The Labyrinth
Published on 9. January 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
528 pages
978-0-19-289851-7 (ISBN)
Description
'This travel book is truly a labyrinth--or, more precisely, a piece of the labyrinth that it has been my fate to wander, from the cradle to the grave.'
Jens Baggesen's The Labyrinth (1792-93) is a genre-bending and highly personal travel book that follows the young Danish author's journey, made in 1789, from Copenhagen through Germany to the Swiss border at Basel. In its outer form, it follows the conventions of travel writing: describing the cities, landscapes, and notable people encountered on the route, while also offering critical commentary on art, architecture, theatre, and literature, mixed with reactions to the unfolding French Revolution. However, Baggesen finds contemporary travel writing to be pedantic and dry and is determined to make his own account as engaging and personal as possible. Based on the principle that 'nothing is more necessary in a volume of travels than a traveller', the narrative eschews a focus on prescribed sights and instead foregrounds his individual responses to the places and people he encounters. Baggesen's account of his journey is not simply sentimental, but rather moves through an array of different, often conflicting affective and intellectual register: from dejection to wit, whimsy, and ebullient joy, including enchanted observations of nature as well as cosmopolitan reveries about the brotherhood of nations. Similarly, the prose style of the book---always acknowledged as a key feature--is determinedly eclectic. A richly varied compendium of literary styles, attitudes, and philosophical ideas, brought to life in a new English translation by Jesper Gulddal, The Labyrinth offers a rare glimpse into the mind of an endlessly thinking, feeling, and imagining traveller at a pivotal moment in European history.
ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
Jens Baggesen's The Labyrinth (1792-93) is a genre-bending and highly personal travel book that follows the young Danish author's journey, made in 1789, from Copenhagen through Germany to the Swiss border at Basel. In its outer form, it follows the conventions of travel writing: describing the cities, landscapes, and notable people encountered on the route, while also offering critical commentary on art, architecture, theatre, and literature, mixed with reactions to the unfolding French Revolution. However, Baggesen finds contemporary travel writing to be pedantic and dry and is determined to make his own account as engaging and personal as possible. Based on the principle that 'nothing is more necessary in a volume of travels than a traveller', the narrative eschews a focus on prescribed sights and instead foregrounds his individual responses to the places and people he encounters. Baggesen's account of his journey is not simply sentimental, but rather moves through an array of different, often conflicting affective and intellectual register: from dejection to wit, whimsy, and ebullient joy, including enchanted observations of nature as well as cosmopolitan reveries about the brotherhood of nations. Similarly, the prose style of the book---always acknowledged as a key feature--is determinedly eclectic. A richly varied compendium of literary styles, attitudes, and philosophical ideas, brought to life in a new English translation by Jesper Gulddal, The Labyrinth offers a rare glimpse into the mind of an endlessly thinking, feeling, and imagining traveller at a pivotal moment in European history.
ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Illustrations
1 black-and-white map
Dimensions
Height: 194 mm
Width: 128 mm
Thickness: 26 mm
Weight
368 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-289851-7 (9780192898517)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Persons
Jesper Gulddal is Professor of Literary Studies at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Holding a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Copenhagen, he has published books, edited collections, and journal articles on European literature of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, focusing particularly on intercultural perceptions and questions of mobility and movement control. Most recently, he has helped develop a new global approach to crime fiction. He is also an experienced translator between Danish, German, and English.
Henrik Blicher is Associate Professor in the Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics, University of Copenhagen. A literary historian specialising in Danish literature 1600-1900, his work focuses particularly on textual scholarship and editing. In addition to edited books and numerous journal articles, his publications include an acclaimed Danish edition of Jens Baggesen's The Labyrinth. He is also the editor of the complete works of Danish Romantic poet A.W. Schack von Staffeldt.
Henrik Blicher is Associate Professor in the Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics, University of Copenhagen. A literary historian specialising in Danish literature 1600-1900, his work focuses particularly on textual scholarship and editing. In addition to edited books and numerous journal articles, his publications include an acclaimed Danish edition of Jens Baggesen's The Labyrinth. He is also the editor of the complete works of Danish Romantic poet A.W. Schack von Staffeldt.
Content
Introduction Acknowledgements Note on the Translation Select Bibliography A Chronology of Jens Baggesen Map of Baggesen s Travel Route THE LABYRINTH Volume I Volume II Appendix: Two published samples from the incomplete Volume III of The Labyrinth Explanatory Notes