Aesthetic Dilemmas

Hugo von Hofmannsthal (18741929) is frequently portrayed in cultural histories as an aloof writer with a precious style, out of step with modern sensibilities. In Aesthetic Dilemmas Marlo Burks reassesses Hofmannsthals oeuvre and its place in twentieth-century European modernist aesthetics. Through an examination of a diverse range of Hofmannsthals ekphrastic writings including poetry, essays, opera libretti, fiction, and letters Burks argues that Hofmannsthals work aims to engage the consciousness and sensibility of readers, listeners, and viewers by way of dynamic encounters with works of art. Aesthetic Dilemmas thereby corrects a long-standing, flawed characterization of Hofmannsthals work as escapist and demonstrates how his place in the Modernist movement has been misunderstood in most scholarship. The book is in dialogue with a broad range of critical voices and treats a variety of themes, from aestheticism to money, interpersonal relationships, suffering, poverty, labour, futurity, legacy, and hope. Translating numerous passages into English for the first time, Aesthetic Dilemmas gives English-speaking readers the chance to evaluate Hofmannsthals literary merit and his contributions to the enduring conversation about arts relation to ethics.