Resumen de Nelle stanze della cultura di massa. La "Neue Frau" Vicki Baum tra memoria, assimilazione ed emancipazione
Following a brief introduction to the existing research on Vicki Baum (1888-1960) and her work, this study examines the importance of assimilation, identity, and self-discovery both in the author�s biography and in her narrative. The analysis of Menschen im Hotel (1929) and Hotel Berlin (1943/44) collocates the fictional conflicts between modernizing inputs and traditional settings, between self-deception and ethical responsibility within the wider field of Baum�s experience as an assimilated Jew first in the Weimar Republic and then, after the so-called voluntary exile, in the U.S. Even though the writer herself was not willing to stress her Jewishness, this article contends that Vicki Baum�s Jewish background and her ability to absorb every cultural ambience are crucial for the understanding of her texts.
