Overview

The eponymous inter esse means the elusive “third” position of that which lies between, that which escapes unambiguous classification and constitutes the essence of Romanticism. The book provides a constellation of texts, a clash of case studies that provide contrasting views of Romanticism, shifting between inspiration and virtuosity (Hugo and Mickiewicz), feminine poetry and the fantasy of femininity (Desbordes-Valmore and Z˙michowska; de Nerval and Krasin´ski), along with optimistic versus pessimistic—even nihilistic—reactions to disenchantment with the Enlightenment (Novalis, Krasin´ski, Malczewski, Macha, Bonaventura, Buchner, Goszczyn´ski). ‘Siwiec’s comparative analysis … juxtaposes the familiar with the foreign, taking Polish and foreign-language writers under critical literary scrutiny. As a result, we receive a study that is not only exceptionally insightful, original, and engaging for the reader from the very beginning but also composed almost mathematically, striking with its transparent order.’ – Jerzy Jarniewicz, University of Lodz

Full Product Details

Author:   Ryszard Nycz ,  Magdalena Siwiec
Publisher:   Peter Lang AG
Imprint:   Peter Lang AG
Edition:   New edition
Volume:   38
Weight:   0.471kg
ISBN:  

9783631914014

ISBN 10:   3631914016
Pages:   310
Publication Date:   10 September 2025
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction: Inter Esse * PART I: The Romantic Crisis of the Subject: Between the Strong and the Weak Self * PART II: The Mages of Romanticism: Between Virtuosity and Priesthood * 1. The Mages of Romanticism: Hugo and Mickiewicz * 2. Romantic Oriental Cycles: Les Orientales and The Crimean Sonnets * 3. On Two Mickiewiczian Concepts of Inspiration * 4. Victor Hugo’s ‘Elegiac Moment’ * PART III: Poetesses and Enchantresses: Between Women’s Poetry and the Phantasm of Femininity * 1. ‘I know that women aren’t required to write; / Yet write I do’: Marceline Desbordes-Valmore and the Anxiety of Authorship * 2. Is a Romantic Poetess a Poet? On Narcyza ¯michowska’s ‘The Poet’s Happiness’ * 3. Nerval’s Enchantresses: Opera in the Realm of Romantic Phantasms * 4. Questions About Krasiñski’s Feminism * PART IV: In a Disenchanted World: Between Heroism and Resignation * 1. Novalis’s Re-enchantment * 2. Oneiric Apocalypses in Krasiñski’s Geneva Fragments * 3. Marionettes, Masks and Dreams: Around Romantic Nothingness * 4. The Early Romantic Novel and the Poetics of the Postmodern Novel: Bonaventura’s The Nightwatches * 5. Lieu de mémoire—lieu de folie by Seweryn Goszczyñski * Bibliography * Index of Names *

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Author Information

Magdalena Siwiec is a Professor of Comparative Literature at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland. She focused on nineteenth-century literature and comparative literature studies, she authored numerous articles and seven monographs in the field.

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