Pink Ink. Zur Funktion der Farbe Rosa in Thomas Manns Roman Lotte in Weimar. (2nd January 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Goebel, Eckart
• Is Part Of: Publications of the English Goethe Society. Volume 86:Number 1(2017)
• Page Start: 55
• Page End: 66
• Publication Date: 2017-01-02
• Subjects: Thomas Mann and Goethe -- pink -- leitmotif -- exile -- narratology -- eros; Thomas Mann und Goethe -- Rosa -- Leitmotiv -- Exil -- Narratologie -- Eros; German literature -- 18th century -- History and criticism -- Periodicals; German literature -- 19th century -- History and criticism -- Periodicals; Criticism and interpretation -- Periodicals; 830.9006
• DOI: 10.1080/09593683.2017.1281986
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0959-3683

Abstract

Abstract: This article shows in some detail that the colour pink functions as a leitmotif in Thomas Mann's 1939 novel Lotte in Weimar . The basic link to Werther is established via the pink ribbon, which is missing on the white dress which the aging Charlotte Kestner wears during a dinner at Goethe's house in 1816. Mann's meticulous weaving of a red or even pink thread through the narrative, however, goes far beyond this detail. A closer investigation of the role the colour pink plays in his novel reveals a subtle network of political, erotic and literary allusions, reaching from Goethe's Divan to James Joyce's Ulysses .