Satisfaktion in Nineteenth-Century German Dueling Violence and Its Relevance for Literary Analysis

Abstract

This article examines the oft-cited, yet frequently underanalyzed notion of Satisfaktion in nineteenth-century Germanic culture and society, and aims to establish a concise understanding of the term for the study of German-language fiction. In the article, I analyze the Germanic conceptualization of Satisfaktion (Genugtuung) and propose a set of terminological parameters that underscore this concept's central role in literary scenes in which dueling violence threatens. My analysis elucidates the predominantly nonviolent nature of Satisfaktion, as well as the overemphasis scholars traditionally have placed on its violent rendering. I submit that analyses of nineteenth-century literature benefit from a reassessment and clarification of the term. As I demonstrate in my reading of Hoffmann's The Sandman, a salient conceptualization of Satisfaktion can result in a markedly different, entirely defensible interpretation of the motivations and behavior of the protagonists. The clarification of Satisfaktion further prevents misreading many canonical works as being “anti-duel” in essence, despite their apparent critique of the practice.