Mundartdichtung#
Vernacular Literature: literature, written in a certain vernacular, deliberately contrasting with standard and supraregional poetry. Vernacular literature in a literal sense did not exist until the time of Luther (1st half of 16th century), as there was no supraregional, uniform German standard language up to that time. This relation between standard language and vernacular is called "diglossia"; however, one has to bear in mind that nowadays vernacular literature is often only "simulated dialect" and therefore not identical with the authentically spoken vernacular of a region.
As written standard language developed, vernacular began to be
regarded as the language of the underprivileged, socially declassed
people; using the vernacular in "high" literature was disapproved of.
It only maintained a presence in drama, where it used to characterise
certain actors (mainly peasants) according to their social background
and achieve comic, parodistic effects. Austrian vernacular literature
thus reached its first peak in the farcical pickle-herring play
(Hanswurstspiel), which had developed from the medieval Shrovetide
play and the commedia dell´arte. Its protagonist, the
Hanswurst, created by J. A. Stranitzky, a "Salzburg pig gelder
and cabbage cutter" ("Salzburger Sau- und Krautschneider", skilfully
displays his coarse Salzburg peasant vernacular against the pompous
standard language, exposing the hollowness of conventional phrases.
Under Stranitzky's successors G. Prehauser and J. F. von Kurz
Salzburg vernacular changed into Viennese dialect, word-play and witty
remarks became the central parts of each play, which from then on was
to be a typical feature of the old Viennese popular comedy (P. Hafner,
A. Baeuerle, K. Meisl, J. Gleich) as well as of the plays by J.
Nestroy and F. Raimund, which displayed complex and many-faceted
linguistic variation.
In the 18th century Upper Austria developed into the second
centre of vernacular literature. The Jesuit and rationalist Maurus
Lindemayr became the founder of Upper Austrian vernacular literature,
also using standard language and vernacular as counterparts in his
comedies, singspiels and travesties. He made the "obderennsische
Mundart" (vernacular common in the region west of the river Enns)
well-known; in the 19th century Upper Austrian writers like
Karl Adam Kaltenbrunner (1804-1867) and especially F. Stelzhamer
("Lieder in obderenns´scher Volksmundart"/"lieder in popular
vernacular from the region west of the river Enns", 1837) followed in
his footsteps.
Vernacular literature had by now gained considerable renown.
J. G. Hamann, J. G. Herder and the Romantics revived
interest in the vernacular as the language of the people, which made
many enthusiasts speak of a new quality of vernacular literature: it
was regarded as being original, close to the people, idyllic, and rich
in local colour. I. F. Castelli (Gedichte in
niederoesterreichischer Mundart, Poems in Lower Austrian Vernacular,
1828) stimulated vernacular literature during the period of the
Austrian Biedermeier; his "Woerterbuch der Mundart in Oesterreich
unter der Enns", "Dictionary of Vernacular in Austria east of the
river Enns" (1847) gave the philological discussion on dialect a new
and important stimulus. J. Misson ("Da Naz, a niederoesterreichischer
Bauerbui, geht in d´Fremd", "Naz, a Lower Austrian country lad
goes away from home", 1850) became the most important vernacular poet
of Lower Austria; in the 2nd half of the 19th
century P. Rosegger ("Zither und Hackbrett", "Zither and Dulcimer",
1869) became the most important representative of Styrian vernacular
literature; reading "folksy" vernacular literature finally became
popular among residents of major towns and vernacular writings became
a recognised branch of literature. L. Anzengruber achieved great
success using an imitated dialect in his plays and novels; some time
later K. Schoenherr made vernacular literature popular throughout
Tirol ("Inntaler Schnalzer", "Inn Valley Tongue Click", 1895, etc.).
K. Morre from Carinthia wrote a "Kaerntner Sprach- und
Konversationslexikon" ("Carinthian Language and General
Encyclopedia"), in Salzburg O. Pflanzl ("Salzburger Nockerl",
"Salzburg Semolina Dumplings", 1910, etc.) and K. Prisner
("Salzburgische Hoamatg´sangeln", "Salzburg Local Songs", 1930)
enjoyed great success.
The Heimatkunst Movement gave vernacular literature a further
impetus; numerous authors began using the vernacular in their
anti-modern, pessimistic writings, which finally culminated in the
provincialism of corporate state literature and in the idealised
language of the peasant heroes of "blood and soil" literature
(J. G. Oberkofler). J. Weinheber revived the Viennese
vernacular poem ("Wien woertlich", "Vienna literally", 1935); at the
same time vernacular phrases and means of expression continued to be
used for criticizing language and society, as in the plays by Oe. von
Horváth.
The fact that vernacular literature was ideologized in the corporate
state and later in the Third Reich, initially prevented any sober,
straight-forward discussion on it after 1945 and relegated it to
"second-class" literature among critics; it was not until the texts
written by the Wiener Gruppe, particularly by H. C. Artmann
("med ana schwoazzn dintn", "in black ink", 1958) and G. Ruehm ("hosn
rosn baa", 1959), which experimented with language, that vernacular
literature regained a critical dimension. "Nua ka schmoez ned"
("Anything but schmaltz", wrote Artmann, determining the direction for
a "new vernacular literature", which turned away from conventional
folk literature in a programmatic way and criticised cliches and
traditional, rigid patterns of thought and behaviour (C. Miculik, K.
Bauer, H. Haid, E. Schirhuber, O. Grabner, B. C. Buenker, T.
Prix, R. Liebe, H. Leiseder, E. Jakowic, etc.), whereas a second
branch of vernacular literature, which also continues to deal with
local aspects, picks up conventional forms and contents. The situation
is similar in theatre with light but highly successful dialect
comedies and farces ( Loewinger-Buehne) on the one hand and
socio-critical popular plays ("Rozznjogd", "Rat hunting", 1967 by P.
Turrini, "Magic Afternoon", 1968 by W. Bauer, "A unhamlich schtorka
Obgaung", "A terrifically great exit", 1970 by H. Sommer), continuing
the tradition of Austrian scepticism and criticism of language on the
other. Since 1970 dialect songs and dialect chansons, promoted by
radio and television, have flourished in Austria; P. Henisch, Georg
Danzer, A. Brauer and of course H. C. Artmann have been
successful "vernacular songwriters".
Literature#
B. Martin, Mundartdichtung, in: Reallexikon der deutschen Literaturgeschichte, ed. by W. Kohlschmidt and W. Mohr, vol. 2, 1965; M. Hornung, Bairisch-oesterreichische Mundartdichtung, in: ibid.; idem (ed.), Mundart und Geschichte, 1967; F. Hoffmann and J. Berlinger, Die Neue Deutsche Mundartdichtung, 1978; L. Berlinger, Das zeitgenoessische deutsche Dialektgedicht, 1983; G. Reinert-Schneider, Dialektrenaissance?, 1987.