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Georg Brandes
A Pioneer of Comparative Literature and a Global Public Intellectual
Series:
Georg Brandes (1842-1927) was one of the leading literary critics in Europe of his time. His Main Currents of Nineteenth Century Literature (1872-1890) was a foundational text to the field of comparative literature and extolled by Thomas Mann as the âBible of the young intellectual Europe at the turn of the century.â Georg Brandes eventually developed into a truly global public intellectual, living by his pen and public lectures. On the eve of World War I, he was one of the most sought-after commentators, vigorously opposing all conflicting factions. This book seeks to understand Brandesâ trajectory, to evaluate Brandesâ significance for current discussions of literary criticism and public engagement, and to introduce Brandes to an international audience. It consists of 15 original chapters commissioned from experts in the field.
Jens Bjerring-Hansen, PhD, is Associate Professor of Scandinavian Literature at the University of Copenhagen. He has published widely on Danish and Scandinavian literary and cultural history of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Most recent book publication is the volume Scandinavian Exceptionalisms (2021, with Torben Jelsbak and Anna Mrozewicz).
Anders Engberg-Pedersen received his PhD in Comparative Literature from Harvard University and in Neuere Deutsche Literatur from Humboldt Universität in 2012. He is Professor of Comparative Literature at the University of Southern Denmark and Chair of Humanities at the Danish Institute for Advanced Studies. His publications include Empire of Chance. The Napoleonic Wars and the Disorder of Things (HUP, 2015) and Martial Aesthetics. How War Became an Art Form (SUP, forthcoming 2023).
Lasse Horne Kjældgaard, dr.phil. and PhD, is Professor of Danish Literature at the University of Southern Denmark and Director of the Hans Christian Andersen Centre. He has published numerous monographs and articles on Danish literary and cultural history.
Anders Engberg-Pedersen received his PhD in Comparative Literature from Harvard University and in Neuere Deutsche Literatur from Humboldt Universität in 2012. He is Professor of Comparative Literature at the University of Southern Denmark and Chair of Humanities at the Danish Institute for Advanced Studies. His publications include Empire of Chance. The Napoleonic Wars and the Disorder of Things (HUP, 2015) and Martial Aesthetics. How War Became an Art Form (SUP, forthcoming 2023).
Lasse Horne Kjældgaard, dr.phil. and PhD, is Professor of Danish Literature at the University of Southern Denmark and Director of the Hans Christian Andersen Centre. He has published numerous monographs and articles on Danish literary and cultural history.
List of Figures
Notes on Contributors
Introduction âA Master of Productive Criticismâ
ââJens Bjerring-Hansen, Anders Engberg-Pedersen and Lasse Horne Kjældgaard
Part 1
The Comparatist
1âThe Fox and the Stork Georg Brandes and the Institutionalization of Comparative Literature
ââBen Hutchinson
2âGeorg Brandes and the History of Emotions
ââAnders Engberg-Pedersen
3âSexual Morality, Gender Equality, and Pioneering Women Writers in Brandesâ Comparative Writings
ââSophie Wennerscheid
4âGeorg Brandes and the Writing of Typological Literary History
ââLasse Horne Kjældgaard
5ââThe Prose of Lifeâ Brandes and the Concept of the Prosaic
ââAnnegret Heitmann
6ââBringing the Foreign Closer to Usâ Cross-Cultural Literary Matchmaking in Georg Brandesâ Letters
ââJulie K. Allen
Part 2
The Public Intellectual
7âThe Pétroleuse and the Prophet Georg Brandes and the Making of an Intellectual
ââTorben Jelsbak
8âThe Southern Prism of the Northern Breakthrough Georg Brandes and Italy
ââStefan Nygård
9âBrandes â Ibsen Rethinking the Modern Breakthrough
ââNarve Fulsås
10âBetween Deification and Rejection Georg Brandes as an Ambivalent Public Figure in the German-Speaking World
ââMonica Wenusch
11âThe Domesticated European? Georg Brandesâ Impressions of Russia and his Russian Reception
ââBirgitte Beck Pristed
12ââThe Universal Struggle for World Renownâ Georg Brandesâ Global Literary Strategies
ââJens Bjerring-Hansen
13âGeorg Brandesâ Erasure of Jewishness and Cosmopolitanism in his Later Writings
ââSøren Blak Hjortshøj
14ââThe Slaughter of the Youth of Europeâ Georg Brandes and the Young Generation in The World at War
ââMartin Zerlang
15âBrandes after Nietzsche Aristocratic Radicalism vs. Human Rights
ââWilliam Banks
Index
Notes on Contributors
Introduction âA Master of Productive Criticismâ
ââJens Bjerring-Hansen, Anders Engberg-Pedersen and Lasse Horne Kjældgaard
Part 1
The Comparatist
1âThe Fox and the Stork Georg Brandes and the Institutionalization of Comparative Literature
ââBen Hutchinson
2âGeorg Brandes and the History of Emotions
ââAnders Engberg-Pedersen
3âSexual Morality, Gender Equality, and Pioneering Women Writers in Brandesâ Comparative Writings
ââSophie Wennerscheid
4âGeorg Brandes and the Writing of Typological Literary History
ââLasse Horne Kjældgaard
5ââThe Prose of Lifeâ Brandes and the Concept of the Prosaic
ââAnnegret Heitmann
6ââBringing the Foreign Closer to Usâ Cross-Cultural Literary Matchmaking in Georg Brandesâ Letters
ââJulie K. Allen
Part 2
The Public Intellectual
7âThe Pétroleuse and the Prophet Georg Brandes and the Making of an Intellectual
ââTorben Jelsbak
8âThe Southern Prism of the Northern Breakthrough Georg Brandes and Italy
ââStefan Nygård
9âBrandes â Ibsen Rethinking the Modern Breakthrough
ââNarve Fulsås
10âBetween Deification and Rejection Georg Brandes as an Ambivalent Public Figure in the German-Speaking World
ââMonica Wenusch
11âThe Domesticated European? Georg Brandesâ Impressions of Russia and his Russian Reception
ââBirgitte Beck Pristed
12ââThe Universal Struggle for World Renownâ Georg Brandesâ Global Literary Strategies
ââJens Bjerring-Hansen
13âGeorg Brandesâ Erasure of Jewishness and Cosmopolitanism in his Later Writings
ââSøren Blak Hjortshøj
14ââThe Slaughter of the Youth of Europeâ Georg Brandes and the Young Generation in The World at War
ââMartin Zerlang
15âBrandes after Nietzsche Aristocratic Radicalism vs. Human Rights
ââWilliam Banks
Index
Georg Brandes: A Pioneer of Comparative Literature and A Global Public Intellectual is first and foremost a scholarly book that addresses scholars as well as graduate and undergraduate students in the fields of Scandinavian studies, Comparative Literature, World Literature, and literary studies broadly; in intellectual history and the history of ideas; as well as in cultural studies and Jewish studies.