ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses two stories by German writers from the years of the nineteenth century – 'The Betrothal on Santo Domingo' by Heinrich von Kleist and 'The Sandman' by Ernst Theodore Amadeus Hoffmann. It presents people to take a step towards reading texts that are generally described as Romantic from outside British literature. Working through the stories by Kleist and Hoffmann will give a glimpse first of a wider Romantic movement spreading across Europe, and second of Romantic writing in prose rather than poetry. L’Ouverture Toussaint's reputation in Europe can be seen in a poem William Wordsworth wrote in 1802. On reflection the reader sees that what is presented as an entirely spontaneous act of sex between Gustav and Toni is built on deceit and ambiguity. The use of both proximity to and distance from events seems to lead the reader to feel the truth of the Romantic ironic view of life.
