Romantic Revolution and Female Collectivity: Bettine and Gisela von Arnim's Gritta

Romantic Revolution and Female Collectivity: Bettine and Gisela von Arnim's Gritta Edith Waldstein While only a few years ago one had to lament that Bettine von Arnim had served primarily as a footnote to Goethe, Clemens Brentano and Achim von Arnim, more recently popular and scholarly attention has been given her in her own right. During her lifetime she was a prominent saloniere and one of the most published women in romantic circles. Until the turn of the century, however, critical works on Bettine von Arnim were scarce. In more recent decades one must praise the pioneering efforts of Ingeborg Drewitz and Gisela Dischner, both of whom can be credited with the rediscovery of Bettine von Arnim for the present-day reader and literary critic. Since 1980 scholars have become increasingly interested in von Arnim. In particular, she has been viewed as one of the most important women in the early nineteenth century to whom the beginning of a female literary tradition in Germany can be traced. In addition, some feminist critics are taking a closer look at the connection between Bettine von Arnim's writings and, literary theories positing the concept of a female aesthetic. The most exciting scholarly work currently taking place is archival research in both the German Democratic Republic and the Federal Republic. The exhibition (and accompanying catalogue) in honor of Bettine von Arnim's 200th birthday, which was organized by Das Freie Deutsche Hochstift and ended on September 15, 1985, bears witness to the wealthy of materials, among them new discoveries, recently made public. Of special interest and significance are new manuscripts and drawings by both Bettine and Gisela von Arnim which lend increasing support to the hypothesis of a motherdaughter collaboration on a number of fairy tales, in particular on the fairy tale5novel Das Leben der Hochgräfin Gritta von Rattenzuhausbeiuns. Questions concerning authorship and publication dates of this work have been discussed since Otto Mallon first discovered it in 1925 among the materials of the "Grimm-Schränke" in the Preußische Staatsbibliothek. While no definitive analysis of Bettine's and Gisela's collaboration has been possible, Otto Mallon, and more recently Gustav Konrad, have convincingly argued that Bettine von Arnim played a significant role in the genesis of this tale. The content, form and style of Gritta support this assumption. Although the style in which the fairy tale novel is written is somewhat more traditional than most of Bettine von Arnim's works, the combination of certain characteristics marks her contribution. The complete lack of subdivision 91 into chapters or sections, combined with the tendency to write extremely long sentences and paragraphs in a rambling fashion is typical of von Arnim's resistance to a linear style of writing in which organization can be perceived at a glance. In addition, unorthodox punctuation, in particular the frequent use of dashes, which increases toward the end of Gritta, supporting Reinhold Steig's contention that Bettine wrote the second half and Gisela the first (see Konrad, 158), is also typical of Bettine's writing style. Because of its oral tradition, the fairy tale as a genre would certainly have been attractive to Bettine von Arnim, since conversation is of utmost importance in her other works. While conversation does not predominate in Gritta as it does, for example, in the Königsbuch, this fairy tale novel is comprised of at least three stories, told by various characters within the framework of the all-encompassing "Lebengeschichte der Hochgräfin Gritta." The tone is an oral one, even if the individual tales are often monologic, rather than conversational in nature. The telling of a particular story is often the necessary link to the continuation of the framing story. Storytelling thereby becomes an integral part of the fairy tale and is praised for its capacity to synthesize the real and the fantastic. At the end of the story told by the boatman Thorns, for example, one reads: "Hier endete Thorns. 'Das ist eine schöne lange Geschichte gewesen! Ihr habt gewiß viel hinzugesetzt?' sagte der Jude. 'Vielleicht alles,' erwiderte Thoms, 'deswegen ist sie auch so schön'" (78). Even Plato, who appears in Thorns' story, is especially attracted...