Detailansicht
Myth, Matriarchy and Modernity
Johann Jakob Bachofen in German Culture.1860-1945, Interdisciplinary German Cultural Studies 7
ISBN/EAN: 9783110227086
Umbreit-Nr.: 1582244
Sprache:
Englisch
Umfang: X, 462 S.
Format in cm:
Einband:
gebundenes Buch
Erschienen am 17.02.2010
Auflage: 1/2010
- Zusatztext
- This study explores the prevalence in German culture of myths about ancient matriarchal societies, discussing their presence in left and right wing politics, feminist and antifeminist writing, sociology, psychoanalysis and literary production. By tracing the influence of the works of the Swiss jurist and theorist of matriarchy, Johann Jakob Bachofen (1815-1887), and the controversies about the reception and interpretation of his work, this study shows how debate about the matriarchal origins of culture was inextricably linked with anxieties about modernity and gender identities at the turn of the twentieth century. By moving beyond the discussion of canonical authors and taking seriously the scope of the discussion, it becomes clear that it is not possible to reduce matriarchal theories to any particular political ideology; instead, they function as a mythic counterdiscourse to a modernity conceived as oppressive, rational and masculine. Writers considered include Ludwig Klages, Hofmannsthal, Kafka, Hauptmann, Lou Andreas-Salomé, Sir Galahad, Clara Viebig, Mathilde Vaerting, Thomas Mann, Elisabeth Langgässer, Ilse Langner, Otto Gross, Franz Werfel, and many others.
- Kurztext
- The series publishes monographs and edited volumes that showcase significant scholarly work at the various intersections that currently motivate interdisciplinary inquiry in German cultural studies. Topics span all periods of German and German-speaking lands and cultures from the local to the global, with a special focus on demonstrating how various disciplines - history, musicology, art history, anthropology, religious studies, media studies, political theory, literary and cultural studies, among others - and new theoretical and methodological paradigms work across disciplinary boundaries to create knowledge and add to critical understanding in German studies broadly. All works are in English. Three to four new titles will be published annually.
- Autorenportrait
- Peter Davies, University of Edinburgh, UK.