Klappentext

"Die Aktion hat den Ehrgeiz, ein Organ des ehrlichen Radikalismus zu sein." - with these words the Expressionist journal Die Aktion entered the vast and versatile world of politics, literature and art of Wilhelminian Germany at the turn of the 20th century. Staying uncompromisingly true to this self-imposed guiding principle, Die Aktion articulated a unique understanding of art and politics on the one hand and the practical application thereof on the other like no other journal of its time. Die Aktion was entirely preoccupied with a comprehensive and above all critical examination of Wilhelminian state and society. Under the strict and often dogmatic guidance of its sole editor and publisher Franz Pfemfert, this journal was renown for unwavering support for modern art and radical political ideas.
This book presents a critical literary-historical analysis of Die Aktion during its most productive and influential period (1911-1919). Drawing on a multitude of sources (poems, political commentaries, polemical essays, illustrations or letters) the complex debates of Die Aktion are contexualised and provide not only a detailed account of the journal but also of its time. With the focus on the antagonistic interplay between its left-wing utopian ideas and the political reality this book follows the four development stages within which Die Aktion transformed from a liberal-bourgeois journal to a purely political publication positioned on the fringes of the far Left.