A collection of new essays in English by both British and German scholars which compare and contrast East and West German literature, culture and the literary scene. A central concern is whether East and West German literature constitute one coherent or two separate literatures.
Sternheim's critics have always been divided: the central problem which his work poses - the question of whether it represents satire or affirmation of the «bürgerlicher Held» - has preoccupied criticism for the last seventy years. It is in the interests of isolating and analysing these conflicting aspects of Sternheim's work that this study has been undertaken. It examines, largely chronologically, all Sternheim's creative work, dramatic and narrative, tracing the significant shifts in Sternheim's theoretical position and exploring their implications for his works and their interpretations.