Contemporary German woman novelist revives the work of an early 20th-century Jewish woman poet

What is it about?

How does a woman novelist living in today's Berlin, Germany, look back at the era known as the "Roaring 20s?" Life in Berlin during the Weimar Republic (1918-1933) is often portrayed as one of sexual liberation, especially for women, but this is a rather simplistic view. This article offers a close reading of a novel that uses texts and events from the early 20th century--poetry by a Jewish woman writer and the premiere of one of the Weimar Republic's best known works of musical theater--to explore both the possibilities and limitations for women in Weimar-era Berlin.

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Photo by Oladimeji Odunsi on Unsplash

Photo by Oladimeji Odunsi on Unsplash

Why is it important?

It is an example of feminist scholarship that offers a fresh reading of Julia Franck's _The Blindness of the Heart_ and offers nuance to both the way gender in Weimar Beriln is discussed and the way Weimar history is presented. In contrast to other contemporary literary renditions of Weimar, this novel looks at the entire decade of the 1920s (not just the Republic's end in 1933), and it connects it to the historical time periods that came before and after.