The Governor of Greifensee (Swiss-German Classics)

Gottfried Keller

ene 2015 · Mondial

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Gottfried Keller (1819-1890), one of the greatest German authors in Switzerland, was a confirmed bachelor, not by choice but by necessity. He had been in love several times, but all he received in return was friendship and respect. --- In 'The Governor of Greifensee', one of Keller's Zurich Novellas, the hero, Salomon Landolt, the noble and impartial judge and governor, hits upon the grotesque plan of inviting all his former sweethearts to a festival at his castle. The five ladies accept the invitation not knowing that the others would be there. They are sincerely glad to see their old friend again; for it was not he who had deserted or injured any of them, they all for one reason or another had rejected the hand of the worthy suitor. --- It was Keller's own experience. The novel is a fine example of Keller's humor and art of story-telling. The five love affairs of the governor are told with exquisite grace and subtle characterization.

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This Swiss German-language poet and novelist, born in Zurich, is known for his widely read realistic short stories of Swiss provincial life.The Saturday Review wrote of his autobiographical Green Henry (1854-55), "The book's instantly captivating quality is the charm with which a quietly sequential life of curiosity and perception is narrated in the pellucid recollection of the mature poet. Keller's eye for the colorful scene and his skill in endowing the concrete particular with something like archetypal significance make him an artist of rare integrity." His best work, A Village Romeo and Juliet (1876), "tells of the tragic fate of two youthful lovers who are prevented from making an honest marriage by the sins of their fathers" (Ernst Rose).