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Part 1, Chapter 9
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Buddenbrooks, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Family and Sacrifice
Tradition, Modernity, and Change
The Protestant Ethic
Personal Fulfillment and Self-Knowledge
Pretense and Etiquette
Summary
Analysis
Johann greets his son (the consul) jovially, though he admits that the weather has got him worried about Captain Kloot, who is currently sailing back from Riga. The consul assures Johann that everything will be okay—“with God’s help.” Then, the consul gets right to business, informing Johann of Gotthold’s letter. Johann reacts calmly to the consul’s announcement, but the consul can tell Johann is agitated as he hands him the letter, written on “bluish” paper, to read.
The consul’s assurance that Captain Kloot’s ship will arrive safely, “with God’s help,” subtly injects tension and intergenerational strife into this scene—recall Johann’s irreverent mocking of Tony’s recitation of a religious passage in the novel’s opening scene. This sets the stage for the opposing views father and son will take toward Gotthold as Johann at last reads his estranged son’s letter.
Active
Themes
In the letter, Gotthold condemns Johann for ignoring his first letters. He acknowledges that Johann was upset when Gotthold married and took charge of his in-laws’ “retail establishment,” but wounded pride is no excuse for how Johann has treated Gotthold since then. Gotthold knows about the newly purchased Meng Strasse house and that the consul (Johann’s first son with his second wife, Bethsy) will inherit both the house and the family business. He knows that Johann Senior has already made a deal with Gotthold’s stepsister and her family in Frankfurt, and he demands that Johann do the same with Gotthold now, insisting that Johann pay him 33,335 marks courant in compensation. If Johann refuses, Gotthold won’t be able to respect Johann—“either as a Christian or as my father or as a man of business.”
This passage gives a bit more context for the circumstances surrounding Gotthold’s estrangement. Johann’s cold rejection of his son when Gotthold deigned to go against his father’s wishes to marry a woman Johann didn’t approve of makes clear where Johann’s priorities lie: with the Buddenbrook family legacy and the prosperous business that legacy is built upon. He cares less about the happiness of the kin who comprise that legacy. The sequence of Johann’s titles, which Gotthold questions in closing, is designed to infuriate Johann, starting from the identity marker Johann cares about least (his Christianity) to that he cares about most (his status as a respectable businessman).
Active
Themes
Johann finishes reading the letter and flings it from his hands. The consul reads the letter himself and promises Johann that he is furious about Gotthold’s demands—and that Gotthold would deign to call the Buddenbrooks “un-Christian.” Johann furiously mocks Gotthold’s attempt to manipulate Johann’s emotions, especially since it’s clear to him that Gotthold is only after his money. Johann recalls the two payments of 100,000 marks he paid Gotthold back when Gotthold announced his plans to marry Mamselle Stüwing—100,000 as a dowry, and another 100,000 allotted to Gotthold in Johann’s will. Then, disapproving of the marriage, Johann effectively disowned his son. At the time, Gotthold didn’t complain about the arrangement—so why is he upset now?
Active
Themes
The consul delicately tries to reason with Johann, suggesting that it tarnishes the firm’s newfound prosperity for Johann to be on such poor terms with his eldest son. He urges Johann to make amends and give in to Gotthold’s demands. “A family has to be united, to hold together, Father; otherwise evil will come knocking at the door.” Johann mocks the consul’s sentimentality. They argue some more but fail to reach an agreement before bedtime.
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