Satire and laughter in Heine’s Deutschland: Ein Wintermärchen

Schonfield, E. (2012) Satire and laughter in Heine’s Deutschland: Ein Wintermärchen. Oxford German Studies, 41(2), pp. 181-196. (doi: 10.1179/0078719112Z.00000000011)

Abstract

This article explores satire and laughter in ‘Deutschland: Ein Wintermärchen’ in order to show how the poem performs its own ambivalence by means of emotional displays. The first section concentrates on Heine’s rejection of an aesthetic of wholeness and his debt to the classical satire of Aristophanes. The second section focuses on the contrast between the poet’s wit and the wit of King Friedrich Wilhelm IV, in order to show how the satirical persona is defined in opposition to the king. The third section analyses instances of laughter in the ‘Wintermärchen’ alongside other expressions of affect such as smiling and crying, in order to consider their implications for our understanding of the poem as a whole. Instances of laughter are linked to the idea of revolution, and thus imply the uses and misuses of power.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Schonfield, Dr Ernest
• Authors: Schonfield, E.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Modern Languages and Cultures > German
• Journal Name: Oxford German Studies
• Publisher: Maney Publishing
• ISSN: 0078-7191
• ISSN (Online): 1745-9214