Review of “The Entail” by E. T. A. Hoffmann: Halloween Countdown

Plot:

Our hero’s great-uncle V— works as a law agent and “Justitiarius” (other translations call him “Advocate”) for the family of Freiherr (Baron)* R—. Our hero is named V—like his great-uncle. He accompanies the elder V— to the family estates to attend to R— family business.

Uncle V—’s usual rooms are unavailable, having suffered a catastrophic collapse, so Uncle and Nephew are put up in unfamiliar quarters. Nephew dreams of strange, otherworldly things the first night they stay—footsteps when no one is there, sighs and moans, and someone scratching at a sealed-off passage.

In the morning, he relates this to Uncle. Having dreamed these same things, Uncle takes Nephew’s account seriously and banishes the evil presence on the second night. Uncle and Nephew then sleep peacefully.

Nephew despises the baron. Uncle knows why—the baron stands between Nephew and the lovely 19-year-old baroness. Fortunately, the business he and his uncle have is completed before Nephew can do anything really stupid, and they depart.

Sadly, Uncle has a stroke soon after they return home. While recovering and knowing he’s not long for this world, Uncle tells Nephew the story of the family R—. It takes a while.

Thoughts:

This story is long and written without chapter breaks. By my count, the reader will wade through more than 34,000 words, a feat that would be difficult to accomplish in a single sitting.

The R— family history is full of intrigue, murder, betrayal, sleepwalkers (…maybe…), jealousy, a hidden child, and—as the reader learns early—a grandaddy who practiced black magic. Two family members are named Roderick. Two others are named Hubert. Why? Did author Hoffmann run out of given names?

“Entail” was a word not familiar to me. As far as I could puzzle out, it’s a legal term referring to a piece of real estate with limited ownership and inheritance. Old Granddaddy, the dabbler in the black arts, wanted to keep his descendants close, even if his two sons couldn’t stand him. How’d that work out for you, Granddaddy?

The tale wanders. The young narrator, V—, grows older. The elder V— passes away, but not before revealing (at some length) the secrets of the family R—. The horror is real, yet humor appears. Especially when the family history is revealed, things get complicated and a little hard to follow. Mostly, I find the story sad.

I believe the greatest obstacle to the modern reader would be the length of this tale. The next greatest obstacle would be the confusing family history. However, there are rewards for the reader willing to wade through this long story.



Bio: E. T. A. Hoffmann (1776-1822) was a German composer, painter, lawyer, judge, and author. He was born in what was then Königsberg in the Kingdom of Prussia but is now Kaliningrad, Russia. He trained in law, following family tradition. He wrote more than fifty stories—not all of which have been translated into English—musical compositions like the opera Undine, one complete novel, The Devil’s Elixir (Die Elixiere des Teufels), and an incomplete novel, The Life and Opinions of Tomcat Murr (Lebens-Ansichten des Kater Murr). One of his stories, “Nutcracker and Mouse-King” (“Nußknacker und Mausekönig”), inspired Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker. His most well-known story is probably “The Sandman,” which is not related to the Neil Gaiman series of the same name.

Most of Hoffman’s works deal with the supernatural or uncanny, whether ghosts, automatons, or doppelgangers. His writings influenced writers as diverse as Alexandre Dumas, Nikolai Gogol, Franz Kafka, Leo Perutz, and Edgar Allan Poe.


*The meaning of the titles changed a bit over time, but “baron” is close enough for jazz.


This story can be read here:


This story can be listened to here: (in ten sections: total time approx. 3 & half hours)


Title: “The Entail”
Author: E. T. A. Hoffmann (1776-1822)
First published: 1885 in English; originally “Das Majorat” [German] (1817)
Length: novella