Jakob Wasserman, Arnold Zweig, Manfred Bieler, Thomas Brussig)
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Putting Justice on Trial in Four Periods of German Literature: Case Studies (Jakob Wasserman, Arnold Zweig, Manfred Bieler, Thomas Brussig) by Marc Reibold Department of Germanic Languages and Literature Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ William C. Donahue, Supervisor ___________________________ Michale M. Morton ___________________________ James Rolleston ___________________________ Jochen Vogt Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literature in the Graduate School of Duke University 2011 ABSTRACT Putting Justice on Trial in Four Periods of German Literature: Case Studies (Jakob Wasserman, Arnold Zweig, Manfred Bieler, Thomas Brussig) by Marc Reibold Department of Germanic Languages and Literature Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ William C. Donahue, Supervisor ___________________________ Michael M. Morton ___________________________ James Rolleston ___________________________ Jochen Vogt An abstract of a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literature in the Graduate School of Duke University 2011 Copyright by Marc Reibold 2011 Abstract This dissertation explores arguments against legal and authoritarian structures as thematized by four works of fiction from distinct periods of German history: Jacob Wasserman’s Der Fall Maurizius (the Weimar Republic), Arnold Zweig’s Das Beil von Wandsbek (the Third Reich), Manfred Bieler’s Das Kaninchen bin Ich (post-war division of Germany), and Thomas Brussig’s Leben bis Männer (Germany after reunification). The aim of my analysis is to define how each work builds a “case” against the state. It conducts a literary analysis of each work, which it places in its own cultural and political context. It then compares this case to German theories of law to determine points at which the work is in dialogue with pressing questions of justice particular to its legal epoch: Der Fall Maurizius (1928) builds a case against the state by juxtaposing positivist and natural law, yet ultimately cannot avoid the axiomatic nature of each position; Das Beil von Wandsbek (1938-43) is a Marxist morality play whose concept of justice proves insufficient to its own implied standards; Maria Morzeck oder Das Kaninchen bin ich (1969) engages the GDR’s 1961 law reform directly, yet in its development from GDR film to FRG novel softens its critique of the state by thematizing its own literary limitations; and Leben bis Männer (2001) argues against Germany’s post-reunification trials of former GDR border guards, but exposes its own plea for a sympathetic view of the GDR. iv In gratitude to my committee, friends and family. v Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... iv Introduction: Putting Justice on Trial in Four Periods of ........................................................ 1 German Literature ........................................................................................................................ 1 Selection Criteria ..................................................................................................................... 3 Further Inquiry ....................................................................................................................... 5 Theories of Justice Informing this Study ............................................................................. 6 Preview of Arguments by Chapter .................................................................................... 11 Chapter 1: Jakob Wasserman’s Der Fall Maurizius ................................................................. 17 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 17 1.2 Maurizius : a “Case” against the Weimar Republic ............................................... 18 1.3 The Novel’s Ought vs. Rabruch’s Being ................................................................ 22 1.4 Staging the Argument ............................................................................................... 25 1.5 Method ........................................................................................................................ 28 1.6 Herr Andergast: a “Straw Man” for Positivist Law .............................................. 30 1.7 Etzel Andergast: an Interpretation of Natural Law .............................................. 38 1.8 Conviction vs. Relativism ......................................................................................... 48 1.10 Maurizius indicts its Jury ..................................................................................... 52 Chapter 2: Arnold Zweig’s Das Beil von Wandsbek ................................................................. 57 vi 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 57 2.2 A Marxist Morality Play ........................................................................................... 59 2.3 Albert’s Ambiguous Intelligence ............................................................................. 65 2.3 The Authoritarian Personality and Nazi Myth ..................................................... 72 2.3 Stine’s Subjugation of Religious Morality .............................................................. 76 2.4 The Henchman” Vermenschlicht ” .............................................................................. 83 Chapter 3: Manfred Bieler’s Maria Morzeck oder Das Kaninchen bin ich ................................ 86 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 86 3.2 From Censured Manuscript to DEFA Film ............................................................ 88 3.3 An Offensive Interpretation of the Rechtspflegebeschluß ................................... 89 3.4 The SED retaliates at the Eleventh Party Plenum ................................................. 95 3.5 From DEFA Film to BRD Novel .............................................................................. 99 3.6 Maria describes Paul as Interchangeable ............................................................. 101 3.7 Harry's insight: Paul is a Servant .......................................................................... 105 3.8 Paul’s Ambivalent Allegiance to the SED ............................................................ 108 3.9 Morzeck Undercuts its Argument: the Problem with Harry .............................. 113 3.10 A Critique of East German Poets: the Similarity between Harry and Paul 115 3.11 Maria Celeste: an Analogy of Maria Morzeck ................................................. 118 Chapter 4: Thomas Brussig’s Leben bis Männer ..................................................................... 122 vii 4.1 Introduction: ............................................................................................................. 122 4.2 The Two Spheres of Vergatterung .......................................................................... 124 4.3 The First Sphere of Vergatterung : Heiko ............................................................... 129 4.4 The Second Sphere of Vergatterung : the Coach .................................................... 133 4.5 Sympathy and Reconciliation ................................................................................ 141 4.6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 148 Further Research Suggested by this Study ............................................................................ 151 Appendix to Chapter 3: Maria Celeste ................................................................................... 157 Bibliography .............................................................................................................................. 159 Biography ................................................................................................................................... 168 viii Introduction: Putting Justice on Trial in Four Periods of German Literature My interest in the topic of justice in German literature grew from a fascination with the severe political changes experienced by Germans within only a few generations. At the time of reunification in 1990, there was a generation still living that had experienced the Kaiserreich, the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich, and thereafter, either the GDR or the FRG, or in some cases, both. In speaking with various people about their experiences during these eras, I noticed a dominant theme: “that which was possible, and that which was not” under the respective law. Under fascism, for example, it was often thought “not possible” to resist, and at the time of the GDR, it was not possible to leave, or choose a particular career path, if found on the wrong side of the SED’s political agenda. Such descriptions of injustice and legality rely on the function of the law in the context of the respective German state. Yet even so, we see that the law explains only one part of any such experience. While one person may describe resistance