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Part of the Story The Significance of the Jews in Annette von Droste-Hülshoff’s

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Abstract

With reference to current models of stereotype formation, Droste’s depiction of Jewishness is analyzed as a reaction to the existential anxiety of her day. Three main categories emerge: Jews as representatives of criminality, of black magic and of Old Testamentary retribution. These associations combine to produce the story’s characteristic narrative dualism.

Zusammenfassung

Drostes Darstellung von Judentum wird an Hand heutiger Modelle der Stereotypenbildung untersucht und ihre Einstellung zur Vergangenheit als Antwort auf existentielle Ängste analysiert. Beleuchtet wird die Verbindung der Juden mit Verbrechen, schwarzem Zauber und alttestamentarischer Vergeltung. Diese Assoziationen erzeugen den typischen Dualismus der Erzählweise.

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Literature

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Chase, J.S. Part of the Story The Significance of the Jews in Annette von Droste-Hülshoff’s. Dtsch Vierteljahrsschr Literaturwiss Geistesgesch 71, 127–145 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03374600

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