“Zusammenstimmung” – Poetics of Private Space in 19th Century’s Literature

JVF Conference Papers

It cannot be denied that the nineteenth century’s discourse pays great attention to what can only be considered as a part of the house: its interior space. In what way does the frequent representation of the interior linked to the house’s above introduce potentials of epistemological reflection? – Walter Benjamin, who intended to write a “Urgeschichte der Moderne”, attributed great relevance to the interior as a figure in which the aporetic modern constellation constituted itself. In the Passagen-Werk Benjamin attempts to characterize the interior, demonstrating its social as well as its aesthetic shape. Under the rule of Louis-Philippe, i.e. in the 1830’s and 40’s, Benjamin states, some fundamental changes take place.

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