Does Bach Belong to Everyone? The Connection Between Apocalypse and Racism in Krasznahorkai’s Works

Type of Abstract (select): Individual Presentation

Abstract (max. 250 words):
The presentation examines how extremist views, racism, neo-Nazism and xenophobia become manifestations of the apocalypse of our times in László Krasznahorkai's 2021 novel ’Herscht 07769’. The story is set in a small town in Thuringia, Germany, where a radical, nationalist, neo-Nazi group, led by 'The Boss', appropriates anything deemed 'German enough' (beer, sports, scientists, artists, etc.) for the national spirit and consciousness. The group of course hates and rejects anything that is ’racially foreign’. This is how the universal composer Johann Sebastian Bach can also become a national symbol in the novel’s world. The slightly slow-witted but well-intentioned protagonist becomes a killing angel who settles scores with gang members and evil itself, thus trying to restore metaphysical order to the world. For him, Bach represents order and the perfect world. Krasznahorkai presents extreme nationalist views and xenophobic tendencies in a small-town setting, however, the issues raised point towards global problems. Nevertheless, he does not provide a reassuring answer on how the world and individuals can confront these extreme phenomena. The fact that this problem is not confined to one particular area, but is present all over the world, including the United States, is also evident in Krasznahorkai's
essay 'Someone's Knocking at My Door', which describes the origins of racism and was first
published in the Anxiety column of the New York Times in 2013.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Beatrix Visy is Literary historian, literary critic, her main fields of research are 20th and 21st century Hungarian Literature, mainly Mihály Babits's work and the narrative aesthetics of photography. She is author of five books on literary history. She is editor of the literary studies review Literatura.