Meanings of Modern Work in Nineteenth- and Twenty-First-Century German Literature and Film

Peter C. Pfeiffer is Professor and Chair of the German Department at Georgetown University. His research focuses on German-language literary and cultural studies from the nineteenth to the twenty-first centuries, most recently with a focus on literary negotiations of economic concepts.Nathan T. Tschepik received his degree in History from Georgetown University. He is currently completing his law degree at the University of Chicago.

«At a time when the humanities face a profound crisis of relevance, this volumegathers a series of interdisciplinary essays that exemplify the pertinence of GermanStudies scholarship to urgent problems related to work in contemporary life.Focusing on two historical paradigm shifts, the industrial revolution of the nineteenthcentury and the technological revolution of the late twentieth and twenty-first, theeditors and contributors present insightful literary, cinematic, and philosophicalexaminations that highlight fulcrum moments in the history of labor and politicaleconomy. By illuminating the past through the analyses of cultural artifacts, theyprobe possibilities for confronting current fluctuations in work environments andtransformations of our economic way of life.» (Richard T. Gray, Lockwood Professor in the Humanities,Emeritus, University of Washington)«This innovative volume of essays brings a set of interlocking interdisciplinaryapproaches (economic, philosophical, sociological) to bear on the problem ofmodern work. It is readable and highly informative, and it succeeds in making solidconnections between the nineteenth-century industrial revolution and the ‹secondmachine age› of the twenty-first century.» (Ernest Schonfield, University of Glasgow)