Dec 23, 2009

Adventure of the German Student | Adventure of the German Student

At a glance:

Author: Washington Irving
First Published: 1824
Type of Plot: Gothic
Time of Work: The late eighteenth century, during the French Revolution
Setting: Paris, France
Principal Characters: Gottfried Wolfgang, The mysterious woman, The narrator
Genres: Short fiction, Gothic fiction, Horror literature
Subjects: Sex or sexuality, Obsession, Death or dying, Students or student life, Horror
Locales: Paris, France

The Story

This story, one of a number of tales and sketches collected in Tales of a Traveller (1824), is narrated by an old man to a group of listeners. The story concerns a young student from the German university town of Gottingen. The student, Gottfried Wolfgang, is described as a man of good family but also as one given to intense speculation on the dark, mystical side of existence. Indeed, he is shown to have dedicated himself to these studies to such an extent that both his physical health and his imagination have become “diseased.” As the narrator tells his...

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Adventure of the German Student | Adventure of the German Student

At a glance:

The Story

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