Meanings of Modern Work in Nineteenth- and Twenty-First-Century German Literature and Film

«At a time when the humanities face a profound crisis of relevance, this volume gathers a series of interdisciplinary essays that exemplify the pertinence of German Studies scholarship to urgent problems related to work in contemporary life. Focusing on two historical paradigm shifts, the industrial revolution of the nineteenth century and the technological revolution of the late twentieth and twenty-first, the editors and contributors present insightful literary, cinematic, and philosophical examinations that highlight fulcrum moments in the history of labor and political economy. By illuminating the past through the analyses of cultural artifacts, they probe possibilities for confronting current fluctuations in work environments and transformations of our economic way of life.» (Richard T. Gray, Lockwood Professor in the Humanities, Emeritus, University of Washington)

«This innovative volume of essays brings a set of interlocking interdisciplinary approaches (economic, philosophical, sociological) to bear on the problem of modern work. It is readable and highly informative, and it succeeds in making solid connections between the nineteenth-century industrial revolution and the ‹second machine age› of the twenty-first century.» (Ernest Schonfield, University of Glasgow)