The romantic school

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The romantic school is a polemical work by Heinrich Heine , which Hoffmann & Campe published as a book in 1836 after partial copies in French and German journals . With the articles in French magazines that preceded the writing ( On the History of Newer Beautiful Literature in Germany , 1833), Heine wanted to give the French a different picture of German romantic literature than Madame de Staël with her influential book De l'Allemagne (1813) ( About Germany ) had spread.

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The book appeared as a publication rather mangled by the censors ; 13 pages alone had been cut by the censors.

The romantic school is divided into three books. The first book covers the time from the Middle Ages to Goethe . The following two books deal in portrait-like sketches with the most important philosophers and poets of Romanticism. The second book deals with the brothers Friedrich and August Schlegel as well as the early romantics Ludwig Tieck , Novalis and the philosopher Schelling . The third book deals with the late romanticists from Achim von Arnim to Ludwig Uhland . Since the works of art of the Middle Ages present "the mystical, puzzling, wonderful and exuberant", Heine also attributes them to Romanticism.

For Heine, Goethe holds a special position as a politically “ indifferent pantheist ” and representative of the “art school” that is far from life. With respect he equates him with Homer and Shakespeare . In Goethe he never attacked the poet, only man. In contrast, he takes the romantics sharply into court. In particular, he accuses them of turning to the Catholic Middle Ages, of forcing them into the "old mental dungeon". In the “dog humility and patience of angels” imposed by Catholic Christianity, he sees “the most tried and tested support of despotism ”. As a contrast to the romantic writers, he sees Jean Paul , who is completely isolated in his time. He describes him as the forerunner of the poets of Young Germany , those who do not want to make a distinction "between life and writing, who never separate politics from science, art and religion, and who are at the same time artist, tribune and apostle". With this, not only the romantic school came to an end, but with Goethe's death also the "art period" he had shaped, which was characterized by artistic autonomy and a lack of reality. With its program, Junge Deutschland founded a new school. In the confessions he saw himself as the last poet of the old lyric school and as the pioneer of the “new school”, the “modern German poetry”.

With the connection between literature and politics, Heine defines the role of the modern writer and intellectual. With regard to poetry, however, his relationship with the romantics remained undecided throughout his life, ambivalent and nourished by secret longing.

reception

Manfred Windfuhr , the editor of the Düsseldorf Heine edition, characterizes the font as the “first comprehensive presentation of the closer romanticism”, which is why it should be understood as a “pioneering work”. Even during Heine's lifetime, literary historians with a Hegelian influence ( Karl Rosenkranz , Robert Eduard Prutz , Hermann Hettner , Rudolf Haym ) owed the Romantic School “important impulses and suggestions”.

Web links

Commons : The Romantic School  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jan-Christoph Hauschild, Michael Werner: "The purpose of life is life itself." Heinrich Heine. A biography. Kiepenheuer and Witsch, Cologne, p. 341.
  2. ^ Bernd Kortländer : Heinrich Heine. Reclam, Stuttgart 2003, p. 218.
  3. ^ Heinrich Heine: Complete Works. Volume III: Writings on literature and politics I. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1992, p. 269.
  4. ^ Heinrich Heine: Complete Works. Volume III: Writings on literature and politics I. Scientific book society , Darmstadt 1992, p. 296 f.
  5. ^ Bernd Kortländer: Heinrich Heine. Reclam, Stuttgart 2003, p. 221 f.
  6. ^ <Heinrich Heine: Complete Works. Volume III: Writings on literature and politics I. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1992, p. 264.
  7. ↑ Quoted from Bernd Kortländer: Heinrich Heine. Reclam, Stuttgart 2003, p. 220 f.
  8. ^ Gerhard Höhn: Heine manual. Time, person, work . 3rd, revised. u. exp. Edition. Metzler, Stuttgart 2004, pp. 308 and 317.
  9. ^ Heinrich Heine: Complete Works. Volume II: Poetic prose. Dramatic Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1994, p. 745.
  10. ↑ Uwe Schweikert: Notes. In: Heinrich Heine: Complete Works. Volume III: Writings on literature and politics I. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1992, p. 791.
  11. ↑ Manfred Windfuhr, DHA Volume 8, p. 1048.
  12. ↑ Michael Ansel: The meaning of Heine's "Romantic School" for the Hegelian romantic historiography in the 19th century . In. Heine yearbook 2001. Stuttgart – Weimar 2013, pp. 46–78.