Berlin Alexanderplatz: Radio, Film, and the Death of Weimar Culture (Weimar and Now: German Cultural Criticism) [Hardcover]

Peter Jelavich (Author)

Book Description

Series: Weimar and Now: German Cultural Criticism | Publication Date: January 9, 2006

This fascinating exploration of a work that was the epitome of German literary modernism illuminates in chilling detail the death of the Weimar Republic's left-leaning culture of innovation and experimentation. Peter Jelavich examines Alfred Döblin's Berlin Alexanderplatz (1929), a novel that questioned the autonomy and coherence of the human personality in the modern metropolis, and traces the radical discrepancies that came with its adaptation into a radio play (1930) and a film (1931). Jelavich explains these discrepancies by examining not only the varying demands of genre and technology but also the political and economic contexts of the media--in particular, the censorship practices in German radio and film. His analysis culminates in a richly textured discussion of the complex factors that led to the demise of Weimar culture, as Nazi intimidation and the economic strains of the Depression induced producers to depoliticize their works. Jelavich's book becomes a cautionary tale about how fear of outspoken right-wing politicians can curtail and eliminate the arts as a critical counterforce to politics--all in the name of entertainment.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a stimulating and persuasive read."

From the Inside Flap

"This is cultural history at its best. Jelavich offers a compelling case study that illuminates the 'death of Weimar culture' in chilling detail. No other work informs us so masterfully about the mechanisms of media censorship and authorial self-censorship during the last years of the Weimar Republic."--Bernd Widdig, author of Culture and Inflation in Weimar Germany

"Jelavich's unique approach constitutes a brilliant achievement. He constructs a prism of the novel, radio play, and film of Berlin Alexanderplatz that reflects the political, social, and cultural conditions of the disintegrating Weimar Republic against the rise of Nazism."--Michael H. Kater, author of Hitler Youth

"Berlin Alexanderplatz represents historical and cultural scholarship at its best. Though meticulously researched and documented, Jelavich does not drown the reader in historical data. This is a stimulating and persuasive read."--Lutz Koepnick, author of Dark Mirror: German Cinema between Hollywood and Hitler

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 316 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (January 9, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520243633
• ISBN-13: 978-0520243637
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,571,129 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars It Can't Happen Here, January 11, 2012

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Aikos (NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Berlin Alexanderplatz: Radio, Film, and the Death of Weimar Culture (Weimar and Now: German Cultural Criticism) (Paperback)

This book demonstrates the veto-power the Nazis had BEFORE Hitler seized power after being appointed to Chancellor. Alexander Doblin's (very long) novel--Berlin Alexanderplatz-- was made into both a radio play and a film.

What surprised me was the degree to which Nazis could disrupt films via threatening theatregoers, stinkbombs, heckling and more during films; to the degree that theatre-owners would choose a path of lesser resistance and show something else.

It's not so much a popular book, as opposed to Erik Larsen's In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin, which is #52 on the Amazon list, 8 months after it came out.

This is esp. targeted for those who have a sense of German history in the 20's, or are interested in the Doblin's book, or perhaps the dynamics of fascism creeps into power.