Bacteria
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| + | "Professor Max Gottlieb was about to assassinate a [[guinea pig]] with [[anthrax]] [[germs]], and the [[bacteria|bacteriology]] class were nervous."--''[[Arrowsmith (novel) |Arrowsmith]]'' (1925) by Sinclair Lewis | ||
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| - | '''''Feuchtgebiete''''' is [[Charlotte Roche]]'s debut novel. [[Semi-autobiographical]], it was first published in [[German language|German]] in [[2008 in literature|2008]] by [[DuMont (publisher)|DuMont]] and was the [[world's best-selling novel]] in [[March 2008]]. For supporters it is a piece of [[erotic literature]]; for critics it is cleverly marketed [[pornography]]. | + | '''Bacteria''' constitute a large [[domain (biology)|domain]] of [[prokaryotic]] [[microorganism]]s. Typically a few [[micrometre]]s in length, bacteria have a number of shapes, ranging from [[sphere]]s to rods and spirals. Bacteria were among the first life forms to appear on [[Earth]], and are present in most of its [[habitat]]s. Bacteria inhabit soil, water, [[Hot spring|acidic hot springs]], [[radioactive waste]], and the deep portions of [[Crust (geology)|Earth's crust]]. Bacteria also live in [[symbiotic]] and [[parasitic]] relationships with plants and animals. They are also known to have flourished in manned spacecraft. |
| - | + | ==See also== | |
| - | The title, which might be translated as "[[wetland]]s" or "damp areas," here refers to a woman's [[nether]] regions, i.e. her [[vagina]] and [[anus]]. | + | * [[Bacteriotherapy]] |
| - | + | * [[Extremophile]] | |
| - | ==Plot summary== | + | * [[Genetically modified bacteria]] |
| - | + | * [[List of bacterial orders]] | |
| - | Set in an anonymous [[Germany|German city]], ''Feuchtgebiete'' is told by 18 year-old Helen Memel, a [[schoolgirl]] who spends some days in the [[proctology|proctological ward]] of a hospital to be treated for [[anal fissure]] caused by the careless shaving of her [[pubic hair]]. Deep at heart Helen is [[loneliness|lonely]] and [[boredom|bored]], and has been so since the breakup of her parents' marriage. Her secret plan is to reunite her father and mother by having them visit her at the same time. However, her parents seem to have little interest in their daughter's well-being and show up only occasionally, only for short periods of time, and at different hours. When she learns that her surgery, which included the removal of [[hemorrhoid|haemorrhoids]], has been successful and she is going to be released soon, she desperately looks for means to prolong her hospital stay. | + | * [[Panspermia]] |
| - | + | * [[Psychrotrophic bacteria]] | |
| - | She secretly rams the [[pedal]] of her hospital bed into her anus and immediate emergency surgery has to be carried out to prevent extreme [[bleeding|blood loss]]. Thus having successfully extended her stay, she waits in vain for her miracle to happen: her parents have stopped visiting altogether, and when she tries to contact them by phone all she gets is their respective answering machines. During this time she falls in love with her favourite [[Men in nursing|male nurse]] called Robin and gradually draws the young man into her world. At the end of the novel Helen asks him if she can live at his place. He agrees willingly, and the young couple leave the hospital grounds on Robin's bicycle. When she asks him if he wants to have sex with her, he says yes but adds that he would want to abstain from [[anal sex]] for the time being. | + | *[[Meticilline-resistente Staphylococcus aureus]] |
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| - | ==Major themes== | + | |
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| - | The major part of ''Feuchtgebiete'' is made up of Helen's thoughts, reminiscences and [[sexual fantasy|sexual fantasies]] while confined to her hospital bed. A sexually active woman since she was fifteen, she has had sex with lots of men and boys and describes herself as continuously [[sexual arousal|randy]]. Shortly after her 18th birthday she had herself [[sterilization (surgical procedure)|sterilised]] without telling her parents about it. | + | |
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| - | Helen has an unusual relationship to her body. She abhors [[personal hygiene]] and enjoys many of the [[bodily fluid]]s which are [[secretion|secreted]] or [[excretion|excreted]] from it, be it [[mucus]], [[pus]], [[earwax]], [[smegma]], [[blood]] (including [[menstruation|menstrual blood]]), [[sweat]], or [[tears]], but also men's [[sperm]], all of which she "[[recycling|recycles]]" by putting them into her mouth and swallowing them. She loves to attract potential sexual partners by parading, underneath her dress, her unwashed vagina and the smells emanating from it. In a series of interviews Roche explained that cleanliness and above all pedantic care for their own bodies, including the use of artificial scents such as [[perfume]], have been inculcated upon women for ages; that this obstructs their—not just sexual—self-realisation; and that the fear of harmful "[[bacteria]]" has been vastly exaggerated. | + | |
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| - | Generally, ''Feuchtgebiete'' touches upon a number of [[taboo]] topics not only in the sexual arena but also those that can be found in the society at large, particularly in [[dysfunctional family|dysfunctional families]]. These include [[self-injury|self-mutilation]], [[amnesia]] triggered by [[recreational drug use|recreational drug abuse]], people's inability to deal with failed [[suicide|suicide attempts]], and [[incest]]. | + | |
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"Professor Max Gottlieb was about to assassinate a guinea pig with anthrax germs, and the bacteriology class were nervous."--Arrowsmith (1925) by Sinclair Lewis |
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Bacteria constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a number of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals. Bacteria were among the first life forms to appear on Earth, and are present in most of its habitats. Bacteria inhabit soil, water, acidic hot springs, radioactive waste, and the deep portions of Earth's crust. Bacteria also live in symbiotic and parasitic relationships with plants and animals. They are also known to have flourished in manned spacecraft.
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See also
- Bacteriotherapy
- Extremophile
- Genetically modified bacteria
- List of bacterial orders
- Panspermia
- Psychrotrophic bacteria
- Meticilline-resistente Staphylococcus aureus
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