Brigitta

Brigitta is a novella by the Austrian author Adalbert Stifter. The novella opens with a discussion on inner beauty, which remains a strong theme throughout the novella.

The first person narrator, a German-speaking man, is sent a letter by a man called the Major who asks the narrator to visit him for a while in Hungary. He invites him to perhaps stay for months or years. The narrator accepts this invitation and wanders for a while through Hungary in order to gain some insight into the land. The two men had gotten to know each other during a trip in Italy and were, for a time, inseparable.

The narrator meets a woman dressed as a man and riding astride a horse, and he first mistakes her for the Major himself. The woman, Brigitta, guides him to the home of the Major. After their reunion, the Major shows the narrator around his land and the narrator becomes familiar with his surroundings.

The Major is beloved by the people working his land and has a greenhouse in which he grows and sells various grains. He also has vines and cornfields. In Hungary, the Major finally accomplished his goal of finding fulfilling work. The Major tells the narrator that he had considered becoming an artist, but that he lacks the large and simple heart needed to inspire humanity with deep and penetrating words. The Major therefore satisfies himself with practical work.

The Major was inspired to do his work on the land by a woman named Brigitta Maroshely, who had begun turning the previously barren landscape in that part of Hungary into something fruitful. The narrator finally is introduced to this energetic and capable woman himself after hearing about her from the Major. The Major spoke of Brigitta with the highest praises. The narrator notices that the Major and Brigitta act almost as if they were in love. This is unremarkable at first, but becomes more and more noticeable as the story progresses.

Brigitta’s life story is thrown into the overall story as its own chapter in order to provide background and to make this remarkable woman more understandable. Brigitta lived with her family in a castle, but she more or less lived in her own apartment, isolated from the rest of the family. The development of Brigitta’s strong character is a result of almost complete lack of physical beauty.

Brigitta grew up with two lovely younger sisters. As children, Brigitta was ignored by guests, who would always just ask how her more attractive sisters were doing. Brigitta was never noticed by anyone and played by herself most of the time, rejecting pretty dolls and bringing bits of wood and stones into bed with her. Brigitta was, however, clever and learned to ride.

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