PART IV CUlTURAL STUDIES 11. The Weimar Republic Redux Multiperspectival History in Jason Lute/ Berlin City of Stones JOSHUA KAVAJOSKJ Balm Ch) tJfStOllCS, a graphic novel vvrittcn and illustrated by J.15011 Lures and published In 1000, i-':. for irs approach (() rhe his[O[y of Gnmany's \Xlcinur Republic. Its distinctive scr:.Hq;y is foregrounded in a scene when a profes"or of :.lrr his[()[y rcprcsenr::uion to a group of smdenrs (Figure 1LO. For him, pcrspccrival reprncnuriul1 pLlyS a cenrral rok in v['illal hCC.lllSC ir determines \VhClr is seen ,lnd creues the illusion or three dimensions. To Jemonsrrare how ir opeLue<;, he refers to a \\'ooJcur by AlbredH Dllrc[ clHided "Der Zeichner da L.llue" ("1'v'13.n drawiIlg alute"'j. It an artist u::.-ing :.I piece of string affixed [0 a poim on [he wall [0 accur;}rely draw a mu,ic:d insrrument. Till' professor rhJf rhe lllelhod dqlicrcd in rhi, dCHVirlg impor- C:U1r because it shmvs how anises ,1 vanishing point" in [Q ere,He.l millleliL effen (Jurc:s HL)). The poim on rhe wall rhe pcrspecrivc of the wdl ..IS rhJ.r of [he J.f[work's \-vho rhe ga7e. It is no coincicknce that Durer's 1'52'5 wooJcU( serves here as .1I1 for since rhis innov;:nion of rhe Renaissance influenced the prKrice of rhe visual arcs for centuries after- wards. lr5 poim of view also h.1.5 somcrhing in common wich his[()ringraphy, whIch ofren rdie.'> OIl J. fixed narurive in rhe [x)[(Llyal of hi,.·aoric:d eveIH.'>. Eliubedl Deeds Ern13.rth writes rh3.c jm[:.Is "lleurralspJ.ce is [he main produCf of the formal consensus of Renaissance ... neurraJ is rhe main product of rhe formal COI1- sensu.'> produced by modern historical wriring. I IisLOry, in other word.'>, is a versiUll of the perspecrive gr3.mmar of Renaiss:mce painting" (2eSS). His(Qry, of COUf.'>e, is nor rhe only rype of discourse rh3.r relies on neurr3.1 rime, since it is also present in n:urarive teXIS such as shorr smrles, novels, anJ graphic novels. An of is, according ro rhe aforemenrioncd arr hisrori3n in Ber/in City o/Stones, "pcrh:l.ps rhe mosr exciring 3spccr nf ::Jrr in rhe modern era" (lures [OJ!. The nexr fr3.me, hmvever, shows rhe srudcnrs scwdingwordlcssly. no(," says the disappoinccd protessor in response ro the silence. The conrr3.dicrory reacrions in rhis scene - enrhl.1siasl11 by rhe aparhy by the students - rcflecr rhe graphic llOVerSlargcr .'>tr:.1tc:gy, \\'hich sill1L1lralleoLlsiy employs and subverts single-poilll pcrspe(;[ival represemJ.rion. On rhe one hand, rhe graphic novel's visual im3.ges are relarively cOl1vencion::d in rheir depicrion ofpcopk, places, J.nd events. The individual frames are gcn- I (j 5