Joseph Roth als Chronist der Weimarer Republik
Joseph Roth as a chronicler of the Weimar Republic

Summary/Abstract: The Austrian author Joseph Roth, with his novels and stories, is now regarded as a classic of the modern age. He is defined first and foremost as the chronicler of the defunct Habsburg monarchy, the singer of Kakania, as Robert Musil described the reign of Emperor Franz Josef in his novel ''Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften'' (The Man without Qualities). In most cases it is overlooked that Roth was mainly a journalist and indeed one of the most influential and highest paid ones of his time. A major part of his journalistic work is written between 1918 and 1933, which is why Joseph Roth could be called with some justification a chronicler of the Weimar Republic. Based on five selected articles by Joseph Roth, this essay deals with the question of whether his journalistic work could represent an important source of information about historical events or mentalities for historians. Are these articles rooted strictly in their epoch or at least partly of timeless relevance? The question is therefore not of a Germanic-aesthetic, but of a literary-historical nature.

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