Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 10.djvu/563

Rh 1:1-zcsvr wnITr:Rs.] been less successful as historians of art than as historians of metaphysics. Iligh distinction has been achieved, among other art historians, by Kugler, Vischer, Carriere, and Liibke. Of historians of literature, especially German literature, there is almost a small army. One of the earliest of these was Gervinus, who, although his critical canons are not now in favour, had an unusual faculty for grouping his materials and sharply deﬁning what seemed to him the essential qualities of particular writers and movements. The history of German literature by Vihnar, although written in an eloquent style, is ‘too partial in its judgments to have permanent value. Koberstein is GERMANY Platen, who belongs rather to the previous period, was Platen 545 one of the many writers whom Heine bitterly attacked, but he was a poet of considerable power. Like Heine himself, he failed in the drama; and even in his successful writings he is not remarkable for wealth of thought or depth of feeling. His odes and sonnets, however, are in language and metre so artistically ﬁnished as to ra11k among the best classical poems of modern times. Borne was another writer whose fame, although the two men were at one time warm friends, suffered from Heine’s satire. He was a manly literary critic, and as a political writer dealt at the despotic Governments of Germany blows which they keenly felt. A school of writers known as Young Germany was deeply Young influenced by Heine, and had the good fortune to be G61‘- singled out for persecution by the confederate dict. Their m‘"‘Y' remarkable rather for industry than for insight; but the literary histories of Julian Schmidt and Gottschall are both marked by decisive, often penetrating, critical judgment. 5-at--:_a——q_ One of the best works of this kind for style, thought, and research is Hettner’s elaborate II istory of Lz'teratm'e in the 1;'i_r/lztemlh C'entm'_7/. and Schiller has excited so much interest throughout Europe, and among the Germans themselves his fame is steadily rising. He professed to care little for what men said of his poetry, yet it is mainly as a lyrical poet that his name lives. His Buck der Lieder is one of the most fascinating collections of lyrics in European literature. Although a deadly enemy of the Romantic school, he had moods, especially in youth, in which he shared its dreami- ness and mysticism; and these qualities he expressed in some of his best songs, but with perfect grace of style and melody. He struck with equally ﬁnished art chords of passion and aspiration beyond the range of even the chief Romanticists, for Heine was in every respect a modern man, penetrated by a love of freedom, and by a high enthusiasm for beauty. Except Goethe, no other German poet achieves his effects by such simple means; with the language of a village maiden he gives shape to feelings and ideas of exquisite reﬁnement and subtlety. His satirical poems are sometimes gross and cynical; but none of them are without touches of humour. In his prose, which deals with a wide range of subjects, he is rather French than German in his love of sparkling epigram and biting wit. Almost every theme, however sacred, gives Heine occasion for mockery, but in the midst of cruel object was to effect a complete revolution in the political and social institutions of Germany, and at the same time they became the propagandists of ideas intended to under- 3io- The Germans possess a vast mass of biographical litera- mine the church. The most important member of the ‘mPlk‘1‘-<- ture, a large proportion of which is rendered almost worth- school was Karl Gutzkow, who wrote a number of dramas less by inartistic treatment. Luther alone forms the sub- which maintain their hold of the stage. He was also the ject of more than one hundred and ﬁfty biographies; yet a author of many romances, of which the chief were Die ' satisfactory study of the Reformer has still to be written. In Ifitter vom Geiste (“ The Knights of the Mind”) and Der recenttimes, however, there hasbeenamarked improvement, Zauberer von Rom (“The Magician of I-Ionle”). These several biographers having conscientiously striven not only works are of enormous length, and their polemical tendency to be thorough in research but to write simply, clearly, and has already begun to weaken their interest. But the lead- vividly. The ﬁrst to set a good example was Varnhageu ing characters are genuine creations, and the incidents are "“ von Ense, whose numerous biographies are masterpieces of interwoven with great artistic skill. Heinrich Laube, well ordered and digniﬁed prose. Germany owes an ad- another member of the group, is the author of an historical mirable biography of Ulrich von Hutten to Strauss, who romance, T he German War, which represents, in a clear, also wrote interesting sketches of several prominent modern fresh, and vivid style, the condition of Germany during ,; authors. Other biographies which deserve mention are the Thirty Years’ War. He has also enriched the stage Karl Griin’s philosophical study of Feuerbach, Rosenkranz’s with several excellent plays. Less important authors asso- scholar-like life of Diderot, and J usti’s life of Winckelmann. ciated with these writers were Gustav Kijhne, Theodor The popularity of Mr Lewes’s life of Goethe for a long time Mundt, and Ludolf Wienbarg—the latter universally re- deterred German writers from touching a subject he had cognized as a keen and vigorous critic. handled with so much talent ; but of late there has been a The novel has acquired the same important place in Novel- remarkable revival of interest in Goethe, and Hermann Germany as in France and England, and it need scarcely iStS- Grimm has ventured to present a fresh study of his intel- be said that the vast majority of works of this class are lectual and moral character. forgotten almost as soon as they are issued. One of the {elm-ich In imaginative literature the greatest writer of the latest most distinguished of recent novelists is Gustav Freytag, [l9i!10- period is Heinrich Heine. No German writer since Goethe whose chief work, Soil mad Ilaben (“ Debit and Credit”), is a study of commercial life intensely realistic in tendency. Lately he has undertaken a series of romances, Die A/men (“The Forefathers”), intended to represent in a highly poetic form the different epochs of German history. Im- portant historical romances have been written by Levin Sehiicking, who is remarkable for his power of vividly con- ceiving eharacter. The Countess Ida Hahn-Hahn is the writer of a number of novels in an artiﬁcial style, affect- ing to represent good society. Her manner has been cleverly satirized by Fanny Lewald, who is one of the best German novelists, keen and true in observation of life, and artistic in method. Paul Heyse’s short tales have ﬁrmness of outline, and are at the same time full of delicate grace; as a writer of elaborate romance, he has also achieved suc- cess. The humour of Hackliinder is generally considered to surpass that of any other recent writer; and among the novelists of simple village life Auerbach easily takes the ﬁrst place. Frederick Spielhagen has penetrated deeply into the spirit of the age, and in Problema(z'sr:7ze Naizwen (“ Problematic Natures”) and other works reveals its tendencies with cultivated imaginative force. The novels of Fritz Renter, although written in Platt Deutsch, take high rank; they are fresh in style. and combine keen observation of life with a fine appreciation of comic effect. Contemporary literature has not, as in England, been Drama- divorced from the stage; the best imaginative writers ﬁnd 1iC_ scope for their energies in work for the theatre. Besides wme” Gutzkow and Laube, Gottschall has been a fertile writer X. —— 60 laughter he is often restrained by a pathetic memory, which he expresses with unsurpassed delicacy. This combination of pathos, wit, and humour gives him a unique place in the literature of his country.