37 pages • 1 hour read
The Burgermeister's Daughter: Scandal in a Sixteenth-Century German Town
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Essay Topics
How would you characterize the differences between Anna’s correspondence with Erasmus and with Daniel? How are these correspondences similar? Based on the letters Ozment reproduces, put yourself in the role of Anna and write one final letter to each suitor expressing your true feelings about each man without any of the filters of rank and formality present in the existing correspondence.
Is Anna’s legal struggle and her lifelong enmity with family only imaginable in the distant past? What about Anna’s life is unique to the 16th century? What about Anna’s story is timeless? If somebody exactly like Anna existed in the modern age, what sort of consequences (if any) might her actions provoke from her family and from her local government?
Compare Hermann Büschler and Philip Büschler in their dealings with Anna. Were they both villains? How were their actions different? What motivations informed their behavior toward Anna? Who, in your opinion, is the more sympathetic character? Why?
Imagine you are one of the witnesses called to testify at Anna’s grand review at the Esslingen imperial court. Based on the narrative of Anna’s life laid out in this book, write out one testimony in support of Anna’s and one meant to incriminate Anna.
How would you summarize Ozment’s opinion about sexism in 16th-century Germany? Is the author’s analysis compelling? Do you agree with him? Why or why not?
The author places Anna’s story in the historical context of Hall and the surrounding regions, including the advent of the Protestant Reformation and the prevalence of peasant revolts. Discuss how the cultural and historical context provided by Ozment enriches our understanding of Anna’s life and struggles.
Did Hermann Büschler love his daughter Anna? What evidence does Ozment provide of Hermann’s care, tender feeling, or well wishes for Anna and her future? Is there evidence of Hermann’s love after he kicked her out of his home? Compare Hermann Büschler’s attitude toward Philip with his attitude toward Anna.
Ozment writes that one of the lessons of Anna’s story is the importance of the separation of judicial, legislative, and executive powers. Was the Hall city council during Anna’s lifetime an institution that observed the separation of powers? What powers did the council reserve for itself? How could its power be checked? Assess the accountability and integrity of Hall city council during Anna’s lifetime.
Setting aside any legal obligation on Hermann Büschler’s part to provide his children with an inheritance, did Anna (or any of the Büschler children) deserve a piece of Herman’s estate? Keeping in mind that in modern times it is relatively common for parents to leave their children no inheritance, argue for or against the moral and practical correctness of leaving Anna and her siblings any inheritance at all.
In what sense (if any) did Anna receive justice by the time of her death? Was her decades-long struggle against her family and Hall worth it? Would she have been better off accepting her lot in life and never putting up a fight in the first place? What did Anna gain by fighting her battles? What did she lose?
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