In the decades before the turn of the 19th to the 20th century Dutch writer Maurits Wagenvoort traveled across both the geographical and intellectual landscapes of Europe. Struggling with being an...Show moreIn the decades before the turn of the 19th to the 20th century Dutch writer Maurits Wagenvoort traveled across both the geographical and intellectual landscapes of Europe. Struggling with being an individual within the masses of an ever expanding (literary) world around 1900, Wagenvoort looks up to the modern intellectuals, artist and dreamers of his time. Three of them in particular act as his guides through this modern quest: Walt Whitman, Friedrich Nietzsche and Lev Tolstoj. Although Wagenvoort and his work is often left out in literary histories, why is a cultural history of his wrestle -- and that of his temporaries -- with living in a modern society still relevant for the 21st century?Show less
