Anselm Kristlein trilogy

The Anselm Kristlein trilogy (German: Anselm-Kristlein-Trilogie) is three novels by the German writer Martin Walser. The trilogy consists of the novels Halbzeit (1960), The Unicorn (German: Das Einhorn) (1966, English 1971) and Der Sturz (1973), with a combined length of over 1500 pages.[1]

The largely autobiographical novels centre on Anselm Kristlein as he makes a career as a salesman, advertising worker and eventually author.[2] They concern life and consciousness in post-war West Germany.[1] Kristlein appears as a detached dreamer but not an outsider, because no such thing can exist in the way the novels portray society akin to natural history.[3]

The trilogy has been described as Walser's magnum opus.[1] The Unicorn was the basis for the 1978 film The Unicorn.[4]

  1. ^ a b c Lorenz, Matthias N. (2020). "Walser, Martin: Anselm-Kristlein-Trilogie". In Arnold, H.L. (ed.). Kindlers Literatur Lexikon (in German). Stuttgart: J.B. Metzler. pp. 1–4. doi:10.1007/978-3-476-05728-0_19508-1.
  2. ^ Rauch, Hans Georg (13 March 1981). "Martin Walser: Abschied von Anselm Kristlein". Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  3. ^ Hertweck, Franz (1 September 2012). "Anselm Kristlein". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  4. ^ Rentschler, Eric (2013). German Film & Literature. London: Routledge. p. 355.