Edelweiß

Edelweiß, a novel by B. Auerbach, published in 1861 and subsequently included in Sämtliche Schwarzwälder Dorfgeschichten (1884). It is the story of a village marriage between a clockmaker, Lenz, and an innkeeper's daughter, Annele. Lenz proves too gentle and Annele too rancorous to support adversity, which comes when Annele's father is declared bankrupt. At the climax of hatred and despair the lonely house is engulfed by an avalanche. In the face of imminent death Lenz and Annele slowly find their real selves and are reconciled.

The story is framed by a brief picture of the harmonious couple in later life when one of their grown-up children leaves home. The title alludes to a faded specimen of the alpine flower edelweiss (Leontopodium alpinum), preserved by Lenz's mother. In their night of terror under the snow Annele's hair has turned white and this is her ‘Edelweiß’.