One hundred years ago Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach (1830-1916) enjoyed within German-speaking countries the stature of a George Eliot, and her style and thematic interests resembled those of her English contemporary. Today, however, her fame has faded, and she is mainly known only to specialists, partly because her 'canon' has shrunk to a few prose works which are more reconciliatory than critical, falsely suggesting her to be a passive, conventional writer: her 'happy endings' have diverted her readers from the critical messages beneath the surface. By close analysis of a variety of works...