„An der Themse wächst man sich anders aus als am Stechlin“. Theodor Fontane und England

What has become a recognised component of German studies today in various varieties and theoretical concepts of “intercultural literature” is not as “new” as people often like to pretend. Goethe’s concept of “world literature” and Heine’s Franco-German writings are still without the theoretical concept, but in practice they are already in many ways what constitutes intercultural literature today. One author who has not yet received much attention in this respect is Theodor Fontane with his travelogues from England and Scotland, in which he attempts to convey to Germans images of a nation whose image was not exactly the best.