Gathering at Tergate (Exquisite)--Grass Collection

Author: (German) Grass, translated by Huang Mingjia
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: In the mid-17th century, the conflicts between various religious factions, the Holy Roman Emperor, and the princes of Germany were profound and continuous. After the Thirty Years' War, a group of literati gathered in the small town of Teplitz. They discussed the past and the present, speaking freely, while exploring serious academic issues such as poetry and drama, they also lamented their own and their country's fate with deep sorrow. They used literature and poetry to plot for the unification of their homeland, yet amidst their grand pronouncements, they also engaged in witty banter, used vulgar language, and even had illicit affairs with maids and shopkeepers—"unconventional" in their behavior. In the end, they even jointly drafted a "peace appeal," but a sudden fire destroyed the gathering place and the "appeal," and with it, all their noble aspirations vanished into thin air. The poets, playwrights, and literary theorists described in the novel were all real figures in German history. In the author's portrayal, behind each of them lies an important figure in contemporary German literature. The protagonist Simon Dach and Grimmelshausen in the novel are, respectively, the leader of the contemporary German literary group "47 Group," Hans Werner Richter, and the author Grass himself. Using the technique of drawing parallels between the past and the present, the author vividly depicts the activities of the "47 Group" in the 1960s and expresses his patriotic and people-centered sentiments. This book is one of the author's most successful novels. Published in 1979, it became a bestseller in Germany for a long time.