Potency in Fortunatus
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20656077 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Stephen L Wailes (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1986 |
| Volume | 59 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 5 |
| Publication date | 1986-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The German Quarterly (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0016-8831 • E-ISSN: 1756-1183 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/406208 |
| OpenAlex | W2327496600 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
Fortunatus, first published in Augsburg in 1509, was immediately popular and has remained so. Seven further German printings had appeared by the time Hans Sachs adapted it as a tragedy in 1553; by 1700 it had been translated into English, French, Italian, and six other European languages; Chamisso and Tieck based plays on the story, and outlines or fragments survive from Brentano, Uhland, Grillparzer, and others. Scholarly attention, which began with G6rres' monograph on the Volksbiucher in 1807, has grown more intense in the last twenty-five years: Fortunatus has been appreciated as a document of its age, in which the social and economic transformation of feudal into capitalistic Europe finds intriguing narrative expression.1 Although some recent articles emphasize philosophical themes-notably wisdom and happiness -Fortunatus has proved a very appropriate object of study from the perspective of literary sociology, with the monograph by Walter Raitz and essay by Helmut Scheuer being the most substantial contributions.2 In this essay I am concerned with one aspect of the author's literary technique, the figurative likening of sexual to economic potency, and I relate my analysis to the main interpretive positions taken by Raitz and Scheuer. Early in the story we find things going well for young Fortunatus. Having joined the entourage of the count of Flanders, who has made a match with a daughter of the duke of Cleves, our hero ingratiates himself, then excels at the nuptials by winning a special joust for der herren diener (p. 12). He is swiftly achieving preference in feudal service, witness both the resentment of his peers (Do huob sich erst grol3 neid und ha83. . . under des graffen vonn Flandern diener, p. 13) and the count's concern when he is found missing (pp. 19-20). Fortunatus will soon be among the most privileged retainers in a county long famous for its wealth, whose lord has just made a ducal alliance: all in all this is an extremely bright future for the scion of an
Potency · Biochemistry · Chemistry · Linguistics and language evolution
| Citations per year | 0.15 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2006 - 2022 (17) |
| Highly cited | No |