The Silesian weavers
The ballad The Silesian Weavers (also: Weberlied ) by Heinrich Heine is an example of the political poetry of the Vormärz . It is about the misery of the Silesian weavers who dared to revolt against exploitation and falling wages in 1844 and thus drew attention to the grievances that had arisen in the context of the onset of industrialization . (See also: Weber revolt / social question .)
Origin and reactions
The so-called weaver song was published under the title "The poor weavers" on July 10, 1844 in Karl Marx ' Vorwärts! first published and distributed as a leaflet with a circulation of 50,000 in the uprising areas. From 1846 at the latest it bore the current name "The Silesian Weavers" in leaflets.
The Royal Prussian Court of Justice banned the poem because of "its rebellious tone". In Berlin in 1846 a reciter who had dared to perform it publicly was sentenced to prison.
interpretation
Unlike many poems of the time, the so-called Weber song not only laments the exploitation by the factory owners , but also addresses authorities, criticizes general political circumstances and urges change.
In the three internal stanzas, God , the king and the fatherland are accused one after the other . The weavers are very disappointed that, despite desperate requests, they have not received any assistance from God. The king is accused of supporting the rich and using brute force against protesters instead of facing the suffering of the workers.
In the framework stanzas it becomes clear that the weavers are ready to confidently stand up for their interests and persistently work on a fundamental change in Germany. This impression is reinforced by the refrain “We weave, we weave!”.
The poem shows that Heinrich Heine considers the concerns of the workers in the 19th century to be justified and above all blames the political system for their misery. The March Revolution of 1848 confirms his assessment that a profound change in Germany is imminent.
The Silesian Weavers is the best known example of the diverse contemporary literary confrontation with the weavers' uprising in 1844, which awakened public awareness of the social question .
reception
The German metalcore band Heaven Shall Burn was inspired by this poem for the title of their album "Deaf to our prayers". The poem The Silesian Weavers was also set to music by some music interpreters, including the folk band Liederjan on their album “Mädchen, Meister, Mönche”, the folk band Bergfolk , the folk punk band Die Schnitter , the gothic metal band Leichenwetter , the German punk band Kapitulation BoNn auf the album “Feuer!” and the Oi punk band KandesBunzler or the Düsseldorf DIY punk rock band Die Schwarzen Schafe . In the Liederjan scoring it is one of the most widespread and most frequently sung songs in scout and alliance groups today . As part of the second station of the socio-historical work Proletenpassion der Austrian Butterflies , “The Revolution of the Citizens”, the poem is set to music slightly differently. Although it does not belong to the subject of the French Revolution , which predominates here, and also not entirely to the bourgeois economic order, it is more related to Germany, but it marks the beginning of industrialization. T. is addressed from. The German author and musician Achim Amme clearly refers to Heine's poem in his scenes from Colombia from the album Goldrichtig - 50 Jahre SongReiten .
