{"product_id":"characters-before-copyright-the-rise-and-regulation-of-fan-fiction-in-eighteenth-century-germany-9780198831976","title":"Characters Before Copyright: The Rise and Regulation of Fan Fiction in Eighteenth-Century Germany","description":"Situated between the decline of the privilege system and the rise of copyright, literary borrowing in eighteenth-century Germany has long been characterized as unregulated. Studying fan fiction, however, reveals an array of tacit rules governing the creation and consumption of literature, \u003cbr\u003ewhile also uncovering conceptions of literary property and authorship that scholars have overlooked. \u003cem\u003eCharacters before Copyright: The Rise and Regulation of Fan Fiction in Eighteenth-Century Germany\u003c\/em\u003e is the first in-depth study of the history of fan fiction--literary works written by readers who\u003cbr\u003eappropriate pre-existing characters invented by other authors. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBecause eighteenth-century authors themselves struggled with what to name these works--variously suggesting \u003cem\u003eFortsetzung\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eAnhang, \u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eBeylage\u003c\/em\u003e--this book deliberately imports the anachronistic term. Like fan fiction today, these appropriations took the form of prequels, sequels, and spinoffs.\u003cbr\u003eUndertaking close readings of literary and legal texts, this volume documents the widespread practice of writing fan fiction and reconstructs the contemporaneous debate about this much-disputed literary phenomenon. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAnalyzing the evolving reading, writing, and consumer habits of late-eighteenth century Germany, \u003cem\u003eCharacters before Copyright \u003c\/em\u003escrutinizes the social, economic, and aesthetic changes that fostered the rapid rise of fan fiction after 1750. Then, using an ethnographic approach borrowed from legal and\u003cbr\u003eliterary anthropology, this book identifies the unwritten, extra-legal customary norms that governed the production of these works. It thus reinterprets the 'literary commons' of the eighteenth century, arguing that what may appear to have been the free circulation of characters was actually\u003cbr\u003ecircumscribed by a complex and exacting set of rules and conditions. These rules translated into a unique type of literature that gave rise to remarkable forms of collaborative authorship and originality distinct from those associated with the Romantic author. Ultimately, \u003cem\u003eCharacters before Copyright\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003eprovides a new perspective on the eighteenth-century book trade and the rise of intellectual property, re-evaluating the concept of literary property, the history of moral rights, and the tradition of free culture.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Matthew H. Birkhold\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press, USA\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/25\/2019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.40lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.30h x 6.30w x 1.10d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780198831976\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/01\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMatthew H. Birkhold, \u003cem\u003eAssistant Professor of German, Assistant Professor of Law, The Ohio State University\u003c\/em\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMatthew H. Birkhold is an assistant professor of German at the Ohio State University, where he also holds an appointment at the Moritz College of Law. After completing his Ph.D. at Princeton University and J.D. at Columbia Law School, Dr Birkhold worked as an attorney-adviser for the US Department of State. His research and teaching examine the interrelations of law, culture, and the humanities.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Oxford University Press, USA","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":40287227510899,"sku":"9.7802E+12","price":87.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_96569894-7110-469b-a1c5-606a63e0ed7f.jpg?v=1658236207","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/characters-before-copyright-the-rise-and-regulation-of-fan-fiction-in-eighteenth-century-germany-9780198831976","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}