Emilia, Theobald, and the knights in Kdthchen project fantasies onto
their female counterparts. According to the prince, Emilia is an ideal of
femininity; Kunigunde's significance changes: she is revered as a
beautiful goddess, as an Amazon and yet when the facade is exposed she
is reviled
Kleist's female figures are as much linguistically as physically
marked. The title figure of Das Kdthchen von Heilbronn presents a facade
because her name is gender neutral, which causes her to remain in the
realm of object and remain an empty vessel. Unlike Kunigunde or Emilia,
she fails to achieve autonomy; the play's title declares her an object, the
suffix -chen implying either something diminutive or inanimate. Her
father Theobald's initial description of her at the secret inquisition
establishes an identity for her that she never chooses to confront. In this
sense, Kathchen can be regarded as an object as is implicit from this
initial description of her.
Ein Wesen von zarterer, frommerer und lieberer Art muiSt ihr
euch nicht denken, und kamt ihr, auf Flugeln der
Einbildung, zu den kleinen, lieben Engeln, die met hellen
Augen, aus den Wolken, unter Gottes Handen und Fiifien
hervorgucken. Ging sie in ihrem biirgerlichen Schmuck iiber
die Strafie, den Strohhut auf, von gelbem Lack erglanzend,
das schwarzsamtene Leibchen, das ihre Brust umschlolS, mit
feinen Silberkettlein behangt; so lief es flusternd von alien
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