Ödön von Horváth: Prerequisites for a Critical Edition

Alongside the final drafts of the texts, existing editions of Ödön von Horvth`s (1901-1938) works present parts of the genetic material and thus allow an insight into the highly complex working methods of this author. However, their editing reveals serious faults and calls for thorough revision on the basis of material from the Horvth estate in the Austrian Literary Archive of the Austrian National Library: textual sequences need to be carefully isolated from one another, subjected to an exact transcription and ordered chronologically on the basis of the verifiable criteria. A philological re-evaluation of the texts would not only provide fresh material for the study of Horvth, but would also contribute to an even more exact realization of the author`s intentions on stage.

The project laid the foundations for a new, critical-genetic collected works of the influential Austrian playwright and prose writer Ödön von Horvth (1901-1938). The main body of the author`s papers, held at the Austrian Literature Archive, and a secondary collection of documents also at the Archive were ordered, catalogued and given new shelf marks. The papers of Horvth`s late editor, Traugott Krischke, which are also kept at the Austrian Literature Archive, were scrutinised and relevant documents (typescripts, letters, pictures and records of the author`s life) were put in chronological order. At the same time, work was carried out on Horvth`s texts. Material already in print was scanned and corrected by hand, in addition further texts by and on Ödön von Horvth were researched. The period 1927-31 formed a focal point for this process; microfilm research on Berlin newspapers and periodicals and visits to various other archives and libraries resulted in the rediscovery of a number of `forgotten` documents which throw light on Horvth`s contacts to the Berlin theatre and literature industry. Some of the periodical articles rediscovered in this way were previously entirely unknown Using the extensive materials available on Horvth`s play Geschichten aus dem Wiener Wald (Tales from the Vienna Woods), an editorial strategy was developed that could be applied to the collected works. This `Viennese edition` is based on a chronological catalogue of all the available textual material, in which draft versions and subsequent revisions are dated and listed as individual documents, and reasons for the chronology given. A system of classification and designation was developed in tune with Horvth`s way of working which also guarantees the preservation of the material and ease of access for readers. By the project`s conclusion, a trial volume had been completed on the Tales from the Vienna Woods. This volume includes transcriptions of all the author`s structural plans and draft versions as well as both final versions of the play (the version in seven scenes (Bilder`) and the version in three parts).