Elizabeth Priester Steding (Iowa) p.34-48
2005 Issue 2
Special Issue: Cultural Transformation in Eastern Germany after 1990.
In conjunction with the Association for Modern German Studies (ags.ac.uk)
Abstract
The West German phenomenon of Väterliteratur in the 1970s and 1980s is well-established in German literary history. In this article, links are drawn between these texts and those written by young East German authors since German unification, based upon shared themes and the social context of their origin. There are unmistakable similarities in the portrayal of the father-child relationship, most notably the recurring themes of authoritarian behaviour and emotional distance. Volker Altwasser’s novel Wie ich vom Ausschneiden loskam (2003) and Kerstin Hensel’s narrative Tanz am Kanal (1994) serve as foundations for textual analysis.