Summaries of Individual Chapters ............................................................... 27 2. Historical Context and the Evolution of Bettina von Arnim’s Literary Politics 2.1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 29 2.2 1789 – 1843: Historical Events and Their Influence on Bettina von Arnim’s Social and Political Activism ........................................................................ 30 2.3 Bettina von Arnim’s Salon: Locating von Arnim’s Intellectual Concepts ....... 36 2.3.1 The Development of von Arnim’s Salon......................................... 37 2.3.2 Von Arnim’s Interactions with Young Germany.............................. 39 2.3.3 Theory Becomes Practice: The Göttingen Seven Incident and Bettina von Arnim’s Attempt to Exert Influence in the Public Sphere Through the Written Word .............................................................. 42 2.3.4 Von Arnim’s Interactions with the Young Hegelians....................... 48 vi 3. Volkskönigtum: Dissecting von Arnim’s Vision of the Ideal Governmental Structure 3.1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 55 3.2 Volkskönigtum: The Relationship between the Ruler and the People............. 57 3.3 Description and Origins of von Arnim’s Volkskönig ............................................. 60 3.4 Who Are the Volk?....................................................................................................... 67 3.5 Summary........................................................................................................................ 73 4. How to Tell a King the Truth? Mythological Imagery in Dies Buch gehört dem König 4.1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 76 4.2 The Role of Mythological Imagery in the Political Language of Bettina von Arnim........................................................................................................... 81 4.3 Analysis of Mythological Imagery in Dies Buch gehört dem König .................. 86 4.3.1 Description of the Text .................................................................. 86 4.3.2 Jupiter and the Tierkreis: Von Arnim’s Critique of the Court .......... 89 4.3.3 Ganymede: Genie, Hero, Ideal Ruler..................................................... 94 4.3.4 Napoleon Bonaparte: Hero, Villain, Genius ................................. 104 5. Gespräche mit Dämonen: Volkskönigtum in Transition 5.1 Introduction 1843-1852.............................................................................. 113 5.1.1 Growing Pauperism and Bettina von Arnim’s Expanding Faith in the Volk ....................................................................................... 114 5.1.2 The Revolutions of 1848 ............................................................. 118 5.1.3 The Polenbrochüre and the Changing Relationship between King and Volk ...................................................................................... 122 5.1.4 The Aftermath of 1848: Assessing Bettina von Arnim’s Post- Revolution Politics........................................................................ 125 5.2 Gespräche mit Dämonen: A Difficult Composition...................................... 126 5.3 Themes and Characters in the Dämonenbuch........................................... 129 5.4 From Volkskönigtum to Völkerkönigtum: The Plot of the Dämonenbuch and the New Agency of the Volk ................................................................ 133 5.5 Siegfried Imagery in von Arnim’s Writings and its Relationship to