Literature meets technology: videos for the “Magic Mountain” anniversary
Thomas Mann’s novel “The Magic Mountain” turns one hundred. To mark the anniversary, the Thomas Mann Archive is producing a video series that places “The Magic Mountain” in the technological-historical context of ETH Zurich and points to its contemporary relevance.
Thomas Mann’s “The Magic Mountain” was published 100 years ago. But how do we read the novel today, and what does it still have to tell us? For the anniversary, the Thomas Mann Archive at the ETH Library offers a different perspective on the masterpiece: Literature as a document of historical developments of the 20th century.
Four short films describe the interplay between technological progress and social transformation, from the pioneering achievements of railway construction to the cultural and historical turning triggered by the invention of sound recording. Documents from the collections and archives of the ETH Library and photographs of historical sites form the background against which experts take a new look at the novel.
The first video is about the journey of the protagonist Hans Castorp from the Hamburg lowlands to the Swiss mountains – with a special reference to ETH Zurich.
The Magic Mountain” was published exactly one hundred years ago. We are celebrating this anniversary with a wealth of inspiring events and activities centred around Thomas Mann’s novel – at home and abroad, with films, readings and a proper celebration. Learn more.