Professional paper
The role of Zadar and the Kingdom of Dalmatia in Heinrich Mann`s novel The Duchess – a Diana in Rome
Goran Lovrić
; University of Zadar
Anđa Renić
; University of Zadar
Abstract
Heinrich Mann’s trilogy Goddesses – The Three Novels of The Duchess of Assy (1903) is partly set in Zadar and the Kingdom of Dalmatia, which is a crown land of the Austrian Empire. The protagonist of the trilogy is the young duchess Violante of Assy, who wants to spark off a revolt against the king. Because of her lack of true motivation and political experience she fails and therefore has to flee to Italy together with her co-conspirator and the popular leader, Pavic. The trilogy shows her life, which to a great extent is just a neo-renaissance self-dramatization, and her development in three different phases. The analysis based on the new historicist theory and methodology shows that the first novel of the trilogy The Duchess – a Diana in Rome can be referred to as a roman à clef because Mann involves in the fictional plot authentic political and social events and affairs from the second half of the nineteenth century. As a result of this the role of Zadar and the Kingdom of Dalmatia in the novel appears to be both symbolic and historical at the same time. The novel also shows that Heinrich Mann was very well informed about the life and political circumstances in the Kingdom of Dalmatia at the time.
Keywords
Heinrich Mann; Zadar; history; news historicism
Hrčak ID:
188739
URI
Publication date:
3.10.2017.
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