SOURCE: Angermeier, John S. “The Punica Granatum Motif in Mann's Der Tod in Venedig.” Germanic Notes and Reviews 26, no. 1 (spring 1995): 12-15.

In the following essay, Angermeier investigates the source for the pomegranate theme in Death in Venice.

There is a longstanding admiration among Thomas Mann scholars for his use of Greek mythology in Der Tod in Venedig.¹ His skill in foreshadowing Aschenbach's death by bringing in certain ominous figures has received much attention.² These characters include: the stranger at the tram station in Munich, the ticket agent on the old steamer, the old-young man on the ship heading to Venice, the gondolier, “Charon,” who ferries Aschenbach to “Hades” and the singer at the hotel. Hence, as the story progresses, the reader receives numerous hints as to Aschenbach's inevitable demise. One myth in particular which Mann ingeniously employs here is Aschenbach's sipping of a pomegranate drink. In this instance...