The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of the Magic Mountain by Jensen, Morten Høi

The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of the Magic Mountain

The arresting story of how Thomas Mann wrote The Magic Mountain as a defeated Germany descended into...
$43.22 AUD
$43.22 AUD
Please hurry! Only 404 left in stock
Author: Morten Høi Jensen
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Subtotal: $43.22

Free Shipping (Orders $60 USD or More)

The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of the Magic Mountain by Jensen, Morten Høi

The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of the Magic Mountain

$43.22

The Master of Contradictions: Thomas Mann and the Making of the Magic Mountain

$43.22
Author: Morten Høi Jensen
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
The arresting story of how Thomas Mann wrote The Magic Mountain as a defeated Germany descended into political chaos

Like many writers of his generation, Thomas Mann (1875-1955) welcomed the outbreak of the First World War. He viewed it as a spiritual necessity, a chance to reassert German cultural dominance over Western ideas of democracy and enlightenment. Then, in 1924, he published The Magic Mountain, a massive novel that culminates in the slaughter of war and foreshadows the Nazi terror to come. One of the central achievements of modernism, The Magic Mountain bears testimony to its author's dramatic political reorientation as a defender of democracy.

This poignant book is a biography of Mann's great novel--its evolution from a short story into a two-volume masterpiece and one of the bestselling novels of the Weimar era. Deftly weaving together elements of biography, history, and literary criticism, Morten H i Jensen reveals how writing The Magic Mountain against a backdrop of world war, revolution, hyperinflation, and rising right-wing terror moved Mann to embrace the democratic and humanistic ideas he once scorned.

One hundred years after The Magic Mountain was first published, at a time when democratic ideas are again under threat, Jensen reveals the universality and timeliness of Mann's great novel--its still-resonant debates over democracy and tyranny, time and place, illness and death.

Author: Morten Høi Jensen
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: 10/21/2025
Pages: 248
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.86lbs
Size: 8.70h x 5.91w x 0.94d
ISBN: 9780300233742


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 09/15/2025

About the Author
Morten Høi Jensen is a Danish-American writer and critic. He is the author of A Difficult Death: The Life and Work of Jens Peter Jacobsen and has contributed to numerous publications, including the Washington Post, the New York Review of Books, Commonweal, and Liberties.

Returns Policy

You may return most new, unopened items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. We'll also pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.).

You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).

If you need to return an item, simply login to your account, view the order using the "Complete Orders" link under the My Account menu and click the Return Item(s) button. We'll notify you via e-mail of your refund once we've received and processed the returned item.

Shipping

We can ship to virtually any address in the world. Note that there are restrictions on some products, and some products cannot be shipped to international destinations.

When you place an order, we will estimate shipping and delivery dates for you based on the availability of your items and the shipping options you choose. Depending on the shipping provider you choose, shipping date estimates may appear on the shipping quotes page.

Please also note that the shipping rates for many items we sell are weight-based. The weight of any such item can be found on its detail page. To reflect the policies of the shipping companies we use, all weights will be rounded up to the next full pound.

Related Products

Recently Viewed Products