Review article
Habsburg Heritage in the Work of Paula von Preradović, the Author of the Austrian Anthem
Johann Georg Lughofer
; University of Ljubljana Faculty of Arts
Abstract
In the study of the literature of the Republic of Austria and its imperial legacy the special significance is due to the work of Paula von Preradović (1887 – 1951). It is paradoxical that the author of the anthem of the Second Republic is considered to be nostalgic for the Habsburg Monarchy and its provinces.
The article argues that the postimperial legacy in the work of Paula von Preradović is not infused with negative connotations; however, a more thorough analysis shows that the interpretation arguing for a strong nostalgia for the Habsburg Empire is only provisionally tenable: in her first novel Pave und Pero (Pave and Pero) the central themes are the death of children, social differences, a sorry state of the contemporary wage workers and the philistine society. Nor is any retrospective utopia inscribed in her – primarily biographically based – lyrical inclination towards the coastal parts of the Danube Monarchy. In addition, the contribution also shows how the texts and their author stood in relation to the fascist regimes between the two Austrian republics which is a relevant question for the author of the most significant text symbolizing the state. The reception, which is extremely influenced by the perspective of one’s family, is therefore also corrected.
Keywords
Paula von Preradović; Habsburg Monarchy; Nazism; Austro-faschism; Austrian national anthem; Austria
Hrčak ID:
210829
URI
Publication date:
4.12.2018.
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