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Article: Elfriede Jelinek: Gier.(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- World Literature Today
- Article date:
- January 1, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 University of Oklahoma. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Reinbek, Germany. Rowohlt. 2000 462 pages. DM 45. ISBN 3-498-03334-4
IN NINE NUMBERED but untitled sections, Elfriede Jelinek tells a story of violence, set in rural Austria. The police officer Kurt Janisch is interested in women and houses. His wife watches TV serials in their home, while the elderly original owner slowly disintegrates psychologically, uncared for in her upstairs flat. By means of the power he yields as a police officer, Janisch identifies, courts, and soon abuses Gerti, a middle-aged homeowner, with a view toward obtaining her villa. While Gerti is caught up in her hopeless dependency on him, Janisch maintains sexual relations with Gabi, an ...