Artists Observed by Other Characters

In this paper, I analyze some novels in which artists are observed by other characters. I focus on these novels in order to fill in the gap between the concept of Künstlerroman (artist\u27s novels) and that of novels about artists. These novels feature artists not as protagonists but as supporting characters: they are not considered technically Künstlerroman. While these novels are no less important in the study of whole artist novels than Künstlerromane, little attention has been given to them. For this reason, it is necessary to research them comparatively in order to show the importance of some of their common themes. First, I look at the life and works of E.T.A. Hoffmann. On the one hand, he wanted to be a great musician; on the other, he became a fairly competent judge. Thus he had both an artistic temperament and an objective perspective on artists, which allowed him to describe the nature of artists through his characters. After examining his career, I analyze some of his "pure" artist stories. In the second half of the paper, I discuss Balzac and Henry James. I examine their artist novels, focusing on Hoffmann\u27s influence on Balzac and their influence on Henry James. In the 1830s, Hoffmann\u27s novels were translated into French and gained popularity. Famous French writers including Balzac were excited by his works. Balzac\u27s artist novels borrow liberally from Hoffmann, adopting, for example, the theme of madness or death of artists. However, the theme of masterpiece eventually became Balzac\u27s primary concern. Finally, I examine the influence of Balzac\u27s "Le Chef-d\u27œuvre inconnu" on James\u27"The Madonna of the Future." Comparing the two reveals a) how "Le Chef-d\u27œuvre inconnu" was analyzed by James, who was also a brilliant critic, and b) what Henry James inherited from Balzac\u27s story. In conclusion, I affirm that these artist novels contain several common themes such as madness and masterpiece