| Berlin Alexanderplatz | |
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Reproduction of the 1st edition cover |
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| Author(s) | Alfred Döblin |
| Cover artist | George Salter |
| Country | Germany |
| Language | German |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | S. Fischer Verlag, Berlin |
| Publication date | 1929 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
Berlin Alexanderplatz is a novel by Alfred Döblin, published in 1929. The story concerns a small-time criminal, Franz Biberkopf, fresh from prison, who is drawn into the underworld. When his criminal mentor murders the prostitute whom Biberkopf has been relying on as an anchor, he realizes that he will be unable to extricate himself from the underworld into which he has sunk. In a 2002 poll of 100 noted writers conducted by the Norwegian Book Clubs, the book was named among the top 100 books of all time.[1]
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The novel is set in the working-class neighborhoods near the Alexanderplatz in 1920s Berlin. Although its narrative style is sometimes compared to that of James Joyce, critics such as Walter Benjamin have drawn a distinction between Ulysses’ interior monologue and Berlin Alexanderplatz’s use of montage.[2] It is told from multiple points of view, and uses sound effects, newspaper articles, songs, speeches, and other books to propel the plot forward.
The novel was adapted twice into a film, the first in 1931, directed by Piel Jutzi.[3] Döblin worked on the adaptation, along with Karl Heinz Martin and Hans Wilhelm. Berlin Alexanderplatz starred Heinrich George, Maria Bard, Margarete Schlegel, Bernhard Minetti, Gerhard Bienert, Albert Florath and Paul Westermeier. It runs for 85 minutes.
The second adaptation, Berlin Alexanderplatz was directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, and was first shown on and produced for German television in 1980, although it has also been shown theatrically. It runs for 15½ hours, and when it was released in New York, ticket holders were required to come to the theatre for three consecutive nights to see the entire film. Berlin Alexanderplatz is considered by many to be Fassbinder's magnum opus. Both films were released in November 2007 by the Criterion Collection in the U.S. in a multi-disc DVD set. A Region 2 edition of the Fassbinder version was released in the UK by Second Sight in October that year.