Deaths in Venice: The Cases of Gustav von Aschenbach (Leonard Hastings Schoff Lectures)

Published in 1913, Thomas Mann's Death in Venice is one of the most widely read novellas in any language. In the 1970s, Benjamin Britten adapted it into an opera, and Luchino Visconti turned it into a successful film. Reading these works from a philosophical perspective, Philip Kitcher connects the predicament of the novella's central character to Western thought's most compelling questions. In Mann's story, the author Gustav von Aschenbach becomes captivated by an adolescent boy, first seen on the lido in Venice, the eventual site of Aschenbach's own death. Mann works through central concerns about how to live, explored with equal intensity by his German predecessors, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. Kitcher considers how Mann's, Britten's, and Visconti's treatments illuminate the tension between social and ethical values and an artist's sensitivity to beauty. Each work asks whether a life devoted to self-sacrifice in the pursuit of lasting achievements can be sustained and whether the breakdown of discipline undercuts its worth. Haunted by the prospect of his death, Aschenbach also helps us reflect on whether it is possible to achieve anything in full awareness of our finitude and in knowing our successes are always incomplete. While much needs to be done in order to minimize the suicide attempts and suicides of adolescents, the work of Stop Youth Suicide (SYS) campaign and the comprehensive grassroots' approach is showing signs of success in the state of Kentucky. The 2013 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) showed that for the first time, indicators of youth suicide in the state are at or below the national average, where they were previously always above. In the three rural counties where the school systems have partnered with SYS and the Division of Adolescent Medicine in Lexington, there is an actual absence of completed suicides compared to the average of three per year prior to this partnership. In order to maintain and improve that statistic, we must ensure that students do not have easy access to weapons, guns and drugs by ensuring that these items are properly stored in homes where children are present. Kentucky's educators must continue to develop ways to provide safe and supportive school environments. In this book, the authors have gathered presentations from the 2017 Annual Stop Youth Suicide Campaign Conference.--Publisher website Diving into the philosophical depths of Thomas Mann's beloved novella, as imagined in words, music, and film.