Elfriede Jelinek: Writing Woman, Nation, and Identity: A Critical Anthology

This volume is meant to introduce Elfriede Jelinek’s diverse body of writing to the English-speaking public. Moreover, this collection of essays is not only of interest to scholars but also to teachers and students of literature alike. Fourteen scholars provide apprehensive comments on Jelinek’s various contributions to world literature and its contexts in contemporary politics and culture. Their articles offer incisive interpretations and innovative analysis of the writer’s provocative works, discussing her critical influence both on the German and European literary scene. The book’s title Writing Woman, Nation, and Identity echoes the main themes in Jelinek’s oeuvre: Writing as a woman and her negotiations of identity and place in Western society, writing on notions of belonging and exclusion, writing against historical myths and amnesia, and writing to keep the memory of the victims of fascism alive.