Thomas Mann, Der Tod in Venedig [Death in Venice]

Hannelore G. Mundt (University of Wyoming)

Ed. by Gerhard P. Knapp, University of Utah
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.4.1: German-language Writing and Culture: Germany, 500-present.
Vol. editors: Gerhard P. Knapp (University of Utah), Jennifer Marston William (Purdue University), Herbert Rowland (Purdue University), Jill E. Twark (East Carolina University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1911

Places

Germany (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novella

Resources

When it was published in 1912, Mann’s novella Der Tod in Venedig [Death in Venice] was immediately recognized as a “perfect marvel” and among the “best German prose” of its time. It tells the story of the writer Gustav von Aschenbach who travels to Venice, where he falls in love with an adolescent boy before subsequently dying in the cholera-stricken city. Mann’s masterly command of language and play with mythology, his psychological profile of the artistic mind, and the novella’s contrast between cold artistic discipline and the power of love has generated great admiration. For decades, the novella has captured the attention and imagination of readers and artists alike. Luchino Visconti presented a …

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1414 words

Citation: Mundt, Hannelore G.. "Der Tod in Venedig". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 25 September 2003 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11469, accessed 21 November 2024.]

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