Robespierre (poem by Georg Heym)

The poem Robespierre by Georg Heym was published in 1910 and, together with works such as King Ludwig XVI, Louis Coupet or Danton, forms a cycle of poems by the expressionist author on the French Revolution .

History of origin

Heym's poem relates to the execution of the revolutionary and later dictator Robespierre on July 28, 1794. The sequence and content of the poem is extremely accurate historically: Robespierre wanted to kill himself by shooting himself in the head in order to avoid the guillotine . The bullet only pierced his cheek and smashed his jaw. Robespierre received a makeshift medical treatment and was led to his execution. This incident is understood in Heym's poem on line 2:

“The mouth chews white slime.

He swallows it through his cheeks. "

At the time of publication Heyms Robespierre encountered a lot of alienation, since in the early 20th century a mainly very "happy-naive historicism" was represented, which was without exception interested in "great men, far-sighted leaders and won battles".

content

“He grumbles to himself. The eyes stare

into the wagon straw. The mouth chews white mucus.

He swallows it in through his cheeks.

His foot hangs naked through two of the rafters.

With every push of the car it flies upwards.

The poor chains then rattle like bells.

You can hear the joyful laughter of the children,

Who lifted their mothers out of the crowd.

You tickle his leg, he doesn't notice.

The car stops there. He looks up and looks

At the end of the street the high court is black.

The ash-gray forehead is covered with sweat.

The mouth is terribly contorted on the face.

One waits for the scream. But you don't hear a sound. "

The poem is about the execution of Robespierre in 1794, who emerged as a leading figure from the French Revolution and later became a dictator. The work is made up of no-frills impressions. Robespierre's last minutes are explicitly recorded. 4 passages make up the poem about Robespierre:

• 1. The arrested Robespierre is in a carriage on the way to his execution. Heym alludes to Robespierre's unsuccessful suicide attempt, in which he describes how saliva trickles out of the holes in his cheek.
• 2. The carriage reaches the place of execution, which is flooded with people.
• 3. The car stops.
• 4. Robespierre is placed under the guillotine . Its last seconds are described. He dies.

language

The language and form of the poem are kept very simple: Heym's expression is unadorned and blunt, interestingly a rough contrast to his other works, which are strongly influenced by Expressionism. There is no allegory or imagery. The narrator is neutral, the narrated time is typically longer than the narrative time. There is no first person in the text. This is because Georg Heym was a great enemy of subjectivism. In the end, the objective poem, which is characterized by the "rapid succession of external impressions", leaves the impression of a report.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Marcel Reich-Ranicki (Ed.): 1400 German poems and their interpretations . 1st edition. Insel, Frankfurt am Main 2002, ISBN 3-458-17130-4 , p. 234, 236 (581 p., Limited preview in Google Book Search - Poems).
2. ^ German poems and their interpretations - From Gottfried Benn to Nelly Sachs ; Editor: Marcel Reich-Ranicki; P. 234ff In the belly of history , interpretation by Kurt Oesterle
3. ↑ http://www.dandelon.com/intelligentSEARCH.nsf/alldocs/D83765FF393BDBA3C125723D005AAA22/$File/420000030382.PDF?OpenElement  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ^ German poems and their interpretations - From Gottfried Benn to Nelly Sachs ; Editor: Marcel Reich-Ranicki; P. 234ff In the belly of history , interpretation by Kurt Oesterle
5. ^ German poems and their interpretations - From Gottfried Benn to Nelly Sachs ; Editor: Marcel Reich-Ranicki; P. 234ff In the belly of history , interpretation by Kurt Oesterle