Kenneth Burke

Thomas Mann

An aging German writer, on holiday in Venice, becomes intrigued by a youth whose remote beauty embodies the classic ideal.

Death in Venice

Brett Lister

But in empty, unarticulated space our mind loses its sense of time as well, and we enter the twilight of the immeasurable.

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jack

super awesome. my third mann and it’s probably the most distilled exploration of the same themes of obligation/indulgence, love/sickness, etc. nothing super new here besides an intense compactness that isn’t in the longer stuff. i think it works just as well as the longer works, so this would probably be a good starting point but i don’t think it’s better than magic mountain or buddenbrooks. pretty shocked that this lived up to those though tbh. awesome mid-finals on-the-train-to-oberlin read

Ivy X

Read for Complit-obsessions, passions, and desires class 
Probably would give it a 3.5.
There's a lot of description in this story revolving around a writer who is obsessed with the beauty of this boy. Enjoy the analysis I get in class from this book. Interesting.

The Nobel Prize–winning author’s masterful novella of eros and obsession, presented alongside other short works of lyrical beauty and psychological depth. In Thomas Mann’s immortal novella A Death in Venice, renowned author Gustave Aschenbach faces both middle age and a severe case of writer’s block. He resolves to go on holiday in search of inspiration, only to find himself awestruck by the classical beauty of a fourteen-year-old boy. Submitting to his obsession with the youth, Gustave slowly loses himself, his dignity, and finally his life. This volume includes six short works by Mann, including “Little Herr Friedmann,” “Gladius Dei,” Tristan,” and “Tonio Kroger,” among others.

And Other Stories

Trever

2.5/5. Although it grabbed me with its style, Death in Venice lacked something. It felt detached from the characters, despite being able to dig into Gustav von Aschenbach's mind. The prose was more focused on physical description and philosophical musings than the psychological depth of the characters. But maybe it's just me, I don't know.

Emmett

Not a difficult read from cover to cover, but the story's beautifully textured narrative, rich in allusions and symbolism, only begin to sink in when thoroughly considered and reread, of which it is deserving of. Mann's effusive but deliberate prose is breathtakingly beautiful, and warrants revisitations on that merit alone. Effusive but deliberate is an admirable middle-point, an exquisite undertaking. Mann translated by Heim obtains this feeling of never being too excessive, that Mann is generous at times but also sparing, fully knowing the power of each word.

As Cunningham observes in his engaging introduction (which is a good read for anyone), Heim's translation deftly attempts to dignify our aging, obsessed artist; while I'm not entirely sure in the end how successfully that could be done (after all, near the ending our artist ironically becomes that "superannuated dandy" which so inspired horror in him at the beginning of the novel), one feels a quiet sense of respect at Heim's work, and towards Aschenbach himself - as writer, as person. That Mann too was concerned about "the artist's dignity" in this novella is a further reason for approval.

Barbara Williford

DNF!!! No one else has a problem that this “literary classic” is just a book about pedophilia? It’s not even a well written book. It’s as if the author is trying to show off how many words he can use as his main character stalks an adolescent boy around Europe lusting after him. NO! JUST NO!

One of the most famous literary works of the 20th century, the novella "Death in Venice" embodies themes that preoccupied Thomas Mann (1875–1955) in much of his work; the duality of art and life, the presence of death and disintegration in the midst of existence, the connection between love and suffering, and the conflict between the artist and his inner self. Mann's handling of these concerns in this story of a middle-aged German writer, torn by his passion for a Polish youth met on holiday in Venice, resulted in a work of great psychological intensity and tragic power. It is presented here in an excellent new translation with extensive commentary on many facets of the story.

Christopher McCaffery

Allison Raines

Tina

amasi

Alex Noble

Rocío de la Hera

"Death in Venice, " tells about a ruinous quest for love and beauty amid degenerating splendor. Gustav von Aschenbach, a successful but lonely author, travels to the Queen of the Adriatic in search of an elusive spiritual fulfillment that turns into his erotic doom. Spellbound by a beautiful Polish boy, he finds himself fettered to this hypnotic city of sun-drenched sensuality and eerie physical decay as it gradually succumbs to a secret epidemic. In his novella "Tonio Kroger, " Mann poetically traces a young writer's struggle between bourgeois strictures and artistic genius. Skillful dialogue and language reflect the title character's emotional conflicts, especially in his wistful visit to his home town and his sentimental journey to the Baltic. "Gladius Dei, " in contrast, is a sardonic depiction of a self-styled warrior of God, who battles against the sexual openness and profanity of Munich, the art center of northern Europe. In "The Blood of the Walsungs, " set in turn-of-the-century Berlin, a wealthy Jewish family, modeled after the family of Thomas Mann's wife, is excoriated in a Wagnerian evening that ends in self-loathing and self-loving incest.

and Other Tales

Jackson Weaver

Sarah Sammis

Sonia Grgas

The Vintage Classics Europeans series - with covers provided by textile design firm Wallace Sewell, these are must-have editions of European masterpieces, celebrating the warp and weft of a shared literary treasury Aging writer Gustave von Aschenbach is disappointed by Venice. The skies are leaden, the air is thick and sultry, and a sickening stench emanates from the murky labyrinth of canals. It would hardly be sensible to stay, especially not when rumours of a 'sickness' spread through the city. And yet Aschenbach cannot leave: he has seen an entirely beautiful young boy and has fallen under an enchantment. He must stay near the boy, though never speaking to him, even until it is too late. TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN BY DAVID LUKE 'Mann was a master magician of German - and world - literature in the twentieth century' Sunday Telegraph

Death in Venice

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