Blask−odcień−blichtr: Schein
Shine–Shade–Glitter: Schein

Antithetical meanings of the symbol of light in German literature

Author(s): Zbigniew Feliszewski
Subject(s): Theoretical Linguistics, Semantics
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: light; manipulation; German literature; relativizing of symbols
Summary/Abstract: This article deals with the social and cultural symbol of light in German literature. Over the centuries the symbol of light has taken various forms, but it had always referred to attitudes and traits like beauty, knowledge and perfection. According to Herbert Marcuse the goal of the literature is to take an antagonistic position toward the existing social order. Based on three works such as "Faust" by Johann Wolfgang Goethe, "Lux in Tenebris" by Bertolt Brecht and "The Tin Drum" by Günter Grass, this article analyses strategies in German literature aimed at relativizing and undermining or even invalidating the meaning of the symbol of light shaped by the centuries-old tradition. While Goethe relativizes the unambiguous meaning of light in order to perceive the harmony of the universe, Brecht shows social mechanisms leading to manipulation of this symbol. On the other hand, Grass deals, in a great style, with fiction that accompanies the archaic meanings ascribed to the symbols of light.

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