Ze života fauna

A short novel from 1953, dealing with the German bourgeoisie during the National Socialist era. The plot covers the war years 1939-1944 and is divided into three parts: February 1939, May/August 1939 and August/September 1944. "Faun" is Schmidt's masterpiece, in which he fully plays out his entire authorial register: the personal urgency of the statement, the distinct attitude to life, predetermined both by personal disposition and by the defining war experiences, the pessimism of history, where he sees the only possible salvation for humanity, which in his eyes is irreversibly heading towards destruction, through art and the culture of education. All of this is delivered with a linguistic bravura and an innovation that is unparalleled - yet not self-evident. The novel is a successful creative gesture in which Arno Schmidt uses the exquisite means of language to create a unique portrait of an era and an individual.

Czech edition