Representations of Plants in German Language Film and Literature at the Beginning of the 20Th Century
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Modernity Gazing on Metamorphosis: Representations of Plants in German Language Film and Literature at the Beginning of the 20th Century Janet Janzen Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures German Studies Section McGill University, Montreal January 2014 A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures © Janet Janzen 2014 Table of Contents Abstract.................................................................................................................................. 3 Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. 7 Preface ................................................................................................................................... 9 Introduction .........................................................................................................................10 Chapter 1: Animating Glass: Representing the Elusive Plant Soul in Paul Scheerbart's ―Flora Mohr: eine Glasblumen-Novelle‖ (1909) .............................................................35 Chapter 2: Empathetic Media: Film and the ―Gestures‖ of Plants in Das Blumenwunder (1926)...................................................................................................................................76 Chapter 3: The Radical Other: The Metamorphosis of Humans and Animals into Plants in Gustav Meyrink's ―Die Pflanzen des Doktor Cinderella‖ (1905)............................113 Chapter 4: The Plant Bites!: Deviant Plants in Nosferatu and Alraune as Metaphors for Social Instability in Weimar Culture ..............................................................................134 Conclusion.........................................................................................................................170 Works Cited .......................................................................................................................182 2 Abstract This dissertation explores representations of plants in German-language film and literature at the beginning of the twentieth century. Five examples serve as case studies, demonstrating the widespread preoccupation with the motif of the ―dynamic plant‖ at the turn of the century. I argue that the preoccupation with the motif of the ―dynamic plant‖ demonstrates the interconnectedness of two broad cultural transformations that helped to change the public's perception of plants from one that viewed plants as nearly inanimate objects to a world view that that saw plants as living, dynamic life forms similar to animals and humans. The first transformation was intellectual, characterized by a reaction to materialist, positivist and mechanistic explanations of the natural world that help ed revive aspects of Vitalism and Romanticism. The second, based in media technologies, directly transformed the representation of plants through time-lapse photography, speeding up their movements to the pace of animals. These transformations helped to challenge the hierarchy of humans, animals and plants, introducing instability and fluidity into categories of being. The changing perception of plants was met with a variety of reactions that ran along a spectrum from acknowledgement and anxiety in Gustav Meyrink's short story ―Die Pflanzen des Doktor Cinderella‖ (1905) and in the films, Nosferatu (1921) and Alraune (1928), to celebrating this new dynamism and fluidity in Paul Scheerbart‘s ―Flora story, ―Mohr: eine Glasblumen-Novelle‖ (1909) and the Kulturfilm, Das Blumenwunder (1926).The close readings of the films and short stories are supported by other examples of the dynamic plant motif from archival sources, in addition to the work of such naturalists as Raoul Heinrich Francé from the turn of the century and scientists and philosophers from the mid nineteenth century such as Gustav Fechner. This specific historical topic, the motif of the dynamic plant, shows the relevance of questions regarding life and ecology for a 3 rereading of German modernism, in addition to the relevance of a grounding in German language and literature for a historical understanding of how thinking about life changed in relation to media. In this sense, the dissertation contributes to growing interests in media and ecology, as well as the growing field of Ecocriticism in German studies and all literary studies. 4 Résumé Cette thèse explore la représentation des plantes dans la littérature et le cinéma de langue allemande au début du XXe siècle. Par le biais de cinq études de cas, ce projet s‘intéresse au motif de la ―plante dynamique‖ dans la modernité allemande, une préoccupation bien répandue à cette époque. Mon projet soutient que ce regain d'intérêt pour le mouvement de la plante dans les domaines de la littérature et du cinéma est étroitement lié à deux grandes transformations culturelles interdépendantes qui ont contribué à changer la perception populaire de la nature, à savoir la transition qui a permis de passer d'une perception basée sur la taxonomie et les hiérarchies rigides, à une nouvelle se rapprochant désormais au domaine de la vie et dans laquelle les forces dynamiques rattachées aux plantes, aux animaux et aux humains y trouvent leur juste valeur. La première transformation, d‘ordre intellectuel, était caractérisée par un mouvement réactionnaire s‘opposant au matérialisme, au positivisme et aux explications mécanistes de la nature qui ont su alimenter un regain d'intérêt pour la philosophie romantique de la nature et le vitalisme. La seconde, étroitement liée à l'émergence des nouveaux médias, transforma la façon d‘observer les plantes. Grâce à la chronophotographie, une technique photographique novatrice, il était désormais possible d‘observer la croissance et le mouvement des plantes de façon accélérée, voire au même rythme que celui des animaux. Ces transformations ont eu pour effet de relancer le débat portant sur la hiérarchie divisant les êtres humains, les animaux et les plantes, tout en introduisant la perception d'instabilité et de fluidité au sein des catégories de l'être. Ce changement de perception des plantes a été accueilli de manière mitigée, entraînant avec lui une variété de réactions. Passant de la reconnaissance à l'anxiété dans l'histoire courte de Gustav Meyrink "Die Pflanzen des Doktor Cinderella" 5 (1905), dans les films Nosferatu (1921) et Alraune (1928), c‘est avec grand enthousiasme que l‘on s‘intéressa à ce nouveau dynamisme et à la fluidité dans l'histoire courte ―Flora Mohr : eine Glasblume - Novelle‖ (1909), par Paul Scheerbart et dans le « Kulturfilm », Das Blumenwunder (1926). Une analyse approfondie de ces films et de ces histoires courtes est appuyée par d'autres sources d‘archives dans lesquelles on retrouve le motif dynamique des plantes, de même que dans les ouvrages scientifiques d‘écriva ins tels que Gustav Fechner, Maurice Maeterlinck et Raoul Heinrich Francé. Ce sujet historique spécifique, le motif de la plante dynamique, démontre la pertinence des questions reliées à la vie et à l'écologie dans le contexte d‘une relecture du modernisme allemand. Par ailleurs, de même que l‘importance de reconnaître le rôle historique qu‘ont joué les médias dans la perception de la vie, autant dans la langue que dans la littérature allemande. En ce sens, la thèse a pour objectif de contribuer aux intérêts grandissants pour l‘histoire de la pensée écologique et des médias, ainsi que le champs croissant de l‘écocritique, autant en études allemandes que dans les autres les études littéraires. 6 Acknowledgements First of all, my deepest thanks goes to my supervisor, Michael Cowan. His intellectual prowess and rigor has been admirable throughout this project as he guided and assisted me as I muddled my way through. Without his patience and oftentimes kindness, I would not have had the courage to face my weaknesses. In addition to Dr. Cowan, other faculty members of the German studies unit have been invaluable to me. One the one hand, they provided me with the space and time to explore various interests and questions until I found a project both captivating and original. On the other hand, they frequently guided my focus with suggestions of authors, texts and films that eventually led to my project. In addition to the support of the faculty, the people working in administration, (Lynda, Brigitte, and Annie) have formed a cornerstone to my project. Their attention to detail and deadlines has been helpful in keeping me organized. I have been fortunate to receive financial support in various forms throughout my time at McGill. Two scholarships have stood out over the others for the crucial role they played in supporting my project. The first, a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada grant (SSHRC), supported my two research trips to the archives in Berlin. Without their support, I would not have viewed the film, Das Blumenwunder, which forms a key part of my project. The second scholarship came from my supervisor and gave me the needed assistance for the last few semesters of my project. I was pleasantly surprised by the help and support I received from the archivists at both the Deutsche Kinemathek and the state film archive. At the Kinemathek, they went beyond my expectations to find the materials relating to my topic, allowing me to leaf 7 through material and old journals. At the Bundesarchiv, a few people were particularly generous with their time,