History of a disease: Hans Fallada's Der Alpdruck and the German identity in the light of National Socialist heritage

This article explores a forgotten novel in Hans Fallada's literary production: Der Alpdruck. This novel, testimony of the suffering and hope of German society in the first years after World War II, explores the heritage of National Socialism in individual and collective life. Central concepts such as roots, identity and language become central elements to understand the consequences of political terror and the pain of an existence devoid of affective and reflective horizons. The article dwells on these concepts, analyzing some chapters of the novel to demonstrate the permanence of National Socialism in various aspects of the subjects, and the attempt to deal with this heritage in order to think Germany.

Keywords:
National Socialism; Contemporary German literature; Hans Fallada; Identity; Literary theory