Stefan Zweig's hidden self behind his free version of Volpone

• Autores: Purificación Ribes
• Localización: Quaderns de filologia. Estudis literaris, ISSN 1135-4178, Nº 16, 2011 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Escrituras del yo), págs. 125-142
• Idioma: inglés
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  • T he aim of this article is to uncover the authorial self hidden behind Stefan Zweig�s free adaptation of Volpone, as a means of accounting for the play�s puzzling character construction, atmosphere and dramatic structure. Comparison with similar characters and situations in other fictional works by the same author help draw a behavioural pattern that closely resembles that of the playwright, novelist and essayist himself. Substantial evidence from letters written by and addressed to Stefan Zweig further support our hypothesis, which is confirmed by the accounts given by his first wife and some of his closest friends on Zweig�s unbalanced personality, his acute awareness of xenophobia and his lifelong dread of violence, which made him constantly look for an outlet both in exile and death.