Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete

The publication of Charlotte Roche’s controversial novel Feuchtgebiete , along with a wave of nonfiction popfeminist writings, prompted heated debates in 2008 among different generations of German feminists. Despite their attempts to call attention to historically persistent forms of sexism, popfem...

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Main Author: Margaret McCarthy
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: New Prairie Press 2011-01-01
Series:Studies in 20th & 21st Century Literature
Online Access:http://newprairiepress.org/sttcl/vol35/iss1/5
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spelling doaj-1165d9c56732458ca26642a730360e5c2020-11-25T01:58:00ZengNew Prairie PressStudies in 20th & 21st Century Literature2334-44152011-01-0135110.4148/2334-4415.17395760594Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s FeuchtgebieteMargaret McCarthyThe publication of Charlotte Roche’s controversial novel Feuchtgebiete , along with a wave of nonfiction popfeminist writings, prompted heated debates in 2008 among different generations of German feminists. Despite their attempts to call attention to historically persistent forms of sexism, popfeminists quite emphatically distanced themselves from Alice Schwarzer, the face of German feminism for over thirty-five years. Yet casting themselves as rebels who break away from Schwarzer’s second-wave feminism has necessitated that they suppress affinities and shared blind spots in order to underscore their ostensibly less dogmatic, more fun approach. Feuchtgebiete , Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax and Elke Naters’s Lügen depict generational conflicts in terms of fraught bonds between mothers and daughters, a dynamic which sheds light on these tensions among feminists. This essay highlights the coexistence in each novel of a pop sensibility with aspects of contemporary and historical feminism. If the former feeds highly individual choices and signifying acts, the latter points to a collective identity and social movement. As much as the protagonists experience the chasm between these two poles, they also point to forward-thinking ways of re-conceptualizing feminism.http://newprairiepress.org/sttcl/vol35/iss1/5
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Margaret McCarthy
spellingShingle Margaret McCarthy
Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete
Studies in 20th & 21st Century Literature
author_facet Margaret McCarthy
author_sort Margaret McCarthy
title Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete
title_short Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete
title_full Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete
title_fullStr Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete
title_full_unstemmed Feminism and Generational Conflicts in Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax, Elke Naters’s Lügen, and Charlotte Roche’s Feuchtgebiete
title_sort feminism and generational conflicts in alexa hennig von lange’s relax, elke naters’s lügen, and charlotte roche’s feuchtgebiete
publisher New Prairie Press
series Studies in 20th & 21st Century Literature
issn 2334-4415
publishDate 2011-01-01
description The publication of Charlotte Roche’s controversial novel Feuchtgebiete , along with a wave of nonfiction popfeminist writings, prompted heated debates in 2008 among different generations of German feminists. Despite their attempts to call attention to historically persistent forms of sexism, popfeminists quite emphatically distanced themselves from Alice Schwarzer, the face of German feminism for over thirty-five years. Yet casting themselves as rebels who break away from Schwarzer’s second-wave feminism has necessitated that they suppress affinities and shared blind spots in order to underscore their ostensibly less dogmatic, more fun approach. Feuchtgebiete , Alexa Hennig von Lange’s Relax and Elke Naters’s Lügen depict generational conflicts in terms of fraught bonds between mothers and daughters, a dynamic which sheds light on these tensions among feminists. This essay highlights the coexistence in each novel of a pop sensibility with aspects of contemporary and historical feminism. If the former feeds highly individual choices and signifying acts, the latter points to a collective identity and social movement. As much as the protagonists experience the chasm between these two poles, they also point to forward-thinking ways of re-conceptualizing feminism.
url http://newprairiepress.org/sttcl/vol35/iss1/5
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