Dissonanzen. Die Familie Worel

The ninth volume of the historical-critical edition of the works of Ferdinand von Saar contains the two narratives 'Dissonanzen' and 'Die Familie Worel' (published 1900 and 1905 respectively). Both works are presented in the text of the manuscript and with full accompanying critical apparatus. The interpretation concentrates on the author's artistic methods and the socio-political background. It transpires that in his final years von Saar (1833-1906) attempted to overcome what was for him an extremely painful discrepancy between tradition and modernity by resorting to a superordinate poetological ploy: the character of Graf Erwin appears in the two stories both as narrator and as protagonist, thus representing a referential figure for the political and poetological tensions rampant around the turn of the century. Nationalism and socialism appear as the motive forces operative in this period, but in Saar's vision the individual is not freed of his accountability in the face of history. He remains responsible both for his deeds and his words.