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Family Discourses on RAF Terrorism: Elfriede Jelinek's Ulrike Maria Stuart and Bernhard Schlink's Das Wochenende

2015; Oxford University Press; Volume: 51; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1093/fmls/cqv027

1471-6860

Günther Martens, Deborah Van den Brande,

German Literature and Culture Studies

This article examines the role of family structures in the representation of RAF terrorism in contemporary German-language theatre and literature by comparing Elfriede Jelinek's Ulrike Maria Stuart (2006) and Bernhard Schlink's Das Wochenende (2008). In the case of Jelinek's play, we explore its sources (both in Schiller's eponymous tragedy and in popular discourses on terrorist chic) in order to assess its critique of the family and gender stereotypes underlying the portrayal of the female terrorist. Our discussion of Schlink's novel focuses on the representation of intergenerational conflicts and the question of how family structures and emotions may enable former terrorists to reintegrate into society, even when there is no sign of remorse. We discuss which aesthetic strategies and family structures are used and enacted by both Jelinek and Schlink either to prevent or to enable cathartic responses to the violence of terrorism.