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The Mystery of Feilenhauer Torgelow: Fontane's Elusive Social Democrat
Author(s) -
Tatchell Scott
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
german life and letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.1
H-Index - 12
eISSN - 1468-0483
pISSN - 0016-8777
DOI - 10.1111/j.0016-8777.2004.00286.x
Subject(s) - character (mathematics) , depiction , narrative , argument (complex analysis) , social democratic party , politics , context (archaeology) , german , literature , sociology , democracy , history , law , philosophy , political science , art , linguistics , biochemistry , chemistry , geometry , mathematics , archaeology
As Günter Grass (among others) has highlighted, Theodor Fontane's Der Stechlin is one of the first German novels to feature a social‐democratic politician. This article examines the character of Torgelow, who is elected to the Reichstag. Anything we learn about Torgelow is always at one remove, by way of other characters. He never features directly in the narrative, and remains a mysterious figure. After summarising the political backdrop against which the novel is set and providing a brief overview of Fontane's own attitude to the SPD, the article argues that pragmatic concerns and Fontane's burgeoning interest in the party combine to explain Torgelow's inclusion. Subsequently, Torgelow's abstract characterisation is explained as a consequence of Fontane's desire to portray the fear, loathing and ignorance inherent in bourgeois and aristocratic attitudes towards the party. The argument that Torgelow is a mere cipher for the party is rejected. Instead, Torgelow should be seen in the wider context of Fontane's depiction of the SPD as a whole. Overall, the article argues that the character of Torgelow provides a means for Fontane to acknowledge the SPD's rise, to suggest that its predominance will be of finite duration, and to oppose the party's persecution.