Famous for his novels, Thomas Mann becomes more approachable through his shorter narratives that span his entire career. The most famous of these stories is one of his earliest. Death in Venice was adapted into Visconti's well-known film, but all the mature issues of the author are present in this story: the need for meaning in existence, the relationship between life and art, the central role of sexual energy and the strange ways it can manifest, the position of death and illness, the importance of work, the complex relationships of the individual with their society and the dominant culture. These themes are developed in a series of brilliant stories, many of them very short, showcasing the author's talent for macabre comedy.