The apocalypse in Germany [electronic resource] / Klaus Vondung ; translated from the German by Stephen D. Ricks.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Vondung, Klaus.

Standardized Title:

Apokalypse in Deutschland. English

Language:

English

German

Subjects (All):

Apocalyptic art--Germany.

Apocalyptic art.

Apocalyptic literature.

German literature--History and criticism.

German literature.

History--Religious aspects--Christianity.

History.

Nationalism--Germany--History.

Nationalism.

Germany--History--Philosophy.

Germany.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (vii, 437 p. ) ill. ;

Place of Publication:

Columbia, Mo. : University of Missouri Press, c2000.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

"A cross-disciplinary study, The Apocalypse in Germany analyzes fundamental aspects of the apocalypse as a religious, political, and aesthetic phenomenon. Author Klaus Vondung draws from religious, philosophical, and political texts, as well as works of art and literature. Using classic Jewish and Christian apocalyptic texts as symbolic and historical paradigms, Vondung determines the structural characteristics and the typical images of the apocalyptic worldview. He clarifies the relationship between apocalyptic visions and utopian speculations and explores the question of whether modern apocalypses can be viewed as secularizations of the Judeo-Christian models." "Examining sources from the eighteenth century to the present, Vondung considers the origins of German nationalism, World War I, National Socialism, and the apocalyptic tendencies in Marxism as well as German literature - from the fin di siecle to postmodernism. His analysis of the existential dimension of the apocalypse explores the circumstances under which particular individuals become apocalyptic visionaries and explains why the apocalyptic tradition is so prevalent in Germany." "The Apocalypse in Germany offers an interdisciplinary perspective that will appeal to a broad audience. This book will also be of value to readers with an interest in German studies, as it clarifies that riddles of Germany's turbulent history and examines the profile of German culture, particularly in the past century."--Jacket.

Contents:

Approaches

How Exciting the Vision of the New World Is! Or, What Ernst Toller Connects with John of Patmos

Is the New Jerusalem a Utopia?

Can the Apocalypse Be Secularized?

Symbols and Experiences

The Apocalyptic View of History

Structures

History Has No Meaning; Therefore, It Must Be Destroyed

History Must Have Meaning, So Meaning Is Created

"World History Is the Last Judgment"

Movements

The Birth of Nationalism from the Spirit of the Apocalypse

From Holy Spirit to National Spirit

Protest and Futility

"Our Army and Navy Are Also a Spiritual Power": The Apocalypse of 1914

An Epilogue

"German Spirit: Sieg Heil!"

The Spirit of Utopia

Aesthetics of the Apocalypse

Forms

Images: Torrents of Mud and Crystal

Style: Dramatic

Rhetoric: Consolation and Agitation

Representations

Dreams of Death and Destruction

"If War Came! Oh, for Something Higher ... ": Visions of the New Man

Shaping the Shapeless

"Paradise Is Won in Every Form": Redemption through Art

Surrender of the Imagination?

The Existential Apocalypse

Transformation and Revolt

Lust for Power and the Spirit of Sacrifice

The Last and the First.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. 419-424) and index.

ISBN:

0-8262-6372-0