Death in Venice and Other Stories

Book excerpt: A haunting novella, Death in Venice tells the story of a man who falls into foolish love, only to reap his own ruin. Gustav von Aschenbach, a dignified but lonely writer in the twilight of his life, is enjoying a Venetian vacation when he notices the taut, lean figure of a Polish boy. His name is Tadzio—and he embodies the sleek perfection of youth. Aschenbach finds himself completely and hopelessly obsessed with this ideal. Death in Venice brims with mythical imagery, exploring the themes of beauty and decay, passion and pestilence. This translation of Nobel laureate Thomas Mann’s work by Jefferson S. Chase includes an additional novella, Tonio Kröger, and the short stories “Tristan,” “Man and Dog: An Idyll,” “Hour of Hardship,” “Tobias Mindernickel,” and “The Child Prodigy.” Translated and with an Introduction by Jefferson S. Chase and an Afterword by Martin Swales