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kingofspain93's review against another edition
3.75
I would not wake sweet sin. I would have her sleep and rest, for nothing, my lovely friend, is sweeter than chaste sin asleep.
Alraune works mostly because Ewers managed to write a female character who is mythical and deadly but is also a human girl who is afraid of loneliness, gets bored, makes mistakes, is an existentialist, and delights in the sublime like riding a pure white donkey naked through a field of carnations. to have a girl be so commanding and confident but to not deprive her of emotional vulnerability and an interior life provided an otherwise dry, pitiless, and ribald novel flashes of pathos when they were needed. that said, I think it's despicable that Ewers could not conceive of a way to let her grow old like the root that was her namesake. despite his tendency to exhibit unusual care for Alraune, Frieda, Frank's mother, and the other women in his story he was just a man. his sympathy for women had its limits.
"was hanns heinz ewers a libertine"
About 9 results (0.48 seconds)
Missing: libertine | Must include: libertine
the copy of Alraune that I have is from Birchgrove Press, which specialized "in producing new print and e-book editions of pre-1950s writings on sexual flagellation in English." They also produced "new editions of libertine literature" which is probably (?) how Ewers snuck in here. unfortunately, Birchgrove Press doesn't seem to exist anymore, but aside from swelling my to-reads they also got this copy of Alraune into my hands and started me wondering about libertine literature. what is it? is it a genre, a movement, or something not quite as clear? is the work or the author libertine, or both? this novel was clearly written to challenge the idea that morality and ethics are universal and to antagonize christendom; the whole premise is that the unafraid mind can do incredible things and not coincidentally have great sex. that sounds like what little I know of libertines. I bet that a lot of the viciousness of Alraune is connected to previous literature and it just went over my head. in a year I'll look back on this review and groan. anyway growth mindset baby!
Alraune works mostly because Ewers managed to write a female character who is mythical and deadly but is also a human girl who is afraid of loneliness, gets bored, makes mistakes, is an existentialist, and delights in the sublime like riding a pure white donkey naked through a field of carnations. to have a girl be so commanding and confident but to not deprive her of emotional vulnerability and an interior life provided an otherwise dry, pitiless, and ribald novel flashes of pathos when they were needed. that said, I think it's despicable that Ewers could not conceive of a way to let her grow old like the root that was her namesake. despite his tendency to exhibit unusual care for Alraune, Frieda, Frank's mother, and the other women in his story he was just a man. his sympathy for women had its limits.
"was hanns heinz ewers a libertine"
About 9 results (0.48 seconds)
Missing: libertine | Must include: libertine
the copy of Alraune that I have is from Birchgrove Press, which specialized "in producing new print and e-book editions of pre-1950s writings on sexual flagellation in English." They also produced "new editions of libertine literature" which is probably (?) how Ewers snuck in here. unfortunately, Birchgrove Press doesn't seem to exist anymore, but aside from swelling my to-reads they also got this copy of Alraune into my hands and started me wondering about libertine literature. what is it? is it a genre, a movement, or something not quite as clear? is the work or the author libertine, or both? this novel was clearly written to challenge the idea that morality and ethics are universal and to antagonize christendom; the whole premise is that the unafraid mind can do incredible things and not coincidentally have great sex. that sounds like what little I know of libertines. I bet that a lot of the viciousness of Alraune is connected to previous literature and it just went over my head. in a year I'll look back on this review and groan. anyway growth mindset baby!
lrichar's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Medical trauma
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, and Rape
mandarino's review
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
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