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Manusya, Journal of Humanities
Friedrich Halm – Michael Enk von der Burg – melodramatic Novelle – Austrian literature – St. Sylvesterabend – monomania/obsession – Christian caritas (love)
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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
Friedrich Halm's Earliest Extant, Melodramatic Novelle, St. Sylvesterabend: An Austrian Dramatist's Hidden Beginnings As A Narrative Fiction Writer, Tony Page
Manusya, Journal of Humanities
To date there has been no scholarly exploration of the genesis and nature of Friedrich Halm's earliest extant Novelle, St. Sylvesterabend (New Year's Eve). The present research article attempts to fill that gap by determining the contested date of the story's origin, establishing it as 1823. Furthermore, the article examines the tale's simplicity of style, which is distinct from Halm's later Kleist-influenced narratives. Furthermore, it ana-lyzes the novel's structural principle of parallels and contrasts, and its themes of monomania, secularised religiosity, and Christian caritas. The article also indicates how vicious criticism of the tale by Halm's literary mentor, Michael Enk …