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Transformational Narrative:
Bildungsroman
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BILDUNGSROMAN

In literary criticism, a Bildungsroman (German pronunciation: [ˈbɪldʊŋs.ʁoˌmaːn], plural Bildungsromane, German pronunciation: [ˈbɪldʊŋs.ʁoˌmaːnə]) is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood (coming of age), in which character change is important. The term comes from the German words Bildung ("education") and Roman ("novel").
DATABASES
In literary criticism, a Bildungsroman (German pronunciation: [ˈbɪldʊŋs.ʁoˌmaːn], plural Bildungsromane, German pronunciation: [ˈbɪldʊŋs.ʁoˌmaːnə]) is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood (coming of age), in which character change is important. The term comes from the German words Bildung ("education") and Roman ("novel").
A bildungsroman is a coming-of-age story, which focuses on a narrative of a young adult growing morally and psychologically into an adult. Thus, a bildungsroman is also sometimes called a novel of formation or novel of education. The most important element of a bildungsroman is the character development that the young adult undergoes through the course of the narrative. The word bildungsroman comes from German, and is a compound of the words bildungs, meaning “building or formation” and roman, meaning “a novel.” The German philologist Johann Karl Simon Morgenstern created the definition of bildungsroman in the early 1800s, and it was later popularized in the early 1900s.
Bildungsroman is a special kind of novel that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of its main character, from his or her youth to adulthood. A bildungsroman is a story of the growing up of a sensitive person, who looks for answers to his questions through different experiences. Generally, such a novel starts with a loss or a tragedy that disturbs the main character emotionally. He or she leaves on a journey to fill that vacuum. During the journey, the protagonist gains maturity, gradually and with difficulty. Usually, the plot depicts a conflict between the protagonist and the values of society. Finally, he or she accepts those values, and they are accepted by society, ending the dissatisfaction. Such a type of novel is also known as a “coming-of-age” novel.
Novels that follow a protagonist from a troubled childhood along their path to enlightenment and maturity are enjoyed by a wide range of audiences. Coming of age is a universally relatable theme—and its own literary genre, too.
The folklore tale of the dunce who goes out into the world seeking adventure and learns wisdom the hard way was raised to literary heights in Wolfram von Eschenbach’s medieval epic Parzival and in Hans Grimmelshausen’s picaresque tale Simplicissimus (1669). The first novelistic development of this theme was Christoph Martin Wieland’s Geschichte des Agathon (1766–67; History of Agathon). It was followed by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre (1795–96; Wilhelm Meister’s Apprenticeship), which remains the classic example of the genre. Other examples are Adalbert Stifter’s Nachsommer (1857; Indian Summer) and Gottfried Keller’s Der grüne Heinrich (1854–55; Green Henry).
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