Contested Memories: Heimat and Vaterland in Ilse Langner's Frau Emma kämpft im Hinterland

Ilse Langner's play Frau Emma kämpft im Hinterland offers a revisionist perspective on World War I from the point of view of women at the home front. Langner portrays women's struggles with issues of identity and, ultimately, with their new roles in a changed society. By challenging traditional concepts of Heimat and Vaterland, Langner reveals that these terms participate in a national war ideology that not only excludes women, but is, in part, directed against them. With the projection of a postwar utopia of social and economic equality, she argues for a redefinition of Heimat and Vaterland to include both men and women. (MC)