Inciting Laughter: The Development of Jewish Humor in 19th Century German Culture PDF
Preview Inciting Laughter: The Development of Jewish Humor in 19th Century German Culture
Jefferson S. Chase Inciting Laughter W DE G European Cultures Studies in Literature and the Arts Edited by Walter Pape Köln Editorial Board: Philip Brady f, London · Keith Bullivant, Gainesville Frederick Burwick, Los Angeles · Peter de Bolla, Cambridge Mark Galliker, Heidelberg · Joachim Gessinger, Potsdam Marian Hobson, London · Günter Jerouschek, Jena François Lecercle, Lyon · Carlo Ossola, Torino Terence James Reed, Oxford · Elinor S. Shaffer, London Barbara Stafford, Chicago Volume 12 Walter de Gruyter · Berlin · New York 2000 Jefferson S. Chase Inciting Laughter The Development of "Jewish Humor" in 19th Century German Culture Walter de Gruyter · Berlin · New York 2000 θ Printed on acid-free paper which falls within the guidelines of the ANSI to ensure permanence and durability. Die Deutsche Bibliothek — CIP-Einheitsaufnahme Chase, Jefferson S.: Inciting laughter : the development of "Jewish humor" in 19th century German culture / Jefferson S. Chase. - Berlin ; New York : de Gruyter, 2000 (European cultures ; Vol. 12) ISBN 3-11-016299-7 © Copyright 1999 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, D-10785 Berlin. All rights reserved, including those of translation into foreign languages. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, in- cluding photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without per- mission in writing from the publisher. Printed in Germany Printing: Werner Hildebrand, Berlin Binding: Lüderitz & Bauer GmbH, Berlin Cover design: Rudolf Hübler, Berlin Cover illustration: Contemporary prints of Börne, Saphir, and Heine Acknowledgements This book is the product of four years of research and writing, and I'd like to take the opportunity to thank those who helped me during that time. Above all this volume owes its existence to the Berlin Program for Ad- vanced German and European Studies at the Freie Universität Berlin, where I spent 18 months as a postdoctoral fellow. My particular gratitude goes out to Ingeborg Mehser, the administrator of the Program in Berlin, and to Justin Powell in New York. I'd also like to thank the director Pro- fessor Martin Kohli and all my colleagues there, especially Robin Hoddess, Jonathan Zatlin and Mike Allen, who read parts of the manuscript. Further thanks go out to Sondra Hausner for initially alerting me to the grant. The Berlin Program provides a unique opportunity for interdisciplinary research and exchange, and I can only hope that it will exist for many years to come. I'd also like to thank the DAAD for its initial support in Berlin. Moreover, I'd like to express my gratitude to and affection for Lara Bre- kenfeld and all the wonderful friends I met in Berlin. The same applies to my colleagues in Nottingham, especially Greg Mason, who proofread the manuscript. For various reasons, I'm indebted to Melody Aylor and Bren- da Sprouse in Charlottesville and Liberty and Anna-Lou Aldrich in New York. Thanks are also due to Dr. Brigitte Schöning at Walter de Gruyter and Professor Dr. Walter Pape of the Universität zu Köln for their friendly and helpful suggestions about my work. This book is jointly dedicated to my two main mentors in the field of Germanistik, Ben Bennett and Walter Sokel of the University of Virginia. It is, I believe, written very much in the spirit of numerous arguments held in the departmental office. Nottingham, July 1999 Jefferson S. Chase Contents CHAPTER 1 Vicious Circles: Judenwitz as Stereotype and Strategy 1 Humor as crux of majority/minority identity 5 Judenwitz as Sign of German Particularity 11 Conclusion 17 CHAPTER 2 The Pamphlet War: Moritz Gottlieb Saphir in Berlin 1826-30 20 Saphir's arriva1 and the beginning of the conflict 23 Humor as battleground 37 The legacy of the pamphlet war 61 CHAPTER 3 The Handle and The Blade: Ludwig Börne's Serious Humor 64 Börne's attitudes toward Jewishness and humor 69 Börne as arts critic 81 Affinities between Börne and Menzel 91 Börne's "direct" political writings 99 The anti-Judenwitz backlash 104 Menzel as Börne apologist 114 Börne's response 117 The Börne-Menzel estrangement 123 Börne's final shift 133 Börne's individual reception 136 CHAPTER 4 "Who Gets the Job Now?" Heinrich Heine and the J. G. Cotta Publishing House 139 Heine's early contact with Cotta 144 Judenwitz and literary talent 149 The Baths of Lucca 157 The backlash against The Baths of Lucca and its influence on Cotta ... 173 Atta Troll 180 Cotta's neglect and Heine's individual reception 189 Vili Contents CHAPTER 5 Reading for the Plot: Judenwitz in and as Literary History 193 The core myth of German literary history 195 The adaptation of the myth over time 207 Continuity and caesura 222 CONCLUSION 224 TRANSLATIONS 229 Introduction 231 Moritz Gottlieb Saphir From: The Killed-Off Yet Still Alive and Kicking M. G. Saphir, or: Thirteen Dramatic Poets and a Magician Against One Lone Editor . 232 From: Come Here! or: Dear Public, Look and Trust Whom You Please 235 On Witz 238 On Börne" 241 Ludwig Börne The Jews in Frankfurt am Main 244 Theater Reviews 247 From: Monograph of the German Post Snail: A Contribution to the Natural History of Mollusks and Testaceans .... 253 From: Letters from Paris 259 From: Menzel, the Frenchmen's Scourge 262 Heinrich Heine The Baths of Lucca 266 Bibliography Primary Sources 313 Secondary Sources 317 Index 327 Let me make the superstitions of a nation and I care not who makes its laws or its songs either. Mark Twain.
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