Waldwinkel (novella)

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Waldwinkel is the title of a novella by Theodor Storm . The work, created in 1874, is about a "love at first sight" between an older man and a minor. A botanist returning home from exile met an orphaned girl by chance. He spent a summer with the young woman in a small palace in the middle of the forest. She evades the proposed marriage by fleeing with a young forester.

Structure, time, place, people

The plot is presented from the perspective of an omniscient narrator. To some extent, Storm changes from the authorial to a personal narrative situation and reflects the thoughts of the protagonist. The events during a summer are reported in loosely connected episodes without subtitles. The characters are introduced in an informal framework, with information about their history in two short flashbacks.

The story takes place in a fictional location near a large trading town, called a village Föhrenschwarzkoppel and a Palais Waldwinkel , which is popularly called Narrenkasten (a Folly ) because of its striking architecture . The middle of the 19th century can be assumed as the time. The seasonal natural events reflect the mood of the action.

People:

  • Richard , a scientist returning from exile , in his early forties. In Prussian jail for subversive activities, then in exile because he shot his wife's lover, a baron.
  • Franziska Fedders , an orphan with no relatives under guardianship , seventeen at the beginning of the story. Her appearance is described as austere beauty, she is portrayed as both grateful and calculating.
  • Fritz , mayor, court director and chief of police in one person, former fellow student Richard
  • Wieb Lewerenz , Richards housekeeper, hard of hearing
  • The young forester, without a name, represents a vacant forester position for the aristocratic estate.
  • The unnamed inspector, forest ranger in this area
  • Kasper-Ohm , landlord in the inn at Föhrenschwarzkoppel
  • Pfeffers , a traveling grocer from the neighboring town
  • The master, without a name, a theologian, runs a boarding school with a school, Franziska's previous guardian, is in custody because of an attempted assault on his ward
  • Shoemaker master, without name, alternatively appointed guardian Franziskas

action

1. (Richard and Fritz) - Richard meets his former fellow student Fritz, the town's mayor. They remember the common past, including dancing in the Dornburg . Fritz asks Richard to step in as the clerk of the minutes at a court dispute. At the subsequent appointment, Richard sees Franziska for the first time. He asked Fritz about the girl and went to her guardian on the same day.
2. (In the Dorfkrug Föhrenschwarzkoppel) - Kasper-Ohm, landlord of the Dorfkrug, a shopkeeper named Pfeffers and the forest inspector exchange news. A stranger (Richard) will move in with his housekeeper in the “fool's box”, a house in the form of a small castle in the middle of the wilderness, which belongs to the aristocratic estate beyond the forest. The inspector later meets Franziska on the way to the "fool's box".
3. (Together in the "fool's box") - Richard, Franziska and old Wieb Lewerenz moved into the house in solitude. Richard reflects on his spontaneous love for the girl, believes he has fallen for her.
4. (The guardian makes demands) - Unexpectedly, the shoemaker, Franziska's substitute guardian, appears in the “box of fools”. He wants his ward to be married to a rich, old master baker. He holds a mortgage on the shoemaker's house and uses the debt relationship as a means of pressure. Richard grants the shoemaker a private loan and thus indirectly releases Franziska. The address between Richard and "Franzi" changes to the mutual "You". Franziska kisses Richard.
5. (Shopping together) - Richard and Franziska drive to the large trading town nearby. Franziska is generously furnished with clothes and shoes. Richard is addressed by outsiders as the "father" of the young lady accompanying him.
6. (Living in Nature) - Richard is happy with his young love. He has doubts about his own advancing age. He decides to transfer securities to Franziska for financial security. She does not contradict herself, makes herself understood, knows about her advantage of this " morning gift ".
7. (Forester's invitation) - It's the beginning of August. The young forester visits the "box of fools" to invite Franziska to a planned dance in the town. Richard brusquely rejects him. Franziska is disappointed, but complies.
8. (Richard fell ill) - Richard suffered an illness from the time of his imprisonment. Franziska roams the area with the botanizing drum , lends Richard a hand as "Famulus", demonstrating her skill and talent. She does paperwork for Richard, who is preparing a scientific publication, and makes colored plant drawings. Richard thinks he sees a gloomy premonition in the picture puzzle of a wallpaper motif.
9. (Preparations for marriage) - Richard's condition improves and he decides to marry the young woman who is soon to be eighteen. Franziska is alarmed when she learns of these plans.
10. (Richard at Fritz) - The mayor, whose approval as head guardian will be required, initially sees Richard's marriage plans as a joke. When he fails to change his old acquaintance's mind, he finally agrees. Richard has the necessary official papers together sooner than expected and arrives earlier than announced in the "box of fools".
11. (Escape) - During the night Franziska succeeds in escaping from the "fool's box" that she prepared with the young forester. Richard discovers Franziska's disappearance. In order to be able to leave the house, she poisoned Richard's big dog. Richard fires from a pistol, but does not injure the escapees. In the end, he decided not to pursue the couple in order not to be guilty of another act of violence. Franziska took her share of the securities with her. Richard believes that a change in the wallpaper confirms his suspicions.
12. (Dorfkrug) - Kasper-Ohm and Pfeffers exchange news again, report on the end of the story: Richard has left the country, the furniture in the “Narrenkasten” is to be auctioned off in favor of Wieb Lewerenz. Rumors about Franziska's origins are making the rounds.

Others

The mayor performs the duties of both an administrative officer and a judge; Executive and judicial functions are, as is common at the time, not yet distributed among different office holders . - After the first German-Danish war, which was victorious for Denmark, Storm was forced to leave Husum in 1853 and take on an unpopular activity in Potsdam because of his partisanship for the German cause; he did not return until 1864. - The novella anticipates Vladimir Nabokov's " Lolita " motif .

expenditure

  • Theodor Storm: Waldwinkel . In: Deutsche Rundschau , Jg. 1, 1874, pp. 94-131 (first publication).
  • Theodor Storm: Waldwinkel. Novellas . Westermann, Braunschweig 1875 (first book publication).

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