Conclusion

While the close connection, seen in the 18th and 19th centuries, between Bildung and the literary italienische Reise has been well researched, little systematic attention has been given to whether German literature has continued to explore these topics over the last century. Shifting attention away from the well-researched works of Johann Wolfgang Goethe and Johann Joachim Winckelmann, I found that interesting literary engagements with Italy continue to this day. Although the 20th and early 21st century textual engagements with Italy differ to texts from earlier centuries, they exhibit significant similarities to one another.