Text as a dance in E. T. A. Hoffmann’s capriccio «Princess Brambilla»

Abstract

Aim. The article deals with the analysis of a capriccio «Princess Brambilla» by a famous German romanticist Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann as a convincing example of intermedial poetics. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of a described dance in the concept of the above-mentioned work where art and life are shown as the ones that reinforce and penetrate into each other.

Methods. Research methodology embraces phenomenological and hermeneutical approaches to the understanding of a literary work, the careful reading technique which enabled to single out the author’s concept expressed in the choice of main characters, genre characteristics, type of narration, original compositional structure of a capriccio, intertextual relations. The artistic aspect is revealed through intermedial methodology.

Results. The role of a described dance in the concept of a capriccio has been analyzed. It has been explored that the text aims at special perception optics of described characters in carnival atmosphere. Thus, the novella receives its rhythm and inner tension from multiperspectivity of its characters. The main idea of «Princess Brambilla» consists in constant twinkling movement between different poles supported by the concept of laugh and expressed by dance metaphor. The dynamism of Hoffmann’s depiction is fully shown in dance description. Special attention is paid to lexis of the thematic field «to dance», lexical units as well as syntactic constructions for dance rhythm visualization which makes expressions dynamic. Such description enables us to consider it as a literal movement depiction and the text itself as a dance.

Scientific novelty. The material proposed for the research of a capriccio «Princess Brambilla» by E. T. A. Hoffmann has been completely out of researchers’ focus of attention. This literary gap remains one of the least studied ones and therefore constitutes the relevant research material due to the special vector of problematics.

Pactical significance. The article can be used for further research of Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann’s literary career. The results of the research can be used for writing term papers and theses.