The Road Into the Open

I'm not judging the translation, as I don't know that earlier 1922 translation. I have few notes on this story, but my impression-- It's a realist Faust! The girl dies, the boy thrives. Well, does he find the road into the open? It's there at least as a possibility. Either way, the Faust angle seems obvious to me. Schnitzler is a positivist in the spirit of Ernst Mach. [The Vienna Circle of contemporary positivism was originally founded as the Ernst Mach Society.] Schnitlzer was a doctor, an MD. I find his work takes realism one step further, into the sphere of positivism. (What Varese, Babbitt & Boulez did in music.) Many have pointed out (including Freud), that Schnitler brings to bear upon his characters the observational faculties of a trained physician. Here's another example-- A short story called *Flowers* can be found in translation in The Dedalus Anthology of Austrian Fantasy. A man's lover dies. Before his lover died, she had arranged to have flowers delivered to him regularly. She dies, the flowers keep coming. The flowers come and he thinks she sees her on the street below his window, but knows he is deluded. A realist ghost story. I find my note in the margin, page 83--Leo is *naive*; Heinrich is *sentimental*. [AS IN SCHILLER'S NOTION OF NAIVE AND SENTIMENTAL POETRY.] I also note in the margin that Heinrich is like Mann's Naphta [in Magic Mountain]; and so Schnitzler's Heinrich must be Mann's Settembrini. Don't know if I got this right or not... Road Into the Opean is from 1908; Magic Mountain is later--1912!! Well, they're both inventing characters inspired by Schiller's dialectic. Of course, Freud loved Schnitzler. Schnitzler didn't think of himself as a top-notch writer, but I do. A must read--Schnitzler's *Fraulein Else*. Set in a Tirolian mountain resort, Fraulein Else's father pressures the young, young lady into rushing into a match with an abhorrent old bastard, for his money. She loses it, has a nervous breakdown. At the height of her distress over this situation, and under the influence of some well-intended drugs, she walks into the hotel lobby naked. [Shocking!!] She later dies of an overdose.

It is too bad that Arthur Schnitzler doesn't have the same reputation in America and Britain that he enjoys in Germany and Austria. There, he is considered one of the great authors of the 20th century, and "The Road to the Open" is his great novel. It depicts many aspects of life in fin-de-siecle Vienna. The world described by historians Carl Schorske, Allan Janik, and William M. Johnston is brought to life in this novel. Anti-Semitism, nationality conflict, the politics of friendship, gender and sexual relations, and music and art are major themes. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the late Habsburg empire, whether the interest be politics, society, or culture. Two aspects of Viennese society are particularly showcased in "The Road to the Open": 1) the world of music and musical patronage 2) the Jewish bourgeoisie The professional ambitions of an aspiring composer provide the framework for the novel, which is suffused with references to the music of the era. The backdrop for the novel is the lives and struggles of Vienna's Jewish bourgeoisie. They encounter with increasing antisemitism. (This is the era of Karl Lueger.) And they clash with each other over Zionism, assimilationism, and socialism. (This is the era of Theodor Herzl.) Considering how central the Jewish bourgeoisie was to urban life in Central Europe from 1867 to 1918, it is surprising that "The Road to the Open" is practically the only prominent novel that places that group in its focus, making the novel all the more important. The only reason why I am giving the novel 4 stars instead of 5 is the translation. The Northwestern University Press edition (copyright 1991) is merely a reprint of the 1922 translation. Though many readers like Horace Samuel's translation from 1922, I find that parts of it are too rough. In some instances, his literal renderings would make no sense to someone unfamiliar with the German original. Maybe, someday, there will be a fresh, more modern translation.

Anybody interested in Viennese culture before World War I and between the wars ought to read this book. It portrays the atmosphere of a city that was one of the most influential centers of European culture, where contributions by the Jewish community were epoch-making and masterful. A must for anybody wanting to understand the marvel that was Europe.

Ah, Schnitzler. That magnificent chronicler of old Imperial Vienna - the Vienna of sweet young things (usually working- or middle-class), slightly neurotic but charming young men (usually upper-class), and their fleeting love-affairs, terminated so easily once ennui starts to exceed pleasure, the Vienna of walks in the Prater and talks in the cafes (ever so full of interesting artistic types), the Vienna where the nostalgic strains of Johann Strauss provide a suitably bittersweet accompaniment to the beginning (or the ending) of the abovementioned love-affairs ... All of which occur in The Road into the Open; nevertheless, the Vienna depicted here does not only consist of only the sweetened tableaux so frequently dismissively (and unfairly) attributed to Schnitzler. The easy charm of the Vienna here is extant, but by no means idealised - it masks the artistic impotence that seems to afflict nearly all of its inhabitants, haunted as they are by the sense of being epigonal; grandiose artistic projects are continually being talked about, but never executed, whether because of an aversion to actually setting them down on paper, or simply because of what is commonly called a "lack of inspiration". More sinisterly, it also masks the habitual anti-Semitism of what one of the characters wittily calls those of "indigenous physiognomy"; though written in 1908, there are passages that almost foreshadow the rise of Nazism. Schnitzler subtly intertwines the study of the individual with ruthlessly objective social commentary and evocation of the atmosphere (both artistic and political) of fin de siecle Vienna, to produce a fascinating book highly recommended not only for those with an interest in the period, but also for anyone who fancies a thought-provoking book