Bildungsroman

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A bildungsroman (IPA: [ˈbɪldʊŋs.roˌmaːn]/, German: "novel of education" or "novel of formation") is a novel which traces the spiritual, moral, psychological, or social development and growth of the main character from (usually) childhood to maturity.

[edit] Description of genre

Among the components of a bildungsroman:

  • To spur the hero onto his or her journey, some form of loss or discontent must jar him or her at an early stage away from the home or family setting.
  • The process of maturing is long, arduous, and gradual, consisting of repeated clashes between the protagonist's needs and desires and the views and judgments enforced by an unbending social order.
  • Eventually, the spirit and values of the social order become manifest in the protagonist, who is then accommodated into society. The novel ends with an assessment by the protagonist of himself/herself and his/her new place in that society.
  • The character is generally making a smooth movement away from conformity
  • Major conflict is self vs. society or individuality vs. conformity
  • Theme of exile or escape

Within the genre, an Entwicklungsroman is a story of general growth rather than self-culture; an Erziehungsroman focuses on training and formal education; and a Künstlerroman is about the development of an artist and shows a growth of the self.

Many other genres include a bildungsroman as a prominent part of their story lines; for example, a military story frequently shows a raw recruit receiving his/her baptism of fire and becoming a battle-hardened soldier. A high fantasy quest may also show a transformation from an adolescent protagonist into an adult aware of his/her powers or lineage.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Buckley, Jerome H., Season of Youth (Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1974).
  • Jeffers, Thomas L., Apprenticeships: The Bildungsroman from Goethe to Santayana (New York: Palgrave, 2005).
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