Buchmendel
Encyclopedia
Stefan Zweig
's Buchmendel (1929) tells the tragic story of an eccentric but brilliant book peddler
Jacob Mendel (also Jakob Mendel) who spends his days trading in one of Vienna
's many coffeehouses. With his encyclopaedic mind and devotion to literature, the Poland-born Russia
n-Jewish immigrant is not only tolerated but liked and admired by both the owner of his local Café Gluck and the cultured Viennese clients with whom he interacts in the pre-war period. In 1915, however, he is falsely accused of collaborating with Austria's enemies and is dispatched to a concentration camp. On his return, towards the end of the war, everything has changed. His mind no longer remembers, his eyes can no longer read, the café undergoes new, brittle ownership, and his clientele have disappeared. Jacob Mendel finally dies, destitute, incapacitated and forgotten.
What initially reads as another of the many modest human dramas that Zweig made his speciality, this small tale actually has a far more panoramic sub-plot, for it is a metaphor of World War I
's impact on Viennese life and culture. It is also particularly interesting to the historian for understanding the strategies by which post-war writers re-imagined pre-war Vienna, how they conceptualised the war itself, and how memory and myth deeply influenced their conception of history.
Stefan Zweig
Stefan Zweig was an Austrian novelist, playwright, journalist and biographer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most famous writers in the world.- Biography :...
's Buchmendel (1929) tells the tragic story of an eccentric but brilliant book peddler
Book peddler
Book peddlers were travelling vendors of books. This occupation had its peculiarities in various countries.-Book canvassers:Door-to-door book peddlers of the 18th and 19th centuries, also known as "book canvassers", used to carry special "sample books", a kind of "preview", with table of...
Jacob Mendel (also Jakob Mendel) who spends his days trading in one of Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
's many coffeehouses. With his encyclopaedic mind and devotion to literature, the Poland-born Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n-Jewish immigrant is not only tolerated but liked and admired by both the owner of his local Café Gluck and the cultured Viennese clients with whom he interacts in the pre-war period. In 1915, however, he is falsely accused of collaborating with Austria's enemies and is dispatched to a concentration camp. On his return, towards the end of the war, everything has changed. His mind no longer remembers, his eyes can no longer read, the café undergoes new, brittle ownership, and his clientele have disappeared. Jacob Mendel finally dies, destitute, incapacitated and forgotten.
What initially reads as another of the many modest human dramas that Zweig made his speciality, this small tale actually has a far more panoramic sub-plot, for it is a metaphor of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
's impact on Viennese life and culture. It is also particularly interesting to the historian for understanding the strategies by which post-war writers re-imagined pre-war Vienna, how they conceptualised the war itself, and how memory and myth deeply influenced their conception of history.