German Literary History for Beginners an Exciting and Entertaining Journey Through German Literature From the Middle Ages to the Present Day

By Christian Möhlenkamp

This book is intended for readers who are looking for an introduction to the confusing diversity of German literature. The chronological order chosen is best suited for this purpose because, in contrast to topic- or genre-oriented ordering procedures, it shows a genesis and traces the genealogy of German literature. The fact that Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre would most likely have looked completely different without Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen's Simplicissimus can be shown most easily and effectively in the context of a chronologically presented journey through time. And this is only one of many examples, especially in the field of poetry quite a few more could be found.

"He who knows how to read holds the key to great deeds, to undreamed-of possibilities," Aldous Huxley once said. This book is intended to open up some of these possibilities for you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Möhlenkamp
• Release date: Aug 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215544396

Book preview

German Literary History for Beginners

An exciting and entertaining journey through German literature from the Middle Ages to the present day

Christian Möhlenkamp

All advice in this book has been carefully considered and checked. Nevertheless, no guarantee can be given. Any liability of the author or the publisher for any personal injury, property damage or financial loss is therefore excluded.

All rights reserved, in particular the right to reproduce and distribute the translation. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form (by photocopy, microfilm or any other process) or stored, processed, duplicated or distributed using electronic systems without the written permission of the publisher.

Content

What you can expect in this book

German literary history

Middle Ages

Baroque

Enlightenment & Sturm und Drang

Classic

Romanticism

Realism/Naturalism

Modern

Literature of the Weimar Republic

Exile literature

Contemporary Literature

German Poets, German Thinkers: Three Examples

Friedrich Schiller

Rainer Maria Rilke

Daniel Kehlmann

From the Roots into the Future - An Outlook

What you can expect in this book

This book is intended for readers who are looking for an introduction to the confusing diversity of German literature. The chronological order chosen is best suited for this purpose because, in contrast to topic- or genre-oriented ordering procedures, it shows a genesis and traces the genealogy of German literature. The fact that Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre would most likely have looked completely different without Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen's Simplicissimus can be shown most easily and effectively in the context of a chronologically presented journey through time. And this is only one of many examples, especially in the field of poetry, many more could be found.

One could thus specify: The book is addressed to readers who want to embark on the long and exciting journey through the world of words, as heroes of their own development story, so to speak, in the course of which they gain a better and better overview and finally reach a point where it is easier for them to choose from the abundance of works those that really interest them.

The authors presented as examples in the second part can serve as an appetizer; they can certainly be considered representative of German literature. Schiller's works will appeal above all to those who are enthusiastic about perfectly formed, thematically complex and linguistically beautiful plays or ballads of almost epic proportions, while Rilke's texts are more likely to appeal to you if you like metrically shaped poems or cycles of poems that work with numerous intertextual and intercultural references, or if you are interested in sensitive, inward-looking literature such as The Notes of Malte Laurids Brigge and Letters to a Young Poet. The bridge to the present is then built with Daniel Kehlmann, whose novels have achieved worldwide success and are proof that the German-speaking world is also intensively engaged with the literatures of other cultural regions.

He who knows how to read holds the key to great deeds, to undreamed-of possibilities, Aldous Huxley once said. This book aims to open up some of these possibilities for you.

German literary history

From the Merseburg Spells to complex postmodern works such as Slata Roschal's 153 Forms of Non-Being, published in 2022: German literature has a lot to offer, and this amount is to be traversed piece by piece, it is to be prepared for a word hike that is about endurance and not speed.

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