Between Nihilism and Game Theory: Juli Zeh’s Novel Spieltrieb

Abstract

Two highly intelligent pupils of the Ernst Bloch High School in Bonn start a game with classmates and teachers which seems to be harmless at the very beginning but soon evolves to a game without limits and moralities. The game increasingly turns into a matter of life and death where every move counts and has to be planned according to exact strategies. The main questions will be: How is the escalation of the supposedly harmless game produced? The reasons can be found in the connection of nihilism and game as well as in the postmodern condition. In addition, the different meanings of the term game within the novel will be discussed. They range from the traditional opposition of game and earnest to game theory and finally lead to the integration of the prisoner’s dilemma, a game theory scenario, into the fictional world.