Theorie und Praxis der Literaturvermittlung. Erläuterungsreihen und Textkommentar bei Heinrich Düntzer, Albert Zipper und Georg Witkowski und ihr Nachklang bis zur Gegenwart
Authors: Susteck Sebastian 
Published: July 2023

The paper develops ideas for a theory of the transmission of literature, or Literaturvermittlung. It connects a historical with a systematic perspective and focuses mainly on educational institutions and especially school. At the center of the historical analysis is Heinrich Düntzer, an early protagonist of German studies who, from 1855 onwards, publishes a series of reading guides called Erläuterungen zu den deutschen Klassikern. Düntzer’s ideas are repeated, yet modified, by Albert Zipper and his series Erläuterungen zu Meisterwerken der deutschen Literatur, which appears as part of Reclams Universal-Bibliothek between 1896 and 1922. Düntzer and Zipper draw from a European tradition of literary commentary while developing a genre of study guides, or Lektürehilfen, that is still existant and influential today. Although in the long run schools prove to be the primary institutional address of these guides, this is not clear when Düntzer begins his project in 1855 and only becomes obvious in the 1890s, when Zipper publishes first texts. Both authors explicitly address educated readers in general, yet also, e. g., actors. Since literature in German is a new subject in schools in the 19th century, this is not completely surprising. The historical part of the paper takes an additional look at Georg Witkowski’s book Textkritik und Editionstechnik neuerer Schriftwerke from 1924, which is skeptical of written commentary in teaching literature.

Düntzer and Zipper both write texts which accompany their series of study guides and explain aims and intended usage. While Düntzer does so in quite some length in 1862, seven years after beginning to publish the Erläuterungen, Zipper adds short opening paragraphs to his first guide in 1896. Both authors are interested in supplying cheap publications to readers of literature. These publications are supposed to explain literary works and their qualities in detail. Düntzer also wants to help readers develop advanced aesthetic judgment. He outlines that the Erläuterungen are supposed to be studied carefully while also reading the literary works. Although an understanding of literature is possible without relying on study guides, these guides, according to Düntzer, provide a comparatively quick access to literature. He also makes clear that his study guides are to provide readers with a coherent text which does not convey information in isolated chunks or jumps from one aspect to another. The rather short introductory paragraphs by Zipper are less ambitious than Düntzer’s, yet also stress the aim to explain literary works in depth. An exemplary analysis of Düntzer’s and Zipper’s study guides on G.E. Lessing’s Nathan der Weise shows strong similarities between the different Erläuterungen. They both present contextual information on the literary work, its creation and background, information on its characters, its language and, most importantly, its plot. At the same time, there are differences when Düntzer composes a rather long text in full sentences, while Zipper’s guide relies to a significant extent on short summaries and the explanation of isolated words and expressions from Lessing’s work.

The examination of Witkowski’s book Textkritik und Editionstechnik portrays him as protagonist of a different approach to the transmission of literature. Especially in school, Witkowski wants to avoid extensive explanations in the way of written commentary. He favors an approach to literature that involves readers with the literary work itself and gains necessary support mainly from teachers. Transmission of literature also is supposed to focus on literary works as literature and not as texts providing readers with factual knowledge. Witkowski explicitly rejects Düntzer’s texts and similar writings as misguided and focuses less on a rational and methodological approach to literature than on aesthetic experience which directly affects the reader.

The paper sketches a theory of literary transmission by drawing together the historical findings. It assumes that Düntzer, Zipper and Witkowski, despite their obvious differences, share common problems of literary transmission. Moreover, their thoughts are complementary in different ways, which is still relevant today. Witkowski’s idea of literary works that do not need any written explanation is best suited in contexts where such explanations already exist and are contained in commentaries and study guides. Also, the emphasis on emotion, which in 1924 is influenced by the new Geisteswissenschaften, has a basis rather than an opposition in the sober and instrumental approach of Düntzer. The paper argues that in the case of all three authors, theories of the transmission of literature have their key problem in the incapability to model and directly influence the mind of recipients. As a consequence, the authors make a variety of different offers to further literary reading and understanding which at first sight seem to contradict each other, yet in reality work together. Two results of this are (a) that Literaturvermittlung wants to derive aesthetic experience not only from reading literature but also from philologically working on and around literary texts and (b) offers an alternative way to understanding literature by conveying information instead of trying to prompt literary experience.