The fox, a symbol of the cunning and devious contemporary since ancient fables, has become a popular figure in the animal kingdom in recent decades. But what is it about this charming scoundrel that makes its fleeting appearance trigger both attraction and uncertainty, whereas in the past we used to chase it relentlessly with a shotgun? In her personal portrait of the animal, Katrin Schumacher sets off on a natural and cultural-historical foray through chicken coops, children's books and fur tanneries to finally trace the Far Eastern obsession with foxes in Japan, where the little predators beguile people as deities and erotic demons. And in our latitudes, too, we can look forward to a more intense coexistence: Knowing full well that in this country the fox's fur is no longer constantly pulled over his ears, he leaves his hidden, labyrinthine dens and heads for the cities to get under our skin himself among the rubbish bins and park undergrowth.
Katrin Schumacher, born in Lemgo in 1974, is a literary scholar and journalist. She has lived in Bamberg, Antwerp, Hamburg and currently lives in Halle (Saale).
"From all this, one can learn not only a lot about a wild animal, but also about people and their respective projections, preferences and fantasies." Berliner Zeitung
