Dynamics of Power. The Political Agency of Courtly Elites as reflected in German Literature of the 12th and 13th Centuries

The project investigates how German narrative texts of the 12th and 13th centuries conceptualize and discuss courtly elites’ political agency. Literary constellations concerning the relation between rulers and members of the courtly elites who surround them encompass forms of cooperation as well as acts of confrontation. These will be analyzed with regard to the staging of interaction and communication and to the dynamisation of power relations. We aim to show that and how fictionals texts contribute to the contemporary discussion about power and rulership and that this discussion is equally constitutive for the formation of the courtly novel as a new and successful type of literature.