Castle in the air
A castle in the air is an idea or a plan of something that one longs for, wished for or dreamed of, but which is not realistic when reasonably viewed. Analogous terms are, for example, a pipe dream , cloud cuckoo land or fantasy .
In common parlance we speak of “building a castle in the air”. It was created in the 16th century according to the saying “ lock up in the air ”, which means something like: sit in the attic and dream .
The term castle in the air is also used in literature and architecture . Examples are:
- the place of residence of the children's book series about the weather witch Winni, created by children's book author Friederun Reichenstetter .
- a venue of the Berliner Kabarett Anstalt theater . The castle in the air is located between the East Side Gallery and the Warschauer Brücke in the middle of Berlin-Friedrichshain . The self-supporting dome tent has already seen programs from Nina Hagen , Kay Ray , Josef Hader and many other artists.
- Almayer's castle in the air . Roman Joseph Conrad : (Zurich: Haffmans 1992).
- The castle in the air . Novel. Rainer Kreft
- My castle in the air on earth . Katharina v. Arx
Quotes
- Jerome Lawrence, US writer: A neurotic is a person who builds a castle in the air. A psychotic is the person who lives in it. And a psychiatrist is the one who collects the rent.
- In the operetta Frau Luna leaves Paul Lincke sing locks that are in the moon, bring sorrow, darling , where the lack of realism is brought castles in the air advantage.
Web links
Wiktionary: Castle in the air - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations
- Castle in the air. In: Karl Friedrich Wilhelm Wander (Hrsg.): German Sprichwort Lexikon. Volume 3, Leipzig 1873, Col. 251-252.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Sebastian Franck : Proverbs, Beauty, Wise Klugredenn. Inside German and other languages politeness, ornamentation, the highest level of reason and cleverness, [...] felt and understood, used and described by old and present, brought together in several thousand. Egenolf Erben, Frankfurt (1555)