German novelists of the 19th century. German literature

Romanticism in German literature began as a protest against Weimar neoclassicism, which was associated with the work of Johann Wolfgang Goethe. The main theorists of the new direction were the brothers August and Friedrich von Schlegel.

August studied literature, he was the author of "Lectures on Fine Literature and Art" and "Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature" (1797 - 1810), which laid the ideological foundations of romanticism. Peru Friedrich Schlegel owns the novel "Lucinda" (1799).

One of the first romantics was the poet and writer Novalis, author of the poems Hymns to the Night (1800) and the historical novel Heinrich von Ofterdingen (1802). Members of the Heidedberg circle of romantics, the poets Ludwig von Arnim and Clemens Brentano, published a collection of German folk songs, The Boy's Magic Horn (1806-1808). Von Arnim is also the author of the historical novel The Keepers of the Crown (1817).

The titan of German romanticism was the poet Heinrich von Kleist, author of the comedy The Broken Jug (published in 1811), the poems Prince Friedrich of Homburg (1810, published in 1821) and Kathen of Heilbronn (published in 1810).

The rise of the democratic movement in Germany put an end to romanticism, which idealized the Middle Ages. In the 1830s, liberal writers united in the Young Germany movement, whose members began to write in the style of realism. The most significant realist was the poet Heinrich Heine, who, for political reasons, was forced to leave his homeland and emigrate to Paris.

In 1833, he published in France the book "Germany", in which he introduced the French to German culture. Heine's work was distinguished by vivid satire and protest against social injustice. His poems belong to the pen: “Tannhäuser” (1836), “Atta Troll” (1843), “Germany. Winter Tale" (1844).

The true flowering of German literature came at the beginning of the 20th century. At this time, a whole galaxy of writers and poets appeared who determined the development of German culture for decades. The epicenter of this literary renaissance was Austria.

German symbolism is associated with the name of the Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke. He owns the collections of poems The Book of Images (1902), The Book of Hours (1905) and the collection of short stories The Last (1902). Also, Rilke was the first to make a poetic translation into German of The Words about Igor's Campaign.

The Austrian writer Franz Kafka worked in the style of expressionism. His phantasmagoric novels The Trial (published in 1925) and The Castle (published in 1926) became a prophecy and a protest against the emerging totalitarianism.

The works of another Austrian writer, Stefan Zweig, are imbued with subtle psychologism. He is the author of the historical novels "Mary Stuart" (1931) and "Magellan" (1937), a series of essays "Humanity's Star Clock", short stories "Amok" (1922), "Confusion of Feelings" (1927).

In German literature of this period, the work of the brothers Heinrich and Thomas Mann occupies a special place. Heinrich Mann is the author of the novels Master Unrath (1905), the trilogy The Loyal Subject, The Youth of King Henry IV (1935) and The Maturity of King Henry IV (1937).

Thomas Mann's first novel, The Buddenbrooks, published in 1901, brought him worldwide fame. In 1924, his novel The Magic Mountain was published, in 1933-1943 the writer worked on a cycle of novels on the biblical story Joseph and His Brothers, in 1947 the novel Doctor Faust was published. In 1929, Thomas Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize.

Erich Maria Remarque literally burst into literature with the author of the novel All Quiet on the Western Front (1929), which for the first time truthfully illuminated the entire ruthlessness of the First World War. In 1938 he published the novel "Three Comrades", in 1946 his most significant work, the novel "Arc de Triomphe", was published.

A very special place in German literature is occupied by the work of the Swiss writer Hermann Hesse. His most famous works are: philosophical novels"Seedcard" (1922), "Steppenwolf" (1927), "The Glass Bead Game" (1943). In 1946, Hesse was awarded the Nobel Prize.

The content of the article

GERMAN LITERATURE– German-language literature of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Based on the traditional periodization of development German language- Old High German, Middle High German and New High German periods. The first period ends ca. 1050 and translation bible performed M. Luther in 1534, marks the beginning of the third period.

Old High German period.

Very little is known about the literature of the Germanic tribes of pre-Roman and pre-Christian times. Palaeographic evidence of that era is separate runic inscriptions on the rocks. Song and other literary creativity Germanic tribes existed only in oral tradition. The early German poetry that has not come down to us was supposedly alliterative, its themes are the exploits of great heroes, real and mythical. The oldest surviving monument of Germanic literature is the translation of the Bible into Gothic by Bishop Ulfila (d. c. 383). From a linguistic and theological point of view, the translation is very curious, but practically says nothing about Gothic literature proper. The penetration of Christianity into the territory of present-day Germany dates back to the 7th century, when Western missionaries founded the monasteries of St. Gallen and Fulda, which became centers of German culture. Converted Germans studied Latin there, mastered reading and writing. Most of the literary works of this era are of a religious nature (prayers, catechism, etc.) or are translations from Latin. Emperor Charlemagne (742-814) played a huge educational role, who encouraged literary creativity in every possible way (the era of the so-called Carolingian Renaissance).

The only significant monument of Old High German poetry has been preserved in the Fulda Monastery - Song of Hildebrant (Hildebrandslied, OK. 800), where the anonymous author in a dialogical form tells about the skirmish between the father (Hildebrant) and the son (Hadubrant), the chosen warriors of the two opposing armies. Several magic spells have also been preserved, including two so-called. Merseburgsky. Basically, the literature of this period consists of translations and transcriptions of religious texts from Latin into the local language. Apart from snippets like Muspilli (Muspilli) about the beginning and end of the world, deserves mention anonymous Heliand (Heliand, OK. 830) - a vivid attempt to acquaint the Saxons with the life of Christ. Written in alliterative verse, the work explains to the Germans the deeds of Christ. Later, Otfried of Weissenburg made a similar attempt, composing Gospel harmony(c. 870) for the Franks. This is the first German writer known to us by name.

For the next century and a half, German-language literature is absent, the gap is filled by Latin works of German authors. Such literature was cultivated in all European countries and up to the 18th century. played a very important role in Germany. Among the Latin works of the 10th century. you can call it a poem Waltary, probably belonging to Ekkehard, a monk from St. Gallen, which narrates the events of Germanic heroic tales, and the dialogues of the nun Hroswitha of Gandersheim. At the turn of the millennium, Notker the German (c. 950–1022) revised a number of Latin texts for his students at St. Gallen, translating them into a mixture of German and Latin. Physiologist(Physiologus) - an earlier work, but around this time gained fame in Germany - links the names of mountains, plants and animals with Christian symbols. Around 1050 was written (also in Latin) Ruodlib, where the motives of Germanic heroic poetry and Hellenistic legends are fused in the story of the life of a young hero.

Middle High German period.

The first century of the Middle High German period was marked by the appearance of original religious works. Many of them sing of the ascetic ideal and are associated with the reformist movement that originated in the 10th century. in Cluny (France). Henry of Melk (c. 1160) denounces worldly aspirations in his poems and calls for repentance. The positive ideal in contemporary art was the Virgin Mary. Approximately the middle of the 12th century. applies Imperial Chronicle, a poetic historical work in which the exposition begins with the Roman emperors and each figure is evaluated from a Christian position.

The powerful religious feeling of the era was also reflected in the crusades, which strengthened contacts between the participating nations and introduced Western Europe to the high culture of the Middle East. Song of Alexander(c. 1150) Lamprecht the German and Song of Roland(c. 1170) Conrad the Priest are based on French sources, and King Rother(c. 1160) and Duke Ernst(c. 1180) convey the fabulous atmosphere of the East. These four epic works laid the foundation for courtly literature, for the first time in Germany, touching on themes characteristic of this genre as a whole. Their heroes are knights performing feats for the glory of God and beautiful lady. In the next century (1150-1250), works were created that, in the depth and perfection of poetic technique, can only be compared with the creations of the Goethe era. Their authors were knights, not clerics, and became especially famous in the genres of epic and lyric poetry.

Of the great medieval epics, only Song of the Nibelungs continues the themes of ancient Germanic poetry. Around 1200 an anonymous Austrian poet combined the stories of Siegfried, Brynhild and the fall of the House of Burgundy. Heroes and plot Songs of the Nibelungs became an inexhaustible source of inspiration for later authors, but none of them managed to surpass the medieval original. Around 1235 another epic appeared - Kudrun, also based on ancient legends, but devoid of the unity of style and design.

In style and subject matter, the Middle High German courtly epic repeats French sources, although, as a rule, it is not a translation, but rather a strong reworking of the original. Later medieval writers attribute the authorship of the first truly courtly epic Aeneid Heinrich von Feldeke, whose first works date back to about 1160. The work is based on A novel about Aeneas, french version Aeneid Virgil. Among the classics of the courtly epic are Hartmann von Aue, Wolfram von Eschenbach And Gottfried of Strasbourg. Erek And Ywain Hartmann (both between 1185 and 1202) are based on the epic poems of the same name Chrétien de Troyes, and the legends Gregorius And Poor Henry develop the theme of guilt, repentance and Divine mercy. The highest achievement of medieval courtly epic - Parzival(c. 1205) by Eschenbach, which tells about the hard way of the hero to gaining the highest worldly and religious ideals. In unfinished Villehalme Eschenbach develops the theme of the hero's struggle with paganism. Tristan and Isolde(c. 1210) Gottfried of Strasbourg glorifies love, and the poetic language of the work is unusually musical.

Minnesang, courtly love lyrics, was as widespread in Germany as the epic. The impetus for its development was the poetry of French troubadours, Arab sources may have had a certain impact. The theoretical foundations of the minnesang are set out in the treatise of Andrei Kaplan About love. In the works of the early courtly poets (Dietmar von Eist, Kürenberg, or Kürenberger), the relationship between knight and lady is relatively simple, but with authors such as Friedrich von Hausen, Heinrich von Morungen, and Reinmar von Haguenau, they are very complicated. An outstanding place among courtly poets is occupied by Walther von der Vogelweide (c. 1170 - c. 1230), who overcame the narrow limits that fettered his predecessors and was the first to write about fulfilled love. Didactic poetry was represented by a collection of didactic sayings understanding(c. 1230) Freudanka. By the beginning of the 14th century. most of the monuments of medieval poetry known today were collected in Large Heidelberg Manuscript.

Late Middle Ages

(from 1250 to Luther). Religious moods and the gradual rise of cities and the third estate are characteristic. The importance of prose, in which the content moment prevails, is increasing. Homilies, legends, historical anecdotes and lengthy stories about the fantastic wanderings of indefatigable knights become favorite reading. Spread satire and didactics. IN Peasant Helmbrecht(after 1250) Werner the Gardener peasant son dissatisfied with his position cruel punishment; this poetic story responds to the then social changes. A century and a half later, he developed the same theme in his ring Heinrich Wittenweiler. The tricks of Thiel Eilenspiegel are also instructive; stories about this wise and merry jester were first printed c. 1500, but probably originated a century earlier. The book also tells about funny simpletons Lalenbuch(1597), subsequently widely known as Schildburgers (Schildburgerbuch), ridiculing the childishly incongruous actions of the townsfolk from the town of Schilda. Both of these books are included in the golden fund of German culture. Outside of Germany, only one book of this genre gained fame - ship of fools (1494) S. Brant.

The so-called. "folk books" ("Volksbücher"), which included legends, love stories, semi-fictional stories about travels to distant lands and retellings of old traditions. In the 15th century a new wave of adventure and love writings poured from France to Germany. German authors also turned to Italian literature, first of all, the works of Petrarch and Boccaccio, which for a long time influenced the literature of Germany and Europe as a whole. Johannes Tepl (c. 1351–1415) in Bohemian plowman(1401) approaches the stylistic sophistication of the ancient classics, his book was the first significant work in prose in German.

The most vivid expression of the religious spirit of the era found in the works of prominent mystical philosophers. The mystical tradition in Germany has its roots in the 12th and 13th centuries. The greatest of the German mystics, Meister Eckhart (c. 1260–1327), attempted to put into rational language the central idea of ​​mysticism, the mystical union (unio mystica). His two successors, Heinrich Suso and Johann Tauler, failed to reach the heights of mystical knowledge of their teacher.

In addition to religious ideas, there were so-called. fastnachtspiele, which flaunted human weaknesses. A number of fastnachtspiel belong to the Meistersingers. Meistersang developed from courtly poetry. In the 13th-14th centuries. many knights, such as Konrad of Würzburg, still wrote in a more or less traditional manner, characteristic of the very beginning of the 13th century. If the knights usually boasted more of their social status than of education, then the Meistersingers, who mostly came from the artisan class, on the contrary, emphasized professional knowledge, considering the art of poetry to be the same comprehended craft as any other. The most famous Meistersingers were from Nuremberg. Right here is ok. 1500 G. Foltz supplemented the requirements for the applicant for the title of Meistersinger with a clause according to which new words should be put on a new melody. Magnificent examples of Meistersang are presented in the works of G.Saksa, the Nuremberg shoemaker, who left to posterity the poetry of the meistersang itself, and farces, and fastnachtspiel, and dramatized narratives. Some of his satirical plays are still staged by amateur theater troupes.

The poetry of the mastersingers, which was the work and property of a narrow circle of initiates, was not widely disseminated. On the other hand, folk songs (Volkslieder), which existed at all times, enjoyed extraordinary popularity. The most interesting surviving examples date back to the late Middle Ages, although they have been performed for generations and have undergone quite significant changes over time. He was the first in Germany to pay attention to the artistic value of folk songs Herder, who instilled in the young Goethe, and then the romantics (), love for this genre.

New High German period.

The Catholic world view and the folk element of adventurous picaresque are best represented in the Austrian literary tradition, which gravitated toward Vienna. In the north, the melancholic lyrics of J.C. Günther (1695–1723) anticipated the literary trends that emerged two generations later.

Education; "Sturm und Drang".

17th century in Germany ended with a dogmatic literature consisting entirely of quotations. Literature of the 18th century put at the forefront first the mind and heart, and then the whole human personality. In other countries Western Europe movement towards Enlightenment was outlined as early as the 17th century, but in Germany a rationally arranged universe first showed itself in Theodicy(1710) Leibniz.

The initiator of a literary movement close to the Enlightenment was I.K. Gotshed. In work An Experience of Critical Poetics for Germans(1730) he proclaimed reason and "searching" (Erfindung) as the highest goals of literature. Considering the classical French tragedy as a model for the new German drama, he emphasized the need for a moral lesson. The Swiss critics I.Ya. Bodmer (1698–1783) and I.Ya. Breitinger (1701–1776) had a significant influence on a whole generation of writers.

The favorite theme of many authors was the acquisition of virtue by the hero as a reward for prudence, modesty and faith in the mercy of God. In particular, K.F. Gellert (1715–1769) pursued this idea in his fables and edifying comedies. The optimistic secular philosophy was reflected in the verses of F. Gagedorn (1708-1754), perfect in form and language, who often sang the joys of love and wine. His poetry is a prime example of the German Rococo, still popular in the years when the young Goethe began to write poetry.

Just as simple in language, but much broader in subject matter and psychologically more thorough verse poems and novels by Wieland. His Agathon(finished edition 1795) - one of the first German novels, in the center of which is the theme of the spiritual development of the hero. By translating plays Shakespeare into German (1762–1766), Wieland first introduced Germany to the work of the great English playwright. He also translated a number of works of ancient literature.

Winkelman for several generations to come, he developed a completely new approach to classical art. Lessing V Laocoone(1766) on the example of the late Greek sculpture logically deduced the difference between fine art and poetry.

Lessing's contemporary Klopstock stood outside the Enlightenment. Pietist upbringing and Lost heaven Milton responded in hexameters to his Messiah(1748-1773; in the Russian tradition - the Messiah). Klopstock knew how to express the intensity of his feelings in words, and his poetic work occupies a very significant place in German literature.

The understanding of the past as a succession of different ways of being, each with its own style, is first revealed in the intuitive insights of Herder, who overcame the narrow confines of extreme rationalism and developed the concept of historicism. He was the first in Germany to take seriously folk poetry (Volkslied), highly appreciated the indissoluble unity of content, rhythm and music.

The adherents of Sturm und Drang, who dominated the literary scene in 1770-1780, brought to life many of Herder's aesthetic theses. Developing ideas close to ideas cabin boy (Thoughts on original work, 1759), Hamann and Herder, as well as some provisions of philosophy Rousseau, they opposed the rationalistic norms and sanctimonious morality of the older generation, putting in their place "genius", creative and emotional freedom. G.V. Gerstenberg in an essay Schleswig literary letters (1766-1767) was the first to speak from the positions of "Storm and Drang", and his Ugolino(1768) marked the beginning of a huge number of dramas with ardent and inconsistent heroes. Drama gave the name to the new movement Klinger Sturm und Drang(1776). The favorite topics of the sturmers are tragic relationships between family members, for example, parricide in Gemini(1776) Klinger and Julius of Tarentum(1776) A. Leizewitz. The same motif is found on the pages Robbers (1781) Schiller. In Goethe's Prafauste(before 1776) we are talking about matricide and infanticide, but in him these problems rise high above everyday realism. The dramatic device of the associative sequence of short scenes (parallel situations), reminiscent of parallelisms in folk poetry, is in many ways comparable to the structure of the first part of Faust. In area novel the atmosphere of passion and art characteristic of Sturm und Drang is most vividly recreated in Ardingello(1787) I.Ya.V.Geinze. Like many authors of that era, Heinze's heroes operate in Renaissance Italy.

New trends in literature also found a more restrained expression. Thus, a group of students at the University of Göttingen, adopting the patriotic ideas of Klopstock, formed in 1772 the "Union of the Grove" ("Göttinger Hain"), which included, for example, the lyric poets L. G. K. Gölti and I. G. Voss , who later won fame as a classic translation of the Homeric epic. close to them and Burgher, author of ballads in folk style ( Lenora, 1774). The deeply religious M. Claudius (1740–1815) reached great poetic heights. Poems and articles by Claudius, published in his journal Der Wandsbecker Bote (1775–1783), are warmed by love for one's neighbor and written in simple language.

In line with the Sturm und Drang movement, the works of the young Goethe and Schiller matured.

In 1796 Goethe and Schiller published a volume of satirical epigrams under the title Xenia; the ballads of 1797 were also the fruit of this friendship, as was Goethe's return to certain Faust and novel Wilhelm Meister's Years(1795–1796). Followed by Goethe's poem German and Dorothea(1797), an idyllic picture of provincial life. Schiller also turned to the genre that he mastered best - to drama, and it was then that he created his pinnacle works, the first of which was wallenstein(1798–1799). The work of Goethe and Schiller received the widest response throughout Europe and, along with the works of their contemporary philosophers and romantic poets, had an impact on the minds of subsequent generations.

At the turn of the 18-19 centuries. Weimar was rightfully considered the literary center of Germany, giving the name to the period of the late Enlightenment - "Weimar classicism". Meanwhile gained strength romanticism. However, in this era there were three writers who stood apart - Jean Paul, author of lengthy novels; poet-prophet Hölderlin And Kleist, author of comedies and entertaining plays.

Romanticism.

Already in the 18th century. in Germany, France and England, trends emerged that promised the coming "romantic revolution", which took place in these countries at the turn of the century. Unsteadiness, fluidity constituted the very essence of romanticism, which pursued the idea of ​​an unattainable goal, forever alluring the poet. Like philosophical systems Fichte And Schelling, romanticism considered matter as a derivative of the spirit, believing that creativity is a symbolic language of the eternal, and a complete comprehension of nature (scientific and sensual) reveals the total harmony of being.

For the Berliner W. G. Wackenroder (1773–1798) and his friend Tika the real discovery was the medieval world. Some essays by Wackenroder, collected in his and Tick's book Heartfelt outpourings of a monk, art lover(1797), reflect this aesthetic experience, preparing a specifically romantic conception of art. The most prominent theorist of Romanticism was Schlegel, whose aesthetic and historical-philosophical works on the culture of Europe and India had a huge impact on literary criticism far beyond Germany. F. Schlegel was the ideologist of the magazine "Atheneum" ("Atheneum", 1798-1800). Collaborating with him on the magazine was his brother August Wilhelm (1767–1845), also a gifted critic who influenced the concepts Coleridge and contributed to the spread of the ideas of German romanticism in Europe.

Thicke, who put into practice the literary theories of his friends, became one of the most famous authors of that time. Of the early romantics, the most gifted was Novalis(real name - F. von Hardenberg), whose unfinished novel Heinrich von Ofterdingen ends with a symbolic fairy tale about the liberation of matter through the spirit and the assertion of the mystical unity of all that exists.

The theoretical foundation laid by the early Romantics ensured the extraordinary literary productivity of the next generation. At this time, famous lyric poems were written, set to music by F. Schubert, R. Schumann, G. Wolf, and charming literary tales.

Herder's collection of European folk poetry found a romantic equivalent in a purely German anthology Boy's magic horn(1806–1808), published by A. von Arnim (1781–1831) and his friend C. Brentano (1778–1842). The largest collectors among the Romantics were brothers grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm. In his illustrious collection Children's and family tales(1812-1814) they completed the most difficult task: they processed the texts, preserving the originality of the folk tale. The second business of the life of both brothers was the compilation of a dictionary of the German language. They also published a number of medieval manuscripts. The liberal-patriotic L. Uhland (1787–1862), whose ballads in the style of folk poetry are famous to this day, as well as some of the poems of W. Müller (1794–1827), set to music by Schubert, also had similar interests. Great master of romantic poetry and prose ( From the life of a slacker, 1826) was J. von Eichendorff (1788–1857), in whose work the motifs of the German baroque echoed.

In a semi-real, semi-fantastic world, the action of the best short stories of this era takes place - for example, in Undine(1811) F.de la Motte Fouquet and The amazing story of Peter Schlemil (1814) A. von Chamisso. Outstanding representative of the genre - Hoffman. Dream-like fantastic narratives earned him worldwide fame. The whimsical short stories by W. Hauf (1802–1827), with their realistic background, foreshadowed a new artistic method.

Realism.

After the death of Goethe in 1832, the classical-romantic period in German literature came to an end. The political reality of the era did not correspond to the lofty ideas of the writers of the previous period. In a philosophy that turned towards materialism, leading place belonged L. Feuerbach And K. Marx; in the literature, more and more attention has been paid to social reality. Only in the 1880s was realism supplanted by naturalism with its radical programs.

The work of some authors born at the turn of the century was of a transitional nature. Landscape lyrics N. Lenau (1802-1850) reflected the desperate search for peace and tranquility. F. Rückert (1788–1866), like Goethe, turned to the East and masterfully recreated his poetry in German; at the same time in verse Sonnets in lats, 1814) he supported the liberation war against Napoleon. Poland's struggle for independence became the subject of many poems by A. von Platen (1796–1835), who spent the last years of his life in Italy, singing in perfect verses his eternal ideal – Beauty. E.Mörike(1804-1875) developed in his poetry the rich literary heritage of the past.

Not accepting the departure of most of the then authors from reality into an imaginary, imaginary world, the group of liberal writers "Young Germany" proclaimed the ideals of citizenship and freedom. L. Burne (1786–1837) occupies a special place among them, but only one of the great writers, albeit temporarily, was included in this movement - Heine. Over the years, the bitter contrast between dream and reality has brought irony and emotional discord into the poet's work. In later narrative poems Atta Troll(1843) and Germany. winter fairy tale(1844) Heine fully revealed a bright satirical talent.

A growing awareness of the role of the environment characterized the development of prose in the middle and late 19th century. The best achievements belong to the genre of the short story, which has been successfully cultivated in Germany since about 1800. However, due to the limited volume, the short story could not embody the fateful socio-political changes in the life of the nation. C. L. Immerman (1796–1840) in the novel Epigones(1836) - a name symbolic for the entire post-Goethian period - tried to depict the collapse of the old social order under the onslaught of commercialism. Immerman's Immoral Society Oberhof, one of the parts of the novel Munchausen(1838-1839), contrasted the image of a "healthy" straightforward peasant. The novels of the Swiss I. Gotthelf (pseudo; real name - A. Bitzius, 1797–1854) are also devoted to the life of peasants.

The first successful novels in dialects appear, in particular the works of F. Reuter (1810–1974) in Low German From the time of the French invasion(1859) and its sequels. Readers' interest in alien life was satisfied by such writers as C. Zilsfield (real name C. Postl, 1793–1864), Ship's log(1841) in many ways contributed to the formation of the image of America among the Germans.

Drawing inspiration from her native Westphalia, the German poetess Annette von Droste-Gülshof (1797–1848) created her own lyrical language, echoing the voice of nature. Only in the 20th century the significance of the works of the Austrian A. Stifter (1805–1868) was discovered, who focused on the fundamental principles of existence in nature and society ( Etudes, 1844–1850). His idyllic romance Indian summer(1857) marked by conservative tendencies, which intensified after the revolution of 1848, and loyalty to the humanistic ideal in the spirit of Goethe; Stifter's heroes often come to stoic humility. The same motif plays an important role in the work of T. Storm (1817–1888), a native of Northern Germany. Following the early lyrical short stories - among them stands out Immensee(1850) - came out even more impressive Aquis submersus(lat.; water absorption, 1876) and Rider on a white horse(1888). W. Raabe (1831-1910), in search of a refuge from pessimism, plunged into the wild world of lonely little people. Beginning with Chronicles of Sparrow Street(1857) he continued the tradition of the humorous novel, which in Germany goes back to Jean Paul.

The poetic realism, which a number of critics see in all the artistic prose of this period, is easily understood by the example of the Swiss novelist Keller(1819–1890). Based on the philosophy of Feuerbach, he discovered the miracle of beauty even under the most nondescript appearance. In his work he achieved the harmony of reality and poetic vision. Keller's compatriot C.F. Meyer (1825-1898) wrote elegant historical novels, in particular from the Renaissance ( Marriage of a monk, 1884). In both prose and poetry, Meyer endowed circumstances with symbolic meaning. The perfection of form is also characteristic of the stories of the prolific and once very popular P. Geise (1830–1914). T. Fontane (1819-1898) shared the interest of his predecessors in history (ballads and novel Shah von Wutenow, 1883) and home province ( Wanderings on the Brandenburg stamp, 1862–1882). Fontana was especially successful in analyzing the metropolitan society in the novel Effie Brist (1895).

Literature of the 20th century

Hurray-patriotism, feigned optimism and the fabulous character of a whole series of literary works of the late 19th century. characterize the background against which modern German-language literature developed. The rebellion against these tendencies began with the rise of naturalism and did not stop until the Nazis put a straitjacket on literature. This whole period is characterized by the widest experimentation, when many writers became the prey of one or another literary hobby.

German naturalism had forerunners in France and Scandinavia. According to the then philosophical and natural-science theories, the personality was determined by heredity and environment. The humanist writer was now primarily interested in the ugly reality of industrial society, with its unresolved social problems.

The most typical naturalist poet was A. Holtz (1863-1929); there were no bright discoveries in the field of the novel. However, the clashes of heterogeneous characters, whose lack of freedom was aggravated by determinism, contributed to the emergence of a number of dramatic works that have not lost their meaning.

Enduring literary value provided to his works Hauptmann, who began as a naturalist and steadily expanded the scope of his work, up to classicism (plays on ancient subjects), in which he is quite comparable with Goethe. The diversity inherent in Hauptmann's dramas is also found in his narrative prose ( Holy fool Emanuel Quint, 1910; Adventure of my youth, 1937).

With the advent of pioneering work Freud the center of gravity in the literature has shifted from social conflicts to a more subjective study of the individual's reactions to the environment and to himself. In 1901 A. Schnitzler (1862–1931) published the story Lieutenant Gustl, written in the form of an internal monologue, and a number of impressionistic theatrical sketches, where subtle psychological observations and pictures of the degradation of the metropolitan society are fused ( Anatole, 1893; round dance, 1900). The pinnacle of poetic achievements is the work of D. Lilienkron (1844-1909) and R. Demel (1863-1920), who created a new poetic language that can vividly express lyrical experience. Hofmannsthal, combining the style of impressionism with the Austrian and pan-European literary tradition, created unusually deep poems and several poetic plays ( Fool and death, 1893).

At the same time, interest in creativity flared up. Nietzsche, whose analysis of traditional morality is based on his famous thesis "God is dead". In terms of literature, Nietzsche's brilliant language, especially in the work Thus spoke Zarathustra(1883-1885), became a model for a whole generation, and some of the philosopher's ideas resulted in wonderful, strict verses George whose poetry echoes French symbolism and English Pre-Raphaelites. Gheorghe is associated with the formation of a circle of writers who were largely under his influence and took over from him an interest in a number of half-forgotten aspects cultural tradition. In contrast to George's elitist missionary work, Rilke focused on himself and his art. The senseless horrors of the First World War forced him to seek his own esoteric worldview in Duino (Duino) elegies(1923) and Sonnets to Orpheus(1923), which are rightfully considered the pinnacles of poetry.

No less significant achievements took place in prose. T.Mann- the most prominent representative of a galaxy of writers, among whom was his older brother G. Mann (1871-1950), known for his satirical and political novels.

If Thomas Mann's central theme is the dichotomy of life and art (a special case is the antithesis "burgher - artist"), then Kafka in posthumously published novels Process, Lock And America posed the problem of existence as such. In his visionary objectification of the whimsical processes of human thought, ultimately aimed at unraveling the eternal mystery of being, Kafka created his own mythological world, and his work had a great influence on European literature. expressive scope and main topic(collapse of the monarchy) R. Musilya(1880–1942) are also found in the novels of his compatriot H. von Doderer (1896–1966) Strudlhof stairs(1951) and Demons(1956). The early works of Hesse, the penetrating autobiographical novels of H. Carossa (1878–1956) and the search for a “pure” life in the novel Simple life(1939) E. Wiechert (1877-1950) are closely connected with the German literary tradition. Hesse's later novels reflect the dismay of the individual after the First World War and testify to the influence of psychoanalysis ( Demian, 1919; steppe wolf, 1927) and Indian mysticism ( Siddhartha, 1922). His main novel Bead game(1943), combining utopia and reality, sums up the views of the writer, as it were. Turning historical epochs, the crisis of religious consciousness became a favorite material for such novelists as Ricarda Huh (1864–1947), Gertrude Le Fort (1876–1971) and W. Bergengrün (1892–1964), while Zweig attracted the demonic impulses of great historical figures. The First World War gave rise to a number of significant works: apocalyptic scenes Last days of mankind(1919) by the Viennese essayist K. Kraus (1874–1936), ironic Dispute about Unter Grisha(1927) Zweig, an extraordinarily popular novel remark All Quiet on the Western Front(1929). Subsequently, Remarque consolidated this success with action-packed novels ( Triumphal Arch, 1946).

After the First World War, the need for new values ​​urgently declared itself. The Expressionists loudly and sharply proclaimed the reform of society and the individual. Missionary fervor brought to life the outstanding poems of the prophetic H. Trakl (1887–1914) and F. Werfel (1890–1945). Werfel's early prose also belongs to expressionism, but in his later novels historical and religious motifs prevailed ( Forty Days of Musa Dagh, 1933; Song of Bernadette, 1941). Similarly, A. Döblin (1878–1957) after a socio-psychological novel Berlin, Alexanderplatz(1929), stylistically ("stream of consciousness") reminiscent of J. Joyce turned to the search for religious values.

Literature of the Third Reich.

After the Nazis came to power, over 250 German writers, poets, writers left the country - T. and G. Mann, Remarque, Feuchtwanger, Zweig, Brecht, and others. Books by progressive German and foreign writers and thinkers were thrown into the bonfires on the campuses of the universities.

Some of the writers who remained in the country withdrew from literary activity. The rest were asked to write within the four genres approved by the 8th Directorate of the Ministry of Education and Propaganda and the Imperial Chamber of Literature, which from 1933 was headed by playwright Hans Jos. These were: 1) “front-line prose”, glorifying the front-line brotherhood and wartime romanticism; 2) "party literature" - works that reflect the Nazi worldview; 3) "patriotic prose" - nationalist works, with an emphasis on German folklore, the mystical incomprehensibility of the German spirit; 4) "racial prose", exalting the Nordic race, its traditions and contribution to world civilization, the biological superiority of the Aryans over other "inferior" peoples.

The most talented works in German during this period were written among émigré writers. At the same time, a number of capable writers were attracted to cooperate with the Third Reich - Ernst Gleser, Hans Grimm, whose novel People without space widely used by Nazi propaganda. Ernst Junger – in an essay Worker. dominance and gestalt,About the pain in the novel On the marble cliffs(1939) developed the image of a soldier-worker - a heroic figure, drawing a line to the "burgher era". Gottfried Benn defended the aesthetic side of Nazi nihilism, seeing in National Socialism "a stream of hereditary life-affirming energy." Günther Weisenborn and Albrecht Haushofer (Moabite sonnets) dared to criticize Nazism in their works, for which they were persecuted.

Within the framework of the standard requirements of Nazi propaganda, Werner Bumelburg worked - novels about front-line camaraderie, Agnes Megel - provincial "folk" literature, Rudolf Binding And Berris von Munchausen - epic poems about chivalry and male prowess.

In general, the period of Nazi totalitarianism was a significant test for the writers of Germany, putting everyone before a choice, and not so much aesthetic as political.

Modern tendencies.

After World War II, the focus shifted from the horrors of war to the problem of guilt. The suffering of the Jews and the destruction of the people under Hitlerism found a particularly vivid reflection in the work of two poets - P. Celan (1920-1970) and Nelly Zaks who raised this topic to the level of suffering of all mankind. In 1966 Nellie Sachs was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Among writers of a socialist orientation, Anna Zegers (1900–1983) deserves special mention, with her novel seventh cross(1942) - the story of an escape from a concentration camp.

The despair of the war-torn young generation, which gave the so-called. “literature in ruins”, clearly shows in the radio play by W. Borchert (1921–1947) On the street in front of the door(1947). The military theme is also reflected in the surreal nightmare of the novel. City across the river(1947) by G. Kazak (1896–1966), and in the existentialist atmosphere of such novels by H. E. Nossak (1901–1977) as Nekiya(1947) and The Unthinkable Judgment(1959), and in the late poems of G. Benn (1886-1956).

In the post-war years, Swiss German-language literature produced major writers. Grotesque plays F. Dürrenmatta ruthlessly exposed the venality of human nature. M. Frisch (1911-1991) confirmed the regularity of his fame with such plays as Biderman and the arsonists(1958) and Andorra(1961). The theme of self-acquisition and alienation, first touched upon in the novels Stiller(1954) and Homo faber(1957), will turn into a whimsical "narrative game" in I'll call myself Gantenbein(1964). Frishevsky diaries 1966–1971 (1972) reflect the complex nature of contemporary artistic and ideological passions.

After Germany's defeat in World War II Soviet Union and the Western occupying powers tried to revive the cultural life of the country, encouraging it to turn towards the German classical and humanistic traditions. In the first years after the war in the East of Germany in the theatrical repertoire, which included, for example, plays J.Anuya , J.-P. Sartre , T.S. Eliot, T. Wilder, T. Williams, it was difficult to find significant differences from the repertoire in the western zones of occupation. But as the Cold War grew, the occupying powers began to gradually restructure their cultural policies as well. In East Germany, tolerance in the field of literary politics was quickly replaced by diktat socialist realism. The development of East German literature went through a series of "freezes", mainly due to foreign policy events: 1949-1953 - from the formation of two German states to the death of Stalin; 1956-1961 - from the uprising in Hungary to the construction of the Berlin Wall; 1968-1972 - from the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia to the diplomatic recognition of the GDR by the FRG and the international community; 1977-1982 - from the expulsion of the poet V. Birman to relative stabilization. Between the "freezes" in the GDR, there were short periods of liberalization. For initial period typical About those who are with us(1951) E. Claudius (1911-1976), Burgomaster Anna(1950) F. Wolf (1888–1953) and Katzgraben(1953) E. Stritmatter (1912–1995).

One of the most human novels of post-war literature, Naked among the wolves(1958; in Russian translation - In the wolf's mouth) B. Apica (1900-1979), tells about the unimaginable efforts of concentration camp prisoners, rescuing a small child from the executioners. In the novel Jacob the liar(1968) J. Becker (b. 1937) addresses the theme of the uprising in the Warsaw ghetto. A number of "return novels" ("Ankunftsromane") reflected the difficulties of the transition from fascist to socialist ideology, for example The Adventures of Werner Holt(1960, 1963) D. Noll (b. 1927). G. Kant (b. 1926) assembly hall(1964) with a fair amount of humor told about the education and upbringing of young workers during the formation of the GDR. The Bitterfeld Movement (1959) demanded increased attention to the problems of the working class. Until 1989, the leadership of the GDR continued to support groups of amateur writers from the working environment, which gave rise to the so-called. "introductory literature" (after the novel by Brigitte Ryman Introduction, 1961) - novels Trail of stones(1964) E. Neucha (b. 1931), Ole Binkop(1964) Stritmatter et Krista Wolf (b. 1929) in her first novel shattered sky(1963) writes about a woman forced to choose between love and socialism.

The West German "Group 47" ("Gruppe 47") united most of the major German prose writers and critics. Two of the most famous, U.Yonzon (1934–1984) and Grass, moved to the West from East Germany. Yonzon novels Speculation about Jacob(1959) and The third book about Achim(1961) reveal the painful psychological and worldly discord in a divided country. In trilogy anniversaries(1970, 1971, 1973) History itself stands behind the detailed stories of life. Grass became world famous after the publication of the novel tin drum(1959). Other significant prose writers include Belli A. Schmidt (1914–1979). Böll's early stories and novels deal with dehumanization in war. The pinnacle of Schmidt's work, marked by artistic search, is considered to be monumental Zettel's dream (1970).

Since the 1970s, there has been a move away from politicized literature in Germany. The works of the Austrian P. Handke (b. 1942) explored the psychological and social structures underlying aesthetic and linguistic conventions. In his Goalkeeper's fear of a penalty kick(1970) recreated paranoid reality, and in A short letter for a long goodbye(1972) - a gradual cure for such a picture of the world. The Lost Honor of Katharina Bloom(1975) Böll and Birth of a sensation(1977) Wallraf exposed the destructive power of the Springer newspaper empire. Under the escort of care(1979) Böll examines the impact of terrorism on life and social institutions in Germany. The aesthetics of resistance (1975, 1978, 1979) and the “folk plays” by F.K. However, confessional openness came to the fore. From Montauk(1975) Frisch before Lenz(1973) P. Schneider (b. 1940) and Youth(1977) W. Köppen (1906-1996), the authors gradually moved from political issues to personal experience.

A trend towards subjectivity and autobiography has also emerged in East Germany. Reflections on Christ T.(1968) Krista Wolf marked this shift by narrating the problems of a young woman searching for herself; images of childhood(1976) and No place. nowhere(1979) continued this intimate psychological line. The literature of the GDR did not pass by the theme of feminism, although in a socialist aspect ( Cassandra, 1984, Christa Wolf; Franziska Linkerhand, 1974, Brigitte Ryman, 1936-1973; Karen W., 1974, Gerty Tetzner, b. 1936; panther woman, 1973, Sarah Kirsch, b. 1935; The Life and Adventures of the Troubadour Beatrice, 1974, Irmtraud Morgner, b. 1933).

After the reunification of Germany, the search for a way out of the gravitational field of the topic of "German military guilt" becomes relevant. German society is increasingly acquiring the features of a mobile middle class society, turning, in accordance with the ideology of M. Houellebeck, into a kind of huge supermarket - ideas, things, relationships, etc. Most interestingly, these trends in Germany in the 1990s were refracted in the work of Christian Kracht (b. 1966) . The hero of his cult novel Faserland (1995) - a consumer to the marrow of his bones, but an "advanced" consumer, with great respect for the "correct" choice of manufacturers of clothing, shoes, food, etc. In order to bring his image to perfection, he lacks an intellectual passion that would finally complement his “bright image”. To this end, he travels around Europe, but everything he has to meet makes him sick, literally and figuratively.

The hero of another work by K. Kracht - 1979 - an intellectual who ended up in the "hot spots" of 1979 for approximately the same reason as the hero Faserland's. The difference between the advanced consumer of 1995 and the stoned, relaxed intellectual of 1979 is not as great as it seems at first glance. Both of them are a kind of intellectual tourists who want to receive some essential life values ​​from the outside in a finished form. But the tactic of external borrowing does not work and makes obvious the need to make an effort of a different kind - to move inside oneself and one's personal history. However, considerations of political correctness come into force here - how not to "drive" into something unsightly, like Nazism.

In 1999 Kracht and four of his fellow writers - Benjamin von Stukrad-Barre (autobiographical novels Solo album, Live album, Remix), Nickel, von Schonburg and Bessing rented a room in an expensive hotel and for three days debated popular topics related to different parties modern life. Their conversations, recorded on tape, were published in a book. royal sadness- a kind of manifesto for a new generation of German writers. Its essence lies in the recognition of superficiality as the main virtue of our time, since the “deep” searches of previous generations did not lead to anything good. Therefore, the new generation prefers to stay on the surface of everyday life and pop culture - fashion, TV, music. In this spirit, in addition to the authors mentioned, write Reinald Goetz, Elke Natters, and others. The anthology contains 16 young German writers Mesopotamia, compiled by K. Kraht, is also about finding remedies for boredom and indifference. Whether the younger generation will be able to not get lost on the way from a nightclub to a fashion boutique and find their “light at the end of the tunnel”, time will tell.

In turn, a representative of the previous generation is an Austrian writer Elfrida Jelinek (1946), laureate of the 2003 Nobel Prize in Literature, does not refuse the opportunity to reveal, analyze the laws of the functioning of the so-called civilized society, as well as ordinary and class consciousness. According to the writer, it is in them that the germs of violence are laid, which subsequently develop into female and sexual despotism, violence at work, terrorism, fascism, etc. The most famous novels by Jelinek mistresses, Pianist, In front of a closed door,Lust,Children of the Dead.

Everyday life, the boredom of everyday life is an extremely common theme in modern German literature. Detailed melancholy descriptions of the usual banalities of life are full of books by young authors - Maike Wezel, Georg-Martin Oswald, Julia Frank, Judith Hermann, Stefan Boise, Roman Bernhof. Nicole Birnhelm in the story Two minutes to the train station conveys the oppressive feeling of a dumb ban on the manifestation of feelings, fear of sight and touch, fenced off and loneliness of citizens. Ingo Schulze in the novel Simple Story indulges in nostalgia for the GDR, punctually listing the details of the life of a German family under socialism - habits, trips, lifestyle, small events.

A kind of entertaining reading for intellectuals can be attributed to the work of Patrick Suskind (1949) - his novel Perfumer(1985), as well as short stories Dove, The Story of Herr Sommer, novel double bass and others brought the author to the ranks of world sales leaders in the field of popular literature. Suskind regards his writing as a rejection of the "merciless compulsion to depth" that criticism demands. His characters usually experience difficulties in finding their place in the world, in establishing contacts with other people, from any kind of danger, they tend to close in their little world. The writer is also interested in the themes of the formation and collapse of a genius in art.

Arouse interest and works-confessions - a novel Crazy young author Benjamin Lebert, about the revelations of a teenager suffering from a mild form of paralysis, instantly sold 300,000 copies. A story by Thomas Brussig sunny alley- about teenagers living near the Berlin Wall, in love and restless, claims that memories associated with the totalitarian period can be bright and happy. Psychological novel by Michael Lentz Declaration of love written in the manner of a "stream of consciousness" - it is about the crisis of marriage, about new love, about the city of Berlin.

After the unification of Germany, a “historical direction” began to develop in German literature - Michael Kumpfmüller writes about the confrontation between the two Germanys in the recent past and the fate of people who find themselves between the two systems. In the novels of Christoph Brumme (1966) Nothing but this, a thousand days, Obsessed with lies, in an essay City after the wall we are also talking about the changes associated with the fall of the Berlin Wall. German writers are also interested in fragments of Russian history - Günter Grass wrote a book Crab trajectory, which is based on the story of the documentary writer Heinz Schoen about the Soviet submarine S-13 under the command of Alexander Marinesko. Walter Kempowski published a 4-volume echo sounder- a collective diary of January-February 1943, dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Stalingrad, and continues to work on echo sounder-2 covering 1943–1947. He also wrote an autobiographical novel In a prison cell- about 8 years of imprisonment in the German NKVD.

In modern Germany, a collection of 26 authors was published, whose parents are not Germans, but they were born, raised and live in Germany - Morgenland. Recent German Literature. In the youth almanac X. Ygrek. Zet. the first stories and essays of German teenagers are published.

Books by older writers continue to be published. The book by Martin Walser (1927) received a great response. Death of a Critic- accusations of anti-Semitism rained down on the writer because of the nationality of the prototype of his hero. Hugo Lecher's books continue to appear (1929) - a collection of short stories Hump(2002) and others . Many new names have appeared - Arnold Stadler, Daniel Kelman, Peter Heg, Ernst Jandl, Karl Valentin, Rainer Kunze, Heinrich Belle, Heinz Erhardt, Yoko Tawada, Loriot, R. Mayer and others.

German-language prose today is also represented by authors from Austria and Switzerland. In addition to the Nobel Prize winner Elfriede Jelinek mentioned above, Austrian writers Josef Hazlinger and Marlena Streruvitz gained fame. In the novel Viennese Ball(1995) by Hazlinger, long before the events of the Moscow Nord-Ost, the possibility of a gas attack by terrorists at the Vienna Opera House was predicted. A novel by Marlena Streruvitz Without her- about ten days of a woman who came to another country in search of documents about a certain historical face. Swiss writer Ruth Schweikert novel Closing your eyes– writes existential prose, which continues to dominate European literature. Another author from Switzerland, Thomas Hürlimann, is famous for his mini-novel Fraulein Stark, which takes place in an ancient monastery library, where a 13-year-old teenager discovers the world of love and books.

In general, the position of the writer in Germany changed after the unification. Few writers can afford to live on royalties. Writers take part in festivals, give lectures, give author's readings, including outside the country. “In an era of change, a writer can express himself freely, but his words have no moral weight,” says Michael Lentz. “In trying to be a prophet, a writer risks today getting into a ridiculous position.”

Literature:

Zatonsky D.V. Austrian Literature in the 20th Century. M., 1985
Purishev B.I. Essays on German literature of the 15th–17th centuries. M., 1955
Neustroev V.P. German literature Enlightenment. M., 1958
German ballads. M., 1959
Austrian novella of the 19th century. M., 1959
History of German literature, tt. 1–5. M., 1962–1976
German novella of the 20th century. M., 1963
Zhirmunsky V.M. Essays on the history of classical German literature. L., 1972
German fairy tales. L., 1972
German antiquity. Classical and folk poetry of Germany in the 11th–18th centuries. M., 1972
The Golden Section: Austrian Poetry of the 19th–20th Centuries in Russian Translations. M., 1977
Selected Prose of the German Romantics, tt. 1–2. M., 1979
German Literary History. M., 1980
Austrian novella of the 20th century. M., 1981
Literary history of the GDR. M., 1982
Poetry of the German Romantics. M., 1985
German schwanks and folk books of the 14th century. M., 1990
Alps and freedom. M., 1992

LITERATURE OF THE BEGINNING OF THE 19TH CENTURY
NOVALIS. TEAK. JEAN-PAUL RICHTER.
HELDERLIN. LATE SCHILLER. KLEIST.
HEIDELBERG ROMANTICS

In Germany, as in other European countries, the Great French Revolution caused ferment in the minds, posed many questions to every thinking German. But the political experience of the French revolutionaries was comprehended by German ideologists primarily in philosophical and aesthetic categories. The formulas and concepts used by the leaders of the Convention and the enlighteners who preceded them (“freedom”, “equality”, “the kingdom of reason”) were, as it were, removed from the political context and translated into a general theoretical plan. According to the logic of many German thinkers, such an interpretation of the problems of the era seemed more significant than the actual political one. It seemed to them that they were trying to comprehend cardinal universal principles, while political conflicts proper revealed their instability and transience in the rapid change of events in France. This trend also manifested itself in the German idealistic philosophy late XVIII - early XIX century., And in the aesthetics and work of the great Weimar - Goethe and Schiller, and in the activities of the Romantics. Replacing the idea of ​​a political revolution with Schiller's program of aesthetic education, the enlightening pathos of the first part of Faust (completed after the revolution in France), famous saying F. Schlegel, in which Fichte's "Scientific Teaching", Goethe's "Wilhelm Meister" and the French Revolution on equal terms are designated as "the greatest trends of our time", are all links in one chain. At the same time, F. Schlegel justified this comparison with arguments that were equally valid not only for the romantics, but also for their Weimar contemporaries: to the broad horizons of the universal history of mankind.

One of the most important spiritual movements of this era was romanticism. In Germany, it began to take shape in the last years of the 18th century. The basic principles of romantic theory were formulated by Friedrich Schlegel (1772-1829) and in his "Fragments", published in the almanac "Lyceum of Fine Arts" (1797) and in the journal "Athenay" (1798); in 1797, Wilhelm Heinrich Wakenroder's book "Heartful outpourings of a monk, an art lover" was published. In 1798 the magazine "Atenaeus" also published "Fragments" by Novalis. In the same years, the activities of A. V. Schlegel (1767-1845) and L. Tieck began. This group of writers has received in the history of literature the name of the Jena school. Important role the philosophy of Fichte and Schelling played in the formation of romantic aesthetics.

The theorists and writers of the Jena school not only laid the foundations for a new artistic direction in German literature. They formulated principles that received wide resonance in many European literatures.

Romanticism from the very first steps declared itself as the enemy of everything frozen and dogmatic. Romantics sought to overcome the finite in the name of the infinite. Enlightenment rationalism seemed to him to be such a manifestation of the finite, closed in itself. The Schlegel brothers rejected normative aesthetics - they are characterized by a breadth of perception of the aesthetic values ​​of the past, the artistic discoveries of other peoples; F. Schlegel designated romantic poetry as universal. Of fundamental interest was the translation practice of A. V. Schlegel. His translations (partially with Tieck) of Shakespeare, Cervantes, Calderon constituted an era in the history of German culture. F. Schlegel studied Sanskrit, and his book On the Language and Wisdom of the Hindus (1808) introduced German readers to the treasures of one of the Eastern cultures. It was during the first decades of the nineteenth century that Oriental studies are developing as a science, the number of translations from Arabic, Persian and other languages ​​is multiplying, oriental motifs are organically included in the poetic work of both the late Goethe and the young Heine. Finally, Goethe's conception of "world literature" undoubtedly developed in the atmosphere of this romantic universalism, the wide appeal of the Romantics to cultural wealth. various peoples West and East.

The very concept of "universality" F. Schlegel, however, used in another, deeper sense: as the ability of a romantic poet to comprehend the world in its integrity and versatility, to see the same phenomenon under different angles vision. It also embodied the fundamental position of all romantic aesthetics, according to which the poet, the creator was endowed with the most unlimited powers and possibilities (“A true poet is omniscient: he is really the universe in a small refraction,” said Novalis). In this sense, romantic universalism was specific: it expressed, first of all, a subjective, personal attitude to the surrounding world. F. Schlegel's doctrine of romantic irony is connected with this set of ideas.

The Romantics are credited with establishing the historical approach to literature. The ideas of romantic historicism were already outlined - in many ways as a continuation of the ideas of Herder - in the early work of A. V. Schlegel "Letters on Poetry, Prosody and Language" (1795) and more fully developed in his Viennese course "Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature" (1808).

The contribution of the Schlegel brothers to the development of the theory of genres was significant: A. V. Schlegel paid great attention to dramaturgy. His "Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature" reveal on extensive material the antithesis characteristic of romanticism between ancient and contemporary art in different genres.

F. Schlegel declared the novel to be the leading genre of the modern era. The novel, in his opinion, met the requirement of universality to the greatest extent, for it was able to cover the most diverse facets of reality. In accordance with the general setting of romanticism, which brought to the fore the personality of the artist-creator and erected his will and fantasy into the only law of art, F. Schlegel defined the novel as "an encyclopedia of the entire spiritual life of a brilliant individual." F. Schlegel saw an example of the novel as a genre in Goethe's novel "The Years of the Teaching of Wilhelm Meister", to which he devoted a detailed critical review, as well as a number of fragments.

Peru F. Schlegel also owned the novel "Lucinda" (1799), the appearance of which was perceived by many contemporaries as a literary scandal. They were shocked by the assertion of female emancipation, which at that time was defiant, and the disregard for the norms of the so-called “respectable” society, and, finally, the very image of carnal love as an all-consuming passion.

An important contribution to the development of romantic aesthetics was Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder's (1773-1798) book "The hearty outpourings of a monk, an art lover", devoted mainly to painting and music. He rejects modern German art because it has lost the grandeur of Raphael and the sincerity of Dürer, and laments that “man has ceased to deserve the attention” of the artist: “... they no longer think about him in art, and they prefer an empty play of colors and all sorts of finesse in their illumination.

Speaking, like other romantics, against the rational normative aesthetics of the Enlightenment and Weimar classicism, Wackenroder was one of the first to proclaim the principle of "universality", a holistic perception of a work of art. The world for him is revealed through nature and art, it is in art that he sees the overcoming of the contradiction between the particular and the universal, the finite and the infinite.

The essays and sketches of the early deceased Wackenroder, published by Tieck in the book Fantasies about Art for Friends of Art (1799), outlined many lines in the development of German literature: romantic universalism, anti-rationalist aspects of aesthetics and criticism, the national theme (the image of Dürer). The idea of ​​"tolerance", the equalization of Venus Medicea and the many-armed idols of India prepared the concept of world literature.

Finally, Wackenroder's short story The Remarkable Musical Life of the Composer Josef Berglinger opened a gallery of images programmatic not only for German but also for European romanticism - images of artists opposed to the surrounding social environment, which was felt to be hostile to genuine art.

With Wackenroder, the reassessment of the place and significance of music in a number of other arts also begins. For Goethe (and to a certain extent for the entire Enlightenment) was characterized by an interest in the visual arts. Theorists of classicism saw the standard of art in ancient sculpture. Romantics, within the framework of fine arts, emphasize the principle of picturesqueness more, and proclaim music to be the most romantic of the arts. It should be noted that in German art of the first half of the XIX century. it was music that was destined to win world fame.

The most prominent writer of the Jena school was Friedrich von Hardenberg, who took the literary name of Novalis (1772-1801). His short creative path is marked by intense searches. In the sphere of philosophy, Novalis is characterized by a movement from Fichte's subjective idealism to pantheism, mystically colored, with separate facets in contact with the philosophy of Jacob Boehme and Schelling, but also of Spinoza and Hemsterhuis. For Novalis, nature is not just an object of philosophical contemplation, but an object of practical activity: he seriously studied geology and mining, and performed responsible work in the mining department. Therefore, Schelling's philosophical category of nature was comprehended by him in the light of natural scientific experience. An idealist philosopher, a mining engineer and a poet sometimes argued with each other in it, but more often they merged into a single whole, creating a unique image of a thinker and artist. A fragment of Novalis is known, in which, in the spirit of Schelling, the superiority of irrational knowledge over rational, more precisely: imagination over scientific empirical knowledge is affirmed: "The poet comprehends nature better than the mind of a scientist." This paradox, however, does not exhaust the essence of the matter - practically Novalis the poet constantly turned to Novalis the scientist, although the opposite is also possible: the poetic perception of nature also stimulated his scientific studies.

The socio-political views of the poet were determined by disappointment in the French Revolution, in its methods, in its results. They were reflected in the article "Christianity or Europe", created in 1799. The article caused a sharp protest on the part of Novalis's associates in the Jena school, and they did not publish it; it was published only a quarter of a century after his death, in 1826. Novalis does not deny the progressive course of history, but he is frightened by the victory of rationalism.

Novalis, in essence, is interested not so much in social as in ethical problems. He is not concerned with how to restore the medieval empire, but with how to fill the vacuum that, in his opinion, has formed in the souls of people after the authority of religion was destroyed, and the new society could not offer any sustainable ethical values.

Hymns to the Night (1799) and Spiritual Songs (1799) are associated with a complex of religious ideas - an extreme expression of crisis moods in the work of Novalis. These works contrasted sharply with the main direction of his aesthetic quest - the desire to comprehend the world in its universality.

Novalis entered the history of German and world literature primarily as the author of the unfinished novel Heinrich von Ofterdingen (published in 1802). Although the action dates from the 13th century, Novalis does not write a historical novel, and therefore attempts to evaluate the book in terms of the reliability of the people, events and era depicted in it and talk about idealization or some kind of distortion in the picture of medieval life are groundless. The time of action is conditional, and this allows us to speak of a mythical novel, saturated with multi-valued symbolism. The symbolism appears already on the first page: Heinrich dreams of an amazing flower, from the blue petals of which, as if from a lace collar, a gentle girlish face protrudes. The blue flower is a symbol of poetic dreams, romantic languor, longing for an ideal, romantic love, in which lovers are originally intended for each other.

In the surviving version, the novel consists of two parts: "Waiting" and "Accomplishment". The first part, the hero's journey, his experience of communicating with people from different spheres of life, is developed brighter, more concretely, more meaningfully. Merchants, a miner, an Eastern captive, and, finally, the poet Klingsor and his daughter Matilda introduce Henry to the present and the past, to nature and poetry. Behind each image is a whole world. In particular, in the episode with the eastern captive, the idea of ​​a synthesis of the cultures of East and West is presented for the first time, which will become the most important for all German romanticism and will also find the brightest response from Goethe in his West-Eastern Divan.

For the hero of Novalis, the intuitive character of cognition, peculiar to the poet, is true. “I see two paths leading to an understanding of human history. One path, difficult and infinitely distant, with innumerable bends, is the path of experience; the other, accomplished as if in one leap, is the path of inner contemplation. Experience for him is only the primary impetus for intuitive penetration into the mystery of the phenomenon.

Novalis's novel embodies the entire optimistic philosophy of early German romanticism, its belief in the triumph of the ideal. From the retelling of the alleged content of the following parts of the novel published by L. Thicke, it is clear that the writer was reflecting on the philosophical categories of time and space, looking for ways to figuratively embody the idea of ​​merging the past, present and future.

The search for some secret secret that must be comprehended by man is revealed by the poetic parable "The Disciples in Sais" (published in 1802).

The mythologism of Novalis remained an unfinished application of the romantic poet to solve many difficult philosophical and ethical problems. In the history of European culture, the writer's legacy was most often perceived one-sidedly: both by those who relied on him, like Maeterlinck, and by those who rejected him in a dispute, like Heine. First of all, the activity of Novalis's artistic consciousness, the perseverance of his search, his passionate commitment to the ideal of a perfect, harmonious person, embodied in the image of an artist, a poet, to whom he conveyed his anxieties and hopes, were underestimated.

In its desire to embrace in art the entire breadth of the world, its past and present, the visible and the spiritual, German romanticism looked for a variety of genre forms. In this regard, the creative individuality of Ludwig Tieck (1773-1853) is very remarkable. He wrote poems, novels, rock dramas and daring ironic comedies, and was one of the founders of the fairy tale novel genre. Thicke owns translations of the dramas of Shakespeare's predecessors, Cervantes' Don Quixote; together with A. V. Schlegel, he created classical translations of Shakespeare.

Tieck did a lot as a collector and publisher of the heritage of many German writers close to him in time and spirit: Lenz, Novalis, Kleist. He was the first to draw attention to German folk books, about which F. Engels wrote that they have "extraordinary poetic charm"; Engels noted at the same time that “Thick’s main argument was precisely this poetic charm” (Marx K., Engels F. From early works. M., 1956. P. 352). (Tick owns dramatic adaptations of the folk books Genoveva and Emperor Octavian.)

Thicke's first novel, The History of Mr. William Lovell (1795-1796), was in many respects still in the mainstream of educational traditions. It represents the type of individualist who is not stopped by any ethical standards. Thicke drew on the Sturm und Drang tradition, but his tempestuous hero sought only pleasure; for all its anti-bourgeois orientation, the book was devoid of the social urgency of Sturmer's works.

How romantic writer Thicke declared himself in 1797-1798, demonstrating his innovation in several genres at once. The novel The Wanderings of Franz Sternbald (1798), whose action is dated back to the 16th century, is related in plot to Wakenroder's essays In Memory of Our Glorious Ancestor Albrecht Dürer, and in terms of genre it is an educational novel, like Goethe's Years of Teaching of Wilhelm Meister. The hero of Tick's novel is the painter Sternbald, who is looking for his own self-determination.

The author did not seek to convey the complex historical collisions of that turbulent era. In the center is the problem of the relationship between art and society, but it is not given in historical terms, but in projection on the emerging bourgeois age with its sharp contradictions.

Tik's novel, replete with many side episodes, poetic inserts, lyrical monologues, opened new page in the history of German prose. After the strict, precise language of Goethe's Wilhelm Meister, Tieck, like Novalis in Heinrich von Ofterdingen, created an unusual fusion of epic narrative and lyrics. Separate pieces of the novel are perceived as poems in prose, the author skillfully weaves musical motifs into the narrative fabric, creates landscapes that should hint at the mysterious meaning of natural phenomena (“... Everything breathes, everything listens, everything is full of terrible expectation,” Heine later commented Thika landscape).

Not being himself a theoretician of romanticism, Tieck vividly picked up the aesthetic ideas that developed in the Jena circle, and even if he sometimes simplified them, he gave them a visual and "popular" character. This was the case with the concept of romantic irony, which is artistically embodied in such comedies-tales of Tick as "Puss in Boots" (1797), "The World Inside Out" (1799), "Prince Zerbino, or a Journey in Search of Good Taste" (1799). Here, the very dramatic structure of the comedy is most clearly exposed to irony: the willfulness of the playwright and director is boldly demonstrated, the conventionality of the stage action is exposed (the curtain rises ahead of time, the audience hears the conversation between the playwright and the stage engineer, etc.). But the daring play of the dramatic form is not an end in itself. It allows Tick to create a cheerful and evil satire on the feudal rulers and autocratic law, and on the viewers themselves - petty-bourgeois narrow-minded, evaluating the play from the standpoint of flat philistine morality. At the same time, irony extends to romantic art itself, demonstrating (in the comedy "The World Inside Out") "the collapse of optimistic hopes for the triumph of poetry over the prose of real life" (A. Karelsky).

German romanticism owes the creation of the genre of the short story-fairy tale primarily to Tieck. And although, to a certain extent, Tick relies on folklore tradition, the structure of the short stories, the images of the characters and the motivations for their actions radically distinguish the literary short story-tale from the folk tale.

Most often, the author draws tragic fates. The social causes of this tragedy are easily guessed: the pursuit of material interest, the temptations of wealth and urban fuss, the intrusion into relations between people of gold - the “yellow-eyed metal”. But even where this thirst for gold is extremely naked, as in the short story "Runenberg" (1802), social motives are complicated by irrational moments, a person appears as a toy of incomprehensible, mysterious forces. Difficult relationships connect the hero of the novel with the surrounding nature, which lives a special mysterious life.

In the short story-tale "Blond Ekbert" (1797), the concept of "forest solitude" first appeared, acting as a romantic ideal of detachment from the hardships of the mercantile world. Exploring in detail state of mind their unusual heroes, the author seeks to reveal the mystery of their not always logical actions, finding in them most often vague, obscure, difficult to explain. Thicke, and after him other romantics, saturate their prose with such meaningful words as "languor", "inexpressible", "ineffable".

The most intense period of Tik's artistic creativity falls on the years associated with the activities of the Jena school. Subsequently, the writer devotes himself mainly to translation and editorial and publishing activities.

When Tieck returns to narrative prose in the 1920s, a different manner emerges in it. The creator of an emotional and poetic style in the genre of a fairy tale novel, he is now influenced by Goethe's clear and precise prose, and features of a realistic approach to reality are found in his work. New to Tic is the historical genre. Having devoted many years to translating Shakespeare and studying his era, he creates the historical story The Life of a Poet (1826-1830), in which he sketches living images of Marlowe, Greene, Shakespeare and their contemporaries. The great historical novel Vittoria Accorombona (1840) reproduces scenes of life from the Italian Renaissance.

In general, Thicke's late prose already goes beyond romanticism. However, the writer's contribution to German literature is undoubtedly associated with the early period of his work, when he proved himself to be a true innovator in the creation and development of romantic genres. The narrative (or, more precisely, stylistic) mastery of the early Tieck had a great influence on the development of romantic prose, in particular on Arnim, Hoffmann, and to a certain extent on Hein, who in The Romantic School highly appreciated many other facets of Tieck's talent: his ironic fantasy, his commitment to the traditions of ancient folk tales.

In special ways, outside the framework of the Jena school, romanticism developed in the work of Jean-Paul Richter and Hölderlin.

Jean-Paul Richter (1763-1825) in the new century continued his literary activity, the beginning of which was laid by his books of the 80s of the 18th century. By the turn of the century, he was already a popular writer. While living in Weimar, he occupied a completely isolated position, not adjoining either the great Weimarians Goethe and Schiller, or the new school of romantics, which was rapidly declaring itself in neighboring Jena. Goethe and Schiller treated Jean-Paul with reserve and wariness. But it was in Weimar that Jean-Paul came to great fame, and in the then capital of muses he found devoted admirers and admiring female readers.

Jean-Paul designated the genre of his novels as idylls, although at the same time they are also parodies of the idyll. Drawing the fate of a little man, sympathizing with his hardships and admiring his ability to be content with little, Jean-Paul, “the lawyer of the poor,” as he was called, immediately ironically removes this idyll of a miserable existence, exposing to the reader the ephemeral happiness of a snail that crawled “into the most comfortable meander his shell."

Drawing on the tradition of the European sentimental novel, Jean-Paul creatively reinterpreted Stern's artistic experience in his early works. But the Sternian humor of relativity acquired such a complex structure in him that the reader often got lost, making his way through the labyrinths of the plot.

At the same time, Jean-Paul did not accept romantic subjectivism either, and in 1800 he published The Key to Fichte, a humorous pamphlet in which he ironically played with the concept of "I", constructing absurd situations in which the existence of the philosopher himself was in doubt - a technique later used by Heine in his essay "On the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany".

The most significant novels written by Jean-Paul in the 19th century are The Titan (1800 - vol. 1, 1801 - vol. 2, 1802 - vol. 3, 1803 - vol. 4), The Mischievous Years (1805) , "Comet, or Nikolaus Marggraf" (1820-1822). The novel "Titan" is close to the genre of "educational novel", and almost all researchers compare it with Goethe's "Wilhelm Meister". But the difference here is more significant than the generality. Goethe tells the story of the successive assertion of the hero in life, and leads his story in a narrative manner, remotely oriented to the epic tradition, changing it only at the end of the novel. Jean-Paul paints his characters in sharp contrast, sharpening their characteristics, making them exceptional in their vocation, attraction or passion.

Jean-Paul, as a rule, gave supplements to his novels. In addition to the Key to Fichte, the first volumes of the Titan are also accompanied by Gianozzo's Travel Journal. The author not only deepens the satirical assessments already contained in the novel itself (the arbitrariness of the feudal rulers, the licentiousness that prevails at courts, the servility of courtiers, etc.), but also gives a generalized assessment of German reality - some entries in the Journal are closer in tone to Swift than to Stern. "Appendix" refutes the illusions that may have arisen when reading the novel itself. Here, the transformation of the genre of the educational novel becomes especially tangible, reflecting the process of revising enlightenment illusions without replacing them with romantic ones - this is the originality of Jean-Paul's position. The desire to get away from the dirt of the real world is, as it were, materialized: a person is not in a dream, not in a mystical impulse, but in reality - on hot-air balloon- rises above the ground, admires nature, space and thinks with contempt of those who. turns life into a bitter and joyless existence.

Jean-Paul's novels often show signs of an enlightening parable. The novel The Mischievous Years can also be considered as a variant of the "educational novel" - with the peculiarity that the education of the hero is reduced to nothing by the complete impossibility for him to adapt to circumstances and accept the rules of the game dictated by reality. From the parable come the very idea of ​​testing the hero according to a carefully developed program formulated in the will, and the symmetrical arrangement of two heroes-brothers, each of which represents different facets of the worldview.

Jean-Paul worked on his last novel, The Comet, for a long time (1811-1822), making adjustments to the idea and structure of the work along the way. So, the author initially planned to include his autobiography in the novel under the title “The Truth of My Life, the Poetry of the Life of a Pharmacist”, but then, in 1818, he singled it out in a separate book “The Truth from the Life of Jean-Paul” (Goethe, author of “Poetry and truth”, was shocked by this ironic allusion). The plot of the novel is based on a burlesque situation: the apothecary Nikolaus Marggraf claims - relying on vague guesses about his origin - the title of prince. The apothecary appears as a "comic Titan" or "Anti-Titan", and this reduction of the image, a paradoxical combination of insignificance with indefatigable pretensions, gives the author the opportunity to boldly and unambiguously express his attitude to the modern legal order.

There is little action in Jean-Paul's novels; the events that happen to the characters are drowned in the stream of reasoning of the author and the characters. Length often makes it difficult to read, and this explains the very selective popularity of Jean-Paul with the reader. F. Schlegel, who generally paid tribute to the talent of the writer, at the same time reproached him that he "cannot tell a single story well." The style of Jean-Paul whimsically combines the features of baroque, sentimentalism and romanticism. “A mixture of different types of narration and different tonalities of style, an alloy of lyrics, satire, pathos, buffoonery, mockery and dithyramb - such is the art of Jean-Paul” (M. L. Tronskaya).

The Preparatory School of Aesthetics (1804) by Jean-Paul is a work no less original in structure and genre than his novels. It bears little resemblance to aesthetic works popular in those years. Its content is already narrower than its title, because the author does not deal with the traditional categories of aesthetics, focusing on the poetics of narrative prose, and at the same time is wider, because the author’s field of vision includes all modern literature. Jean-Paul's aesthetic is very personal; he develops most fully precisely those categories that are close to him as an artist, primarily humor. The author considers humor in all possible aspects; moreover, humor permeates the exposition of all other aesthetic problems. Although the "School" of Jean-Paul is carefully divided into sections and paragraphs ("programs", as he calls them), its systemic nature is conditional, and it is not by chance that in terms of structure and style it is compared not with one or another systematic course of aesthetics, but with the novels of the Jean-Paul, with their baroque-sentimental-romantic poetics. Therefore, it is impossible to answer the question of which of the contemporary literary trends this "School" theoretically comprehends. A passionate admirer of Herder, a supporter of F. G. Jacobi, an opponent of Kant and Fichte, Jean-Paul justifies his special place in the literary disputes of the early 19th century, although many facets of his work, and above all the pathos of rejecting any normativity, and put it if not in one row, then somewhere close to the romantics. The aesthetics of Jean-Paul cannot be unequivocally assessed as romantic, but there is no doubt that the "Preparatory School of Aesthetics" is a work of the romantic era.

The loud popularity among his contemporaries was replaced by the almost complete oblivion of the writer for a whole century after his death. But in the XX century. interest begins to grow both in his bizarre prose and in his peculiar aesthetics.

The creative path of Friedrich Hölderlin (1770-1843) covers a relatively short period of time - from 1792 to 1804, when the poet's spiritual development was prematurely interrupted by a mental disorder. In time, Hölderlin's work coincided with the years of active work of Goethe and Schiller and the initial stage of romanticism, and the poet himself is often considered in line with the phenomena "between classicism and romanticism." The great Weimarians, however, did not accept him into their circle. Schiller, however, contributed to the publication of Hölderlin's poems and the novel Hyperion, but Goethe limited himself to advice that testified to a complete misunderstanding of the young poet's creative aspirations. Both of them were inclined to see in Hölderlin a follower of the Stürmerism and from their new positions condemned his subjectivism. Hölderlin's subjectivism, however, had a different quality. This was not a return to Sturm und Drang, but the assertion of a new, romantic worldview. The cult of antiquity, characteristic of Hölderlin, gave rise to correlating his work with the system of Weimar classicism. Hölderlin, however, has a different perception. ancient mythology than in Schiller's Gods of Greece or Goethe's Iphigenia in Tauris.

Winckelmann's ideal noble simplicity and calm grandeur, ”which Goethe largely followed, Schiller’s conviction in the irretrievability of ancient beauty, his theory of aesthetic education Hölderlin opposed the active assertion of a humanistic program in which ancient images were comprehended in the light of the ideas and principles of the French Revolution. Hölderlin's ancient Greek myths are organically intertwined with the myths created by the French revolutionaries. Researchers of the poet’s work (in particular, N. Ya. Berkovsky) noted this feature of the figurative system of his lyrics: “Hymn to Humanity” (1791), “Hymn to Friendship” (1791), hymns to freedom (1790-1792) reminded not only the pathos of speeches in Convention, but also the republican holidays organized by the Jacobins in honor of the Supreme Being, in honor of Freedom and Reason.

Many threads Hölderlin's work is connected with the traditions of Rousseau. In the context of the Hymn to Humanity, he conceives of Rousseau as the forerunner of the revolution; the ideas of the "Social Contract" naturally fit into the concept of heroic antiquity. Finally, in line with the same tradition, Hölderlin develops his concept of nature. Nature appears to him both as a criterion for evaluating human behavior, and as the original element, the cosmos, within which a person exists, either breaking away from it, or returning to it.

Hölderlin's ideal is a universal harmonic personality. But the realization of the unattainability of this ideal in post-revolutionary society determines the deep tragedy of the poet's worldview. Together with all the romantics, he severely judges this society, calling it in a letter to his brother in September 1793 "corrupt, slavishly submissive, inert": "... I love the humanity of the coming centuries."

Hölderlin's figurative system is complex and, as a rule, does not allow for an unambiguous interpretation. Its leitmotif is a romantic confrontation between the ideal and reality, and the tragic sound of this leitmotif intensifies over the years. This is the sharp difference between Hölderlin and the contemporary romantics of the Jena school, with their pathos of universality and faith in the power of art.

With the greatest completeness, Hölderlin's tragic worldview is expressed in the novel Hyperion (vol. 1 - 1797, vol. 2 - 1799). This largely final work absorbed the entire historical experience of the poet, all the main problems that worried him for a whole decade. The hero of the novel, Hyperion, sees his vocation in establishing the high principles of humanity and freedom, equality and brotherhood of all people, dreams of reviving the highest ethical standards bequeathed by the heroes of the ancient city-republics. “Not to know the measure in the great, even though your earthly limit is immensely small, is divine” - these words are put as an epigraph to the novel.

The hero and the heroine (Diotima) are distinguished by the maximalism of feelings and aspirations, which, however, is fraught with the danger of an insoluble conflict. Real life soon brutally shatters the illusion. The disappointment of the hero of the novel is akin to the disappointment of Schiller's Karl Moor. Hyperion blames himself for trying to "implant paradise with the help of a gang of robbers."

Hölderlin is very stingy in depicting external events. Sometimes "Hyperion" is compared with "The Suffering of Young Werther". But the similarity here is only external - a novel in letters; the difference is in the worldview, the artistic method, the type of the hero. The very nature of the conflict in Hölderlin is different from that of Goethe, and the main idea is different from that of Schiller. Hyperion opposes not only the world of social evil, but also the whole reality. If Werther's personal happiness is destroyed by Charlotte's marriage, then the love of Hyperion and Diotima is a tragic discrepancy between ideal and reality; the obstacle to happiness is not a rival and not a specific social system, but the disorder of the world itself, in which the human personality cannot reveal the possibilities inherent in it.

Fragments of the tragedy "The Death of Empedocles" have been preserved in three versions of 1798-1800. (publ. 1846). In the image of the ancient Greek thinker, who claimed to be a prophet, to divinity, the romantic Hölderlin emphasizes the heroic loneliness of the thinker, the conflict with the world that does not understand him, and, finally, the idea of ​​merging man with nature, realized in the unusual death of the hero. However, the concept of the tragedy about Empedocles did not fully develop for the poet, and the work remained unfinished.

Hölderlin's work did not receive a decent response from his contemporaries. Although some of his ideas were close to the quest of the Yenians (first of all, the idea of ​​universality), neither his Hellenism nor the pathos of the struggle for a happy future were understood and accepted by them. Hölderlin was even more alien to the Heidelbergers, especially to their nationalist aspirations.

In general, early romanticism was fraught with an insoluble contradiction: romantic irony implied not only the overcoming of everything finite associated with the real world, it also undermined the foundations of the romantic ideal. The optimism of the early romantics was crumbling before our eyes.

The tragedy of the socio-historical situation in Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. was clearly reflected not only among the romantics, but also in later work Friedrich Schiller. The few years that he had left to live in the 19th century were filled with intense creative work, the search for new themes and new artistic means for developing them. At the same time, Schiller, remaining on the whole in educational positions and recognizing historical meaning of the social changes that had taken place (“the old forms of the foundation were crushed,” he wrote in the 1801 poem “The Beginning of a New Age”), at the same time he experienced confusion before reality, which no longer left room for enlightenment illusions (“And on the whole earth immeasurable there are places for ten lucky No").

Schiller actively rejected the principles of the romantic school, more than once spoke out against the Jenians, ridiculing the Schlegel brothers in The Xenia. One can understand that Kant's student did not accept Fichte's subjective idealism, that the admirer of ancient harmony was wary of the destruction of this harmony. In the works and theoretical statements of the early German romantics, Schiller saw only artistic arbitrariness, and not an aesthetic system dictated by the needs of the time. But Schiller's judgments about the romantics far from determined the essence of the very internal connections of his worldview and creativity, in particular poetic, with romanticism.

A complex process takes place, during which it is revealed that Weimar classicism (precisely in its Schillerian version) anticipated the aesthetics of romanticism with separate facets and a doctrine of the high role of art, and in particular the idea of ​​​​aesthetic education proclaimed by Schiller. It is no coincidence that the German democrats of the 30s of the 19th century, who announced the end of the "artistic period" in German literature, combined in this concept both Weimar classicism and romanticism. And in Russia, V. G. Belinsky generally attributed Schiller to the romantics (which was largely facilitated by the translations of V. A. Zhukovsky).

It is also significant that the aesthetic theory of the Schlegel brothers was prepared by the concept of naive and sentimental poetry, formulated by Schiller in 1795. contemporary artist, according to Schiller, either criticizes reality that does not meet the ideal (in satire), or expresses longing for the ideal (in elegy). Based on this terminology, the "elegiac" approach also characterizes many works of romantic poetry, since the theme of discord between the ideal and life is one of the central ones in romanticism. An “elegiac” (more precisely, tragic) worldview is manifested in many poems of the late Schiller: “Cassandra” (1802), “The Triumph of the Victors” (1803), “The Wayfarer” (1803). In particular, "The Triumph of the Victors" - one of the masterpieces of his late lyrics - has its own tragic meaning, for victory is colored both by the bitterness of losses and anxiety for the future.

Schiller the playwright continues his search, begun in the mid-1990s, taking into account the experience of romanticism. After the psychological drama Mary Stuart (1800), he creates the romantic tragedy The Maid of Orleans (1801). The system of artistic images in this tragedy is polemically sharpened against the whole idea of ​​Voltaire's heroic poem. If the French enlightener deheroized the legendary image, then Schiller once again puts Jeanne d'Arc on a heroic pedestal, while preserving and even enhancing everything wonderful and fantastic in her history. This was Schiller's only experiment as a playwright in the genre of drama with a fantastic motivation. And for the first time, Schiller raised the national theme on such a grand scale. Together with Hölderlin's Hyperion, The Maid of Orleans anticipated the problems of many works of the first third of the 19th century related to national liberation movements.

The Bride of Messina (1802) by Schiller is a tragedy with choirs, and the choir performs in two different functions: it somehow contemplates and reflects from the outside, outside the play, but in communication with the viewer; it appears as a person acting, representing certain groups of the population of Messina. At the same time, in terms of genre, this "drama of fate" is close to the "rock tragedies" of the romantics.

The article with the substantiation of the role of the choir, prefaced by the drama, is an important theoretical document in the legacy of Schiller. The playwright opposes both romantic arbitrariness and the desire to "imitate reality." At the same time, Schiller does not at all strive to restore the structure of the ancient performance, for which he was often reproached; endowing the choir with two functions, he proposes to update the modern theater and enrich the means of its influence on the viewer. B. Brecht in his discussions about “ epic theater referred in particular to this article.

One of the pinnacles of Schiller's late dramaturgy is William Tell (1804). Features of the plot associated with the depiction of the popular uprising required the search for a new structure of the drama. Two years before its creation, Schiller was thinking about this structure, setting himself the goal (he wrote about this to G. Koerner on 9. IX. 1802) - “to clearly and convincingly show on stage whole nation under certain local conditions, a whole distant era and, most importantly, a completely local, almost individual phenomenon. The mastery of reproducing the Swiss "local color" is another example of the rapid movement of Schiller, his relentless search, continuous renewal of artistic means. In the preface to "The Bride of Messina" he defended the artist's right to conventionality, "William Tell" is the least conventional of all his dramas.

Historical in plot, the drama at the same time was a lively and passionate response to the events of the last 15 years. For all the contradictory nature of his attitude towards the French Revolution, Schiller was able to feel that the events beyond the Rhine, and above all the entry into the arena of the masses, overturned the old ideas about the driving forces of history. At the end of the drama, the old nobleman Attinghausen, having learned that the peasants are rising to fight against the Austrians without the support of chivalry, “in the greatest surprise” utters significant words: “... other forces will continue to lead the people to greatness.”

In The Maid of Orleans, the heroine spoke on behalf of the people, but at the same time she towered over the people as an exceptional person, acting on her own will. In the drama "William Tell" representatives of the people themselves dominate. Wilhelm Tell is not even present on Rütli and only later joins the popular movement, killing the Austrian governor and thereby fulfilling the will of his fellow citizens.

William Tell is the last completed drama of the writer. Death interrupted his work on the drama from the Russian history "Dmitry". Schiller's impostor Dmitry is a tragic hero, because at first he was sincerely convinced that he was the son of Ivan IV, and he learns the truth about his origin already on the outskirts of Moscow. The two acts written by Schiller and the plan for subsequent ones testify to the scale of the plan associated with the problem of power and the relationship between the ruler and the people.

The structure of Schiller's drama was constantly changing, there were significant changes in the very method of depicting a human character. But regardless of this, throughout his entire career, Schiller strove to present a hero - the bearer of one or another positive program, the spokesman for the educational ideal. It was in this sense that Schiller called himself an idealist.

In his later work, Schiller did not escape the influence of the social and ideological situation that gave rise to romanticism. But this influence did not make him a romantic - he was quite firmly associated with a complex of educational ideas.

Schiller resisted all influences, but, remaining an original artist, he absorbed many of the artistic discoveries of his contemporaries, especially Goethe with his spontaneous attraction to realism. In particular, comparing "William Tell" with the trilogy about Wallenstein, one cannot fail to note the deepening of historicism, the overcoming of the features of rationalism, so characteristic of Schiller in the 90s of the 18th century. The artistic method of "William Tell" in many aspects anticipates the critical realism XIX century.

The influence of Schiller's work, and especially his dramaturgy, on the public consciousness was enormous. In the theaters of many countries, first of all, pathos associated with the images of program heroes found its lively response. IN Russia XIX V. Schiller became, in the words of N. G. Chernyshevsky, "a participant in mental development." In the first years of Soviet power, his early dramas caused a great public outcry in the Soviet theater.

A complex social and ideological situation developed in Germany during the years of the war of liberation against Napoleon (1806-1813). The war against the French occupiers was just, national liberation. But it was conducted under the leadership of the feudal rulers. Under the motto "With God, for the king and the fatherland," everything French was condemned, including the revolution, which had so frightened the German conservatives. It was during these years that the ideology of nationalism was formed, which later played such a fatal role in German history. That is why Goethe did not support the war of liberation, while Jean-Paul Richter, Friedrich von Celn and Friedrich Buchholz wanted the war of liberation to end with internal reforms as well. But many did not escape the influence of nationalist ideology, moreover, they made a significant contribution to its establishment. So, G. von Kleist in the Catechism of the Germans called for hating Napoleon and all the French.

The most popular poet of the war of liberation was Theodor Körner (1791-1813), a poet-warrior who participated in battles as part of Colonel Lützow's "black shooters" detachment and fell on the battlefield. In his poems, there are pathetic calls for the extermination of the French - in the name of establishing the legal order that existed in Germany. Posthumously, his military lyrics were published in the collection Lyre and Sword (1814).

A complex set of ideas is represented by the legacy of the poet and publicist Ernst Moritz Arndt (1769-1860). His publicistic activity at the beginning of the century brought on him the displeasure of the Prussian authorities, because he advocated the elimination of serfdom where it still existed, criticized philistinism, loyalty, and apoliticality. However, during the war, Arndt's position was a compromise - the unity of the Germans was conceived by him not only as the unity of the German lands, but also as the unity of Germans of all classes. At the same time, he met the decisions of the Congress of Vienna critically.

In general, the lyrics and journalism of the liberation movement left a definite mark on the history of German poetry in the 19th century. Poets sought to speak on behalf of the people and for the people, so their songs were widely disseminated. And in subsequent years, some of these songs began to sound like a call for the democratic renewal of Germany. Thus, Arndt's "Fatherland of the Germans" was sung at the Vienna barricades in 1848.

Certain aspects of the work of Friedrich de la Motte Fouquet (1777-1843) are connected with the period of the liberation war. In any case, it was during these years - more precisely, from 1800 to 1816 - that his works on the German Middle Ages enjoyed the greatest popularity, responding to the mood of the general national upsurge. The author of numerous novels, fairy tales, short stories, however, he very quickly lost contact with readers, because this singer of chivalry was deprived of an elementary sense of time; most of what he wrote, literary historians refer to the trivial literature of romanticism. At the same time, his “quixoticism”, which caused a smile in Heine, was not an aesthetic pose - he was sincerely devoted to his romantic ideal, creating a kind of myth about the Middle Ages with his knightly code of honor.

Of the vast legacy of Fouquet, only a few short stories and fairy tales have entered German literature; among them, the story "Ondine" (1811), a poetic tale about the love of a mermaid for a knight, gained world fame.

A special place in the literary movement of the first decade of the XIX century. occupies the work of the playwright and short story writer Heinrich von Kleist (1777-1811). He entered the history of German literature as the most tragic of the romantics.

The category of the tragic in the worldview of the Romantics stemmed from the very concept of the individual opposing the hostile outside world. This concept, as already noted, was generated by the era of the revolution. The catastrophic nature of the transition from illusions to harsh reality determined the essential features in Kleist's worldview. A stay in Paris (1803) increased his distaste for bourgeois civilization, and he dreamed of a patriarchal idyll in the spirit of Rousseau. But in his very work there was nothing resembling an idyll - on the contrary, it was oversaturated with irresolvable conflicts and catastrophes.

During Kleist's lifetime, many of his dramas were not recognized and the theaters did not stage them. Thus, Goethe, the director of the Weimar theater, essentially rejected Kleist the playwright, not accepting, first of all, his brokenness and irrationality. “In me, this writer, with the purest willingness on my part to take sincere part in it, always aroused horror and disgust, like an organism beautifully created by nature, seized by an incurable disease.” We have to admit that the great Goethe failed to appreciate the enormity of Kleist's talent only because many of the ideas and images of the writer were alien to him. Kleist really was a kind of antipode to Goethe, and this is especially clearly revealed in his drama Penthesilea (1808), written on an antique plot.

Kleist's interpretation of antiquity differs sharply from its interpretation in the classicist and enlightenment traditions. Of course, the antiquity of Winckelmann and Weimar classicism was not genuine Greek antiquity—it was largely conventional and idealized. But Kleist "barbarizes" his heroine and introduces characters that could truly only evoke horror in Goethe. Captured by an outburst of violent passion for Achilles, Penthesilea, however, cannot defeat him in an open battle and, having been defeated, sets the dogs on him. Pathology, the madness of the heroine is presented in a naturalistic, naked way. Antiquity as a form of expressing the tragic also appears in another play, Amphitryon (1807), which is largely polemical in relation to Plautus and Molière, who wrote on this plot. Thus, the concept of antiquity is contested, not only Weimar, but also early Romantic: for F. and A. V. Schlegel, the concepts of integrity, harmony, and joy were associated with antiquity.

Two tragedies were written by Kleist on plots from the Middle Ages: The Schroffenstein Family (1803), Kathen from Heilbronn (1810). The first one is close in the genre of “tragedy of rock”, the second one is a fairy-tale drama, in the center of which is the ideal image of the daughter of a gunsmith from Heilbronn Kathen, seized with a fatal, like Penthesilea, love for the knight Count von Strahl. But, unlike Penthesilea, Ketchen goes to any humiliation, while remaining faithful and devotion to his beloved. In this glorification of fidelity, not only was the maximalism of feeling expressed, but echoes of feudal ethical norms are also heard. Thus, the play cannot be judged according to the laws historical genre. True, many participants in the depicted events bear the signs of the era, but the development of the dramatic conflict is determined by the heroine, who belongs to another world - the world of a legend or a fairy tale. This fabulousness of the image, of course, is far from folklore: Kathen is the heroine of a literary fairy tale, the embodiment of the romantic concept of the world and man. Prophetic dreams and forebodings form an organic part of the romantic motivation for action.

The comedy The Broken Jug (1808) by Kleist falls out of all his dramatic work, full of tragedy. The content of the comedy is the trial of the lawsuit of Martha Rull concerning a broken jug. Kleist masterfully mastered the art of comedic intrigue. During the trial, different versions of events are played (for example, three versions of the loss of the judge's wig). Literary historians often unconditionally attribute this comedy to realism, referring to its juicy everyday coloring, realistic motivation for the conflict, lively colloquial language, and social types. And yet it is wrong to see in it only a realistic satire on legal proceedings. The structure of comedy is more complex. The multi-valued symbolism of the jug, the irony that permeates the entire course of the action, the daring play with versions allow us to speak of the romantic nature of the comic in this play.

Kleist experienced the invasion of Napoleon's troops painfully both as a publicist (Catechism of the Germans) and as a poet, taking the most implacable nationalist position. In the drama The Battle of Hermanus (1808), he reproduced an episode from ancient history in such a way that it was quite obvious that by the Romans one should mean the modern French. Kleist created this drama, trying to raise the Germans to fight, while he described the leader of the Germans as merciless and cruel, not recognizing any rules of war when it comes to exterminating enemies.

The events in Kleist's last tragedy "Prince Friedrich of Homburg" (1810) take place in 1675, when, after the victory over the Swedes, the rise of Prussia began. Elector Friedrich Wilhelm is presented in the tragedy as wise and ultimately just, and the hero, the Prince of Homburg, is boundlessly devoted to the Elector and is ready to accept a death sentence from him. The meaning of the tragic conflict boils down to the question: what is true loyalty - in conscious service to the cause of the sovereign or in unquestioning blind obedience to his commands. His decision is ambiguous: Kleist does not rise to the point of condemning autocratic arbitrariness, but he cannot accept the soulless formalism of the state and military machine either.

Kleist's contribution to the history of German and European short stories is significant. The artistic discoveries of the German romantics, along with the lyrics, are especially noticeable in this genre. Kleist stands at its origins. He created a short story of extraordinary emotional power, turning the story of a case, "news" (in Goethe's terminology) into a work where social and ethical conflict is brought to the greatest tragic tension.

The short story "The Betrothal at Saint-Domingue" (1811) is notable for its appeal to the plot associated with the revolution in France, and therefore makes it possible to trace the origins of the author's tragic concept. The German romantic saw confirmation of his doubts and disappointments in the course of events on the island. According to Kleist, the Convention made a thoughtless decision, because, having unleashed passions, not only did not approve the principles of justice, but shook the entire moral world order. The very absurdity of the finale - the hero kills the girl he loves and loves - emphasizes the tragic disorder modern world When, according to Kleist, the normal criteria of human behavior are lost, trust between people is undermined and a person is completely defenseless.

In the short story "An Earthquake in Chile" (1807), events are pushed into the past, circumstances are drawn as exceptional. A general catastrophe - the earthquake of 1647 - unexpectedly brings liberation to the heroes of the novel: the young man Jeronimo is released from the ruined prison, and his beloved Josefa emerges from the ruins of the monastery. But a crowd of believing Spaniards brutally cracks down on two innocent young people. The circle is closed: you can save yourself among the collapsing stone buildings, but you cannot save yourself from fate, which this time has chosen people who are fanatically convinced that it is the heretics who are guilty of shaking the earth's crust.

The story "Michael Kohlhaas" (1810) - wide historical painting, and many historical figures are involved in the course of events: Martin Luther, Elector of Saxony and others. The realities of the era, the social types characteristic of Germany in the 16th century, give rise to talk about the features of realism. However, the tragic conflict of the story is connected with the romantic perception of post-revolutionary reality. There is a well-known connection between "Michael Kohlhaas" and "Prince Friedrich of Homburg" (they were written at about the same time) - in both works the question of the right and duty of man is explored.

Kleist already on the first page presents his hero as "one of the most just and at the same time one of the most terrible people of his time", whom "a sense of justice made a murderer and a robber." When Junker Wenzel von Tronck inflicted damage on the hero and insulted his servant, Kohlhaas filed a complaint against the willful feudal lord, demanding justice. Not having achieved it, Kohlhaas was indignant and began to administer the court himself. An avenger force is formed around him, strong enough to lay siege to an entire city. But, unlike the leaders of the recent peasant war, Kohlhaas does not think about the destruction of the feudal rulers, moreover, he wants to get justice from them. At the end of the story, this justice triumphs formally: by court decision, Kohlhaas is returned the horses taken from him by the junker Tronck, but right there he, as a rebel, is put to death. (This situation of a paradoxical verdict in a slightly different version was later repeated by Hugo in the novel "The Ninety-Third Year" in the scene with Lantenac and the man who heroically saved the cannon on the ship.)

Literary historians express different opinions about the ending: some say that Kleist criticizes feudal arbitrariness, sympathizing with the just anger of Kohlhaas; others see the finale as an idealization of the feudal ruler. But the content of the story cannot be assessed in a straightforward manner, in the center of it is not a criticism of a particular social system, but an ethical problem, a problem of personality, which Kleist comprehended in the light of the historical experience of the late 18th - early 19th centuries. He is frightened by the elements of rebellion, although he shares the pathos of seeking justice, which his hero is obsessed with. The paradox of the finale emphasizes the insolubility of the conflict between the individual and state institutions. This is just one aspect of Kleist's tragic worldview. Kleist the novelist and Kleist the playwright gained his greatness thanks to his masterful portrayal tragic conflicts, mental struggles of the hero, involved in the cycle of social contradictions, often finding himself, in modern terms, in a "boundary situation".

The war of liberation against Napoleon brought to life a set of ideas that differed significantly from the judgments and views of the romantics of the Jena school. Now the concepts of nation, nationality, historical consciousness are being brought to the fore. A peculiar center of the romantic movement in the first decade of the XIX century. became Heidelberg, where a circle of poets and prose writers was formed, representing a new generation of romantics and showing an increased interest in everything German, history and culture. This interest often acquired a nationalist character. Anti-French sentiments were combined with the idea of ​​national exclusiveness, the condemnation of Napoleon - with the rejection of the French Revolution. But the national idea at the same time fertilized German culture. Romantics of the second stage awakened interest in national antiquity. During these years, monuments of medieval German literature were published and commented on. The outstanding merit of the Heidelberg romantics was the appeal to folk song. The collection of songs "The Magic Horn of a Boy" (1805-1808), published by A. von Arnim and C. Brentano, caused a great resonance in the country, Goethe approved it. The Heidelbergers continued Herder's initiative, but with a very significant adjustment: Herder was interested in the "voices of the peoples", Arnim and Brentano were focused exclusively on the German national folk song tradition. (It should be noted that a significant part of the collection consisted of author's poems belonging to little-known poets of the 16th-17th centuries, forgotten by that time; however, their inclusion in the collection had its reasons - they were widely distributed and often perceived as folk songs.)

The thematic composition of the collection was quite wide: songs of love and everyday life, soldiers, robbers, songs about nuns. Few songs of social protest coexisted with religious ones that affirmed resignation to fate. Of course, folklore also captured the prejudices and moods that exist among the people, generated by fear of the forces of nature and of feudal rulers; at the same time, there was a certain bias in the selection of the text, reflecting the conservative mindset of the compilers. The class-guild system of the Middle Ages, patriarchal relations, combined with stable norms of moral behavior, seemed to them an ideal in comparison with modern society, marked by the struggle of selfish interests and the devaluation of ethical norms. Therefore, Arnim and Brentano preferred songs that captured the features of the patriarchal way of life, primordially German, in their opinion. But nevertheless, the feelings and moods of countless generations are expressed in these songs, and Heine could rightly say that "the heart of the German people beats" in them.

An even wider response throughout the world was given to "Children's and Family Tales", published by the brothers Jacob (1785-1863) and Wilhelm (1786-1859) Grimm (vol. 1 - 1812, vol. 2 - 1815; composition and text in the final edition - 1822). The theme of fairy tales fully reflected that multifaceted art world, which has developed over the centuries in the popular mind. There were also fairy tales about animals, and fairy tales, and fairy tales, in different situations, pushing the smart, kind, brave fairy tale hero(often this is a simple peasant) with his opponents both in human form and in the guise of various monsters embodying the evil beginning of the world.

In the collection of the Brothers Grimm, in comparison with the collections of fairy tales of other peoples, there are fewer satirical plots. There is reason to believe that in some cases the compilers abandoned accusatory options, preferring texts in which the moral idea prevailed over the social one.

The Brothers Grimm had to solve a difficult textological problem, determining to what extent the original ancient form of the fairy tale should be preserved and to what extent it meets the standards of the modern literary language. Grimms did not consider themselves only collectors and publishers: being experts in the history of language and national culture, they not only commented on texts, but also gave them such a stylistic form that made their collection an outstanding literary monument of the Romantic era. Therefore, the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm did not become an ethnographic rarity, of interest only to specialists. They are an integral part of German literature.

The merits of the Grimm brothers in the history of German culture are multifaceted: they studied medieval literature, the mythology of the Germanic peoples, laid the foundations of German linguistics. Jakob Grimm began in 1852 the publication of an academic dictionary of the German language - a publication for which one lifetime was not enough and which was completed only in 1961 by the Academies of Sciences in Berlin (GDR) and Göttingen (FRG).

Turning to the national past, the Heidelberg romantics inevitably projected into it the problems of the present that worried them. An expressive example is the prose of Achim von Arnim (1781-1831), who entered the history of German literature both as an original short story writer and the author of two novels: Poverty, Wealth, Guilt and Redemption of Countess Dolores (1810) and The Keepers of the Crown ( 1817). Coming from an old noble family, Arnim tragically experienced the decline of his class. His work reflected the longing for the patriarchal past, the search for positive moral values ​​in it, which he would like to oppose to modernity. But at the same time, as a thoughtful artist, Arnim could not help but see the inevitability of the changes taking place. The experience of the post-revolutionary years convinces him that the old regime cannot be revived, and in Germany itself he does not see real forces capable of uniting the nation - hence the romantic dream of her spiritual enlightenment and revival. This problematic forms the ideological basis of the novel "Keepers of the Crown". Its action takes place at the beginning of the 16th century, during the reign of Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg, but the historical background is very arbitrary. Arnim's novel is both an expression of the romantic dream that the restoration of the Hohenstaufen empire could restore Germany to its lost greatness, and at the same time the recognition of the complete failure of this dream.

Among the short stories of Arnim most famous enjoys "Isabella of Egypt" (1812), a fantastic short story. A romantic story about the tragic love of the gypsy Isabella and Charles V is inscribed in a semi-historical, semi-fantastic background. The idea of ​​the fragility of the human lot runs through the whole novel. Man is a plaything of chance and his passions, his freedom of will is relative, even if we are talking about such a ruler as Karl. According to Arnim, Karl's main sin is that he listened too much to the voice of the evil spirit - Alraun, who was looking for treasures for him. The anti-bourgeois theme in Arnim, like in many other German romantics, is mystified. “Woe to us, the descendants of his era!” the author exclaims, as if the ill-fated Alraun predetermined the victory of monetary interests in the 19th century. “Arnim derives reliable consequences from unreliable causes” (N. Ya. Berkovsky).

Historical flavor - although in a different light - has a short story "Raphael and his neighbor" (1824), a new polemical transcription of the image of the "divine Raphael" for romantics. Raphael, like Wackenroder, is a brilliant master who has an amazing gift for embodying an “unearthly” spirit. But in Arnim, this image is overlaid with ideological reminiscences from Schlegel's Lucinda, which in this case partly contribute to the reconstruction of a more faithful historical color, because they convey one of the important facets of the Renaissance worldview - the rehabilitation of the flesh. However, the integrity of the humanistic ideal has been called into question. Rafael finds himself between two women: the very earthy, sensual Gita and the sublime Benedetta. The author introduces many irrational moments into the motivation of events; the struggle between the divine and carnal principles takes on an irrational character both in the soul of Raphael and in artistic images that it creates. Arnim thus rejects the enthusiasm of Wackenroder and the entire Jena school for this great era of European culture. Here, as in many other works, conservative beliefs prevent the writer from a historically objective assessment of the past.

Clemens Brentano (1778-1842), a poet, prose writer and playwright, embodied in his work with the greatest poignancy the main tendencies of the Heidelberg school, its ups and downs. In the atmosphere of those years, when he enthusiastically listened to and recorded folk songs during trips to the Rhine, preparing them for publication, Brentano's own poetic voice was also formed. His poems and songs of the first decade of the century are marked by simplicity and clarity of form, musicality. But the tradition of folk songs in Brentano's lyrics - love and philosophy - is combined with an acutely dramatic depiction of a person's fate. Thus, the impressions of the Rhine inspired the poet to create the original ballad "Laure Ley" (1802). The romantic image of the Rhine beauty, the sorceress Lorelei, attracted the attention of many poets, who then created new variations on the Brentan plot (Eichendorff, Heine, Gerard de Nerval, and others). Brentano's ballad, with its tragic intonations, fits into the general context of his love lyrics. Poems and songs about broken fidelity, about lost or unrequited love thematically precede the motifs of W. Müller's "Winter Journey" and Heine's "Lyrical Intermezzo". But, unlike Muller and Heine, the loneliness of the lyrical hero, his alienation, is revealed by Brentano as a fatal feature of human existence. And perhaps there was no other romantic poet in Germany who would so earnestly - and not even tragically, but in the intonation of some pacifying fatalism - treated the theme of death, as Brentano did.

The legacy of Brentano as a prose writer is small, but represented by different genres. In the novel Godwey (1801-1802), the intricate plot is intended to show the complexity of human destinies themselves. The author argues with the concept of the identity of the Jena romantics, casting doubt on its moral meaning. Among the short stories, the most popular is the tragic Tale of the Glorious Kasperl and the Handsome Annerl (1817), in which the author gives features of the fatal inevitability of the death of two lovers. The bearer of folk wisdom is an old peasant woman who glorifies obedience to the will of God as the main virtue.

Soon after the completion of this novel, Brentano's religious sentiments intensify, he not only refuses creative activity, but declares art itself to be sinful in nature. “For a long time I have experienced some kind of fear of any poetry in which the artist expresses himself, and not God,” wrote Brentano Hoffmann in 1816. This idea is revealed in the large poetic cycle “Romances of the Rose Wreath” (completed in 1810 -1812). It meant complete dissolution in the religious idea, severing all social ties, self-isolation, renunciation of independence - in essence, the renunciation of the romantic concept of personality, which involved active opposition of the sovereign human "I" to the world around. And the name itself is ambiguous: "Rosenkranz" is not only a "pink wreath", but also a "rosary".

(early 1830s - 1847)

Thackeray's early work characterized by searches in the field of narration. He creates stories, writes poetry. He also acts as an artist, illustrating his works. As a satirist Thackeray became interested in such a genre as parody. He I felt very well the costs of any genre, and especially the genres of romantic literature, popular in certain circles, for example, in women's circles.

So he created a cycle of parodies of famous romantic authors called "Novels of famous writers" (Cooper, Dumas père, Walter Scott, etc.).

« The Book of Snobs" (1846-1847).

The concept itself "snob "was widely known in England back in 18th century. It signified the swagger and arrogance of the English landed aristocracy. As a slang word, it was used by Cambridge students : "snob" as a poor student . And the student newspaper in which Thackeray collaborated had the same name.

In 19th century culture the word "snob" already meant greed, hypocrisy, hypocrisy and arrogance in general. IN "Book of snobs » it applies to absolutely everyone, from the monarch to the servants (52 essays). Thus, this concept is interpreted by the writer as both a national and a universal quality.

Snob, according to Thackeray, - “This is a frog that wants to swell up to the size of a bull…”. Even in himself, Thackeray found this quality.

"Vanity Fair" (1847-1848) -

opens a new page in the history of English literature of the 19th century. Novel innovation:

Title is symbolic. In Thackeray's time, the titles of works were most often associated with stories or the names of heroes. The title of Thackeray's novel is borrowed from an allegorical novel by an English writer 17th century John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. During his journey, the protagonist of this novel finds himself at a vanity fair, or rather, according to the translation, at the "bazaar of worldly vanity", where everything is sold for money: titles, ranks, positions, even love.

This is the first allegorical designation of modern venal England. There is also a second content of Vanity Fair - this is an allegorical depiction of human life in general ("vanity of vanities - all is vanity").

In terms of genre – This is a novel that has absorbed a large number of genre varieties: an upbringing novel (the life story of two heroines), a review novel, or a panorama novel ( private life heroes determined not by happy accidents, but by specific historical events), family romance (family theme: Sedley, Osborne, Crowley families); picaresque romance (the story of Becky Sharp - her red hair as a sign of cheating); A as well as a satirical, socio-psychological, philosophical novel.

The composition of the novel is based on the principles of the enlightenment novel.

First, there is the Puppeteer, who addresses the reader. He puts on the mask of the Dollmaker to voice the well-known Shakespearean metaphor: “Life is a game, a theater, and we are all actors in it.”

He presents his dolls, who will become the main characters of the novel: “here ... the famous Becky doll, which showed extraordinary dexterity in the joints and turned out to be very agile on the wire; the Emilia doll, although it won a much more limited circle of admirers, is nevertheless finished by the artist and dressed up with the greatest diligence; Dobbin's figure, albeit clumsy in appearance, dances most amusingly ... "; there is also the figure of the Unholy Nobleman… The puppeteer promises to show “the most diverse spectacles”: bloody battles… scenes of military life… love episodes, as well as comic ones…. Around the Dollmaker is a humming Fair, which he looks at “with a feeling of deep sadness ...” “Here they eat and drink without any measure, fall in love and change, who cries and who rejoices; here they fight and dance ... "that is, an image of Life is created.

The puppeteer tells us that the main character in the novel is the fair. In the novel, the game beginning is clearly expressed.

But, besides the Dollmaker, there is also an ironic Author who introduces himself How "the author who knows everything" and at the same time as "an author who knows nothing." What does the second definition mean? The author cannot know everything, because life is unpredictable. After all, one day a tragic accident can destroy it. This is a realistic approach.

The novel has an intriguing subtitle "A novel without a hero" Why such a subtitle? The hero's problem was very relevant in Victorian England.

We must keep in mind the following circumstance: the novel is intended primarily for ma'am . As you know, they almost always have their own idea. about the main character as the perfect hero (remember Madame Bovary). It must be a character who goes through many trials while maintaining his best qualities. This is a romantic perception of reality.

By the time the novel was written, Thackeray himself had developed his own views on man.

A fan of Cervantes, 18th century English literature, and especially Fielding, he believed that “Man is a mixture of the heroic and the ridiculous, the noble and the base.” The character of a person, according to Thackeray, is formed under the influence of the following circumstances:

- its origin; innate qualities; the influence of the circumstances of his life.

Prepare an answer to the question: Which of the characters can be called a hero and which hero? Only three heroes can claim this role - Becky Sharp, Emilia Sedley and Dobbin.

German literature of the mid-19th century

Compared with France and England, Germany was still the most politically and economically backward state in Western Europe. During the period under review, it was a feudal state consisting of 38 (36) territories: 2 territories were disputed. Only in 1815, after the fall of Napoleon, these territories were united in the so-called "German Union".

After the end of the Napoleonic occupation in Germany, a monarchical regime is established, which is commonly called Restoration regime . Not to be confused with the French restoration: in Germany, this is a period of recovery after the occupation, a return to peaceful life, stability, and order.

But the German intelligentsia dreams of a political renewal of the country. Therefore, the revolutions of 1830 and 1848 in France were enthusiastically received in Germany. In March 1848, an attempt was even made to commit in Germany "March Revolution" but due to the weakness of the progressive forces, it collapsed.

In connection with these events in the literature Germany develops its own problems and its own system of genres.

For example, the novel as the most important genre of literature of the 19th century was not widely developed in Germany. Why? In order for a novel with a new content to appear, a new era was needed, significant changes in the life of the country. And the existing order caused only criticism.

Those novels that appeared in this period in Germany were largely imitations of the French or English novel.

The prose of this period in Germany develops mainly in small genres - these are short stories and short stories.

On the other hand, drama and poetry, genres that provided an opportunity to emotionally and journalistically reflect the existing reality, are widely used in German literature.

It should be noted that German literature of the middle of the century has largely lost the world significance that it had in previous decades.

By this time, two literary currents were taking shape in German literature.

First - "poetic realism" (1848-1871). This is literature that has been created predominantly by politically and aesthetically liberal and conservative writers, predominantly prose.

Second - "Pre-March Literature" (1840s), that is, the literature preceding the March Revolution of 1848 and produced by writers of both liberal-democratic and revolutionary tendencies. This is mainly - social lyrics, journalism, dramaturgy. Thus, we can talk about "duality" ("bidirectionality") of German literature and culture of the period under study.

"Poetic realism"

The term "poetic realism" belongs to the German writer Otto Ludwig. In his interpretation, "Poetic realism" is a combination in literature of the real and the ideal, the natural and the random, the individual and the typical, the objective content of life and the subjective content of the author. .

Real- in the depiction of reality in its causal relationships, in the social, national and historical determinism of characters, in a huge role in the narration of the details of the outside world.

Ideal - it is a return to romantic ideas and ideals that appeared in literature after 1848 in a new quality and in new forms.