The problem of transgression is central to the six case studies discussed in the book, three of them relating to literary works (Peter Altenberg's »Ashantee« (1897), Hanns Heinz Ewers' »Mamaloi« (1907), Ernst Jünger's »Afrikanische Spiele« (1936)), the other three to real-life cases (Franz Bratuscha (1900-1904), Paul Trömel (1913), 'degenerate girls' (1913)). They are assembled here for an investigation of the aesthetic potential of the transitory, independently of whether it manifests itself in fact or fiction. The methodological aim of the study is to demonstrate how fruitful a fusion of issues from literary and cultural studies can be.