“Octoberfest: Beer & Blood” (2020), posts 1-4

Here are all the posts on the series:

• Introduction and part 1 (Schwabing bohemians & Naturalism)
• Part 2 (Lou Andreas-Salomé and Franz Wedekind)
• Part 3 (Friedrich Nietzsche and Fanny zu Reventlow)
• Part 4 (Simplicissimus)

“Oktoberfest: Beer & Blood” (2020) part 2

Shortly after the scene discussed in the previous post, Clara, the daughter of the parvenu brewer Curt Prank, is introduced to Anatol Stifter, a beer magnate, at a soirée of the Munich elite. The dandyish Stifter, mid-thirty-ish, is a disturbing figure right from the beginning. He clearly sees himself in Byronic terms, but makes a sinister impression. Below is their first conversation (episode 1, 27:30-29:30), in which they discuss recent German literature. Below that, the stills will give you a sense of the creepy intensity with which Stifter comes at the young girl.

Stifter: Was meinen Sie, darf man Ihnen denn schon ein Glas Champagner anbieten? Clara: Danke. Stifter: Und was suchen Sie hier in unserem schönen München? Ein Abenteuer? Oder Kultur? Was lesen Sie denn so? Clara: “In den großen, milchweißen Glaskuppeln, hoch über der Mitte des Straßendamms, erstraht urplötzlich ein elektrisches Licht und übergießt die dämmerdunkle Straße mit blendendem Schein.” Stifter: “Was ist das Kostbarste, das die Liebe Euch geben kann?” Clara: “Frieden.” Stifter: “… sagte sie leise.” Lou Salomé. Sie sollten sich mit Wedekind beschäftigen. Seine “Lulu” ist—pulsierend. “Das wahre Tier. Das wilde, schöne … Tier.” Clara: Was meinen Sie? Stifter: Nein, was meinst du? Wie wäre dein Leben wohl verlaufen, wenn du nicht in so einem Haus aufgewachsen wärst? Nicht hier, in dieser Welt. Sondern in der anderen, der echten Welt. Auf der Straße. Würdest du dir dann nehmen … was du willst? Butler: Herr Stifter? Stifter: Ich muss gehen. Wir sehen uns!

Stifter: So, it is such that may one offer you a glass of champagne? Clara: Thank you. Stifter: And what are you looking for here in our lovely city of Munich? An adventure? Or culture? What kinds of things are you reading? Clara: “In the great milk white glass domes, high over the embankment, an electric light suddenly blazes forth, pouring blinding radiance over the twilight streets.” Stifter: “What is the most precious thing that love can give you?” Clara: “Tranquility.” Stifter: “… she said softly.” Lou Salomé. You ought to spend some time with Wedekind. His “Lulu” is—pulsating. “The true animal, the wild, beautiful … animal.” Clara: What do you mean? Stifter [suddenly switching to informal address with “du”]: No, what do you mean? How do you think your life would have gone if you had not grown up in such a house? Not here, in this world. But in the other one, the real world. On the street. Would you then take … what you want? Butler: Herr Stifter! Stifter: I must go. We will see each other again!