Denkbilder. The «Thought-Image» in 20th Century German Short Prose

The history of Denkbild still has to be drawn. In fact, such a genre does not only belong to Benjamin and to some thinkers closer to him such as Ernst Bloch, Siegfried Kracauer and Adorno himself (thinks of Minima Moralia). Many other writers employ it frequently such as Stefan George, Paul Sheerbart, Robert Walser and Franz Kafka. It was a long-lasting phenomenon; circulation and genealogy of which should be investigated deeply, by taking in count groups and individuals, cultural and editorial contexts and all aspect pertaining to the literary field. This is the first goal of this volume. The second is the textual analysis of «Thought-Image»’s structure by comparing it with other genres sharing with it similar structure or historical relations. For instance, thinks of the short story (in German Kalendergeschichte, then Kurzgeschichte), aphorism, prose poem (Prosagedicht) and the journalistic constellation of the feuilleton.