The social decay and presentiments of an ominous future mirror the pathological relationship between Rudolf Gurdweill, a poor Jewish intellectual and Dorothea "Thea" von Takow, an Austrian baroness who takes pleasure in humiliating him at every turn.
The societal decline and ominous prescience foreshadowing a grim future are mirrored by the unhealthy dynamic between Rudolf Gurdweill, a destitute Jewish intellectual, and Dorothea "Thea" von Takow, an Austrian baroness who derives pleasure from degrading him relentlessly.