Peter Schlemihl
1814
What would you sacrifice for unlimited wealth? In this hauntingly original German novella, young Peter Schlemihl arrives in a new city with nothing but ambition, only to encounter a mysterious grey man who offers him an impossible bargain: sell your shadow, and receive the purse of Fortunatus, overflowing with endless gold. Peter accepts. He is suddenly, fabulously rich. But wealth cannot purchase what he has lost. Without his shadow, he becomes an outcast, shunned by society, refused by the woman he loves, seen as something less than human. The shadow, it turns out, is not merely a trick of light but the very substance of belonging. Written by French aristocrat Adelbert von Chamisso living in exile in Germany, this 1814 fairy tale operates on multiple levels: a satirical jab at materialistic society, a Faustian meditation on identity and soul-selling, and a poignant exploration of what it means to be seen. The result is strange, unsettling, and strangely funny, a tale that has lost none of its power to disturb.
