Description
Book SynopsisA major new assessment of one of the most important writers of the late twentieth century and his work with history and its representation.
Trade ReviewCarol Jacobs's Sebald's Vision provides one of the first all-encompassing studies of W. G. Sebald. The match could not be better: one of the foremost literary scholars in the United States takes on the work of one of the best-known German-speaking authors of the twentieth century. The result is remarkable. Jacobs's careful, patient readings draw out the insights and blind spots of Sebald's influential oeuvre. -- Elke Siegel, Cornell University Attentive at every turn to the highly unusual literary practices of W. G. Sebald's texts, Jacobs asks whether such a radical stylistics can be reconciled with moral certitude, and, if not, what are the consequences? A work of great patience, stamina, and critical vigilance, Sebald's Vision is meticulously researched, beautifully written, and certain to become the standard by which future work on this important writer is measured. -- Michael G. Levine, Rutgers University In Sebald's Vision, Jacobs not only grants insight into the enigmatic source of Sebald's aesthetic authority but also provides a model of ethical reading that is grounded in the unsettling maxim she locates in his writing: 'Each time different perspectives.' -- Peter Fenves, Northwestern University [Sebald's Vision] will leave serious readers with plenty to contemplate regarding Sebald's aesthetic and moral insights. Publishers Weekly Her focus on the gaze does indeed offer a striking insight into Sebald's complex representations of history... Jacobs' book will doubtless make a long-lasting contribution to Sebald criticism. -- Simon Ward Times Higher Education An important addition to the criticism on this fascinating writer. Highly recommended. CHOICE
Table of ContentsPreface: "Sebald's Vision" Acknowledgments 1. "Like the snow on the Alps": After Nature 2. What Does It Mean to Count?: The Emigrants 3. Frames and Excursions: Rings of Saturn 4. Toward an Epistemology of Citation: "Air War and Literature" 5. A is for Austerlitz: Austerlitz 6. Deja vu or... : "Like Day and Night-On the Pictures of Jan Peter Tripp" 7. A Critical Eye: The Interviews Notes Works Cited Index
