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Access Type
Campus Access
Document Type
thesis
Degree Program
Germanic Languages & Literatures
Degree Type
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Year Degree Awarded
2010
Month Degree Awarded
February
Keywords
Büchner, Przybyszewska, Determinismus, Fatalismus, Entgrenzung, Utopie, Revolution
Abstract
My thesis compares two plays: Dantons Tod by Georg Büchner (1813 – 1837) and Die Sache Danton by Stanisława Przybyszewska (1901 – 1935). Despite the difference of their origin and the time the plays were written, Büchner and Przybyszewska both show a very strong interest for the same genre and share the same literary theme, which is expressed by the common topic of the French Revolution.
The main purpose of my thesis is to compare Büchner’s Dantons Tod (1835) and Przybyszewska’s Die Sache Danton (1928). Even though the playwrights show spiritual affinity and somewhat similar views on the revolution, meaning it is needed for changing the existing social structure; in their works they depict their protagonist very differently. While the characters in Büchner’s play present a deterministic view of the world and history, Przybyszewska’s characters actively engage to cause change. Whereas the end result is the same, Danton dies, the female characters in Przybyszewska, despite the love for their men, define their femininity and view of the world from within and not merely in relation to their men. Przybyszewska’s male characters are more idealistic and persevering than those of Büchner.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.7275/1090023
First Advisor
Jonathan Skolnik
Second Advisor
Susan Cocalis