German Romanticism and Science: The Procreative Poetics of Goethe, Novalis, and Ritter

By Jocelyn Holland

Book Overview

Situated at the intersection of literature and science, Holland's study draws upon a diverse corpus of literary and scientific texts which testify to a cultural fascination with procreation around 1800. Through readings which range from Goethe's writing on metamorphosis to Novalis's aphorisms and novels and Ritter's Fragments from the Estate of a Young Physicist, Holland proposes that each author contributes to a scientifically-informed poetics of procreation. Rather than subscribing to a single biological theory (such as epigenesis or preformation), these authors take their inspiration from a wide inventory of procreative motifs and imagery.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415654963
• ISBN13: 9780415654968
• Release Date: August 2012
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 222 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"