Schiller
Nickname/Alias: born: Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller
Achievements: Leading German dramatist, poet, and literary theorist.
Born: November 10, 1759; Marbach, Württemberg, Germany
Died: May 9, 1805; Weimar, Saxe-Weimar, Germany (Aged 45)
Field & Discipline: Literature; Poet; Dramatist; Literary Theorist
Language: German
Father: Johann Kaspar Schiller
Mother: Elisabetha Dorothea Kodweiss
Siblings: Christophine; Louise; Nanette
Spouse: Charlotte von Lengefeld
Children: Karl; Ernst; Caroline; Emilie
Education: Grammar school, Marbach; Hohe Karlsschule, Ludwigsburg and Stuttgart (1773-80)
Major Work: “Wallenstein” (1799)
Life & Times:
In the Duchy of Wurttemberg, as a youth, Schiller observed the tyranny and extravagance of contemporary nobility. He spent time studying the revolutionary authors of the new literary movement, the so-called “Sturm und Drang,” (“Storm and Stress”), which included dramatic works by the young [studied works of] Goethe* and [studied works of] Herder,* as well as the writings of [studied works of] Rousseau*.
Schiller's first play, “Die Räuber” (1781), in which Karl von Moor, the heroic robber, takes to the woods to redress the evils of his father's court, in contrast to his wicked brother Franz, combined some of the characteristics of Shakespeare's Richard III and Edmund in “King Lear,” and was first performed on 13thJanuary 1782, at the National Theatre, Mannheim. It created a sensation and represented a milestone in the history of the German theatre.
On 22nd September 1787, Schiller left Stuttgart and arrived in Mannheim hoping for help from Heribert Baron von Dalberg, the director of the theatre that had launched his first play. He brought with him the manuscript of a new work, “Die Verschwörung des Fiesko zu Genua” or “Fiesco,” which he had written in 1783. Subtitled "A Republican Tragedy,” it portrayed the dramatic rise and fall of a would-be dictator, set in 16th-century Genoa.
In the summer of 1783 Dalberg appointed Schiller “theatre poet,” putting him under a year's contract to provide plays for production there. Two of his plays were performed: his “Fiesco” and his third tragedy “Kabale und Liebe,” the play on which [work adapted by] Verdi* based his opera “Luisa Miller” and which was produced in 1784 to great acclaim. Despite the success of “Kabale und Liebe,” Dalberg chose not to renew Schiller's contract. In crisis with his mounting debts and a traumatic attachment to a married woman (the charming but unstable Charlotte von Kalb) he willingly accepted an offer of support from an admirer in Saxony, the wealthy Christian Gottfried Korner.
Schiller remained as Korner's guest for more than two years, from April 1785 to July 1787, in both Leipzig and Dresden. This gave him time to think deeply on political and philosophical matters. During this period, he translated [translated] Gozzi's* “Turandot” and wrote the blank verse drama “Don Carlos” (1787). Schiller greatly benefited from Korner's generosity, which in 1786 had helped to produce his first philosophical work, “Philosophical Letters” and his jubilant “Ode to Joy,” which [work adapted by] Beethoven* was to use for the choral movement of his Ninth Symphony. In July 1787 Schiller left Dresden for Weimar, in the hope of meeting men who had made Weimar the literary capital of Germany. He was welcomed there by Wieland, Herder and others whom the Duke of Weimar, Karl August, had gathered at his court.
In 1789, Schiller was appointed professor of history at the University of Jena. This was partly the result of recommendations and partly due to the publication, the year before, of his first historical work, “History of the Revolt of the United Netherlands against the Spanish Government.”
In 1790, Schiller married Charlotte von Lengefeld, a cultured young woman of good family, who later bore him two sons and two daughters. The following year, his health gave way under the strain of perpetual overwork and financial problems, until the intervention, in late 1791, of two Danish noblemen, who granted him a generous pension for three years.
He produced “History of the Thirty Years’ War,” in 1791-93, which further enhanced his prestige as a historian. He spent time studying the philosophy of [studied work of] Kant*, which inspired him to formulate his own ideas on aesthetics and to produce a series of essays between 1793 and 1801 on the subject. Particularly notable are "Uber Anmut und Wurde,” "Uber das Erhabene" and "Uber Naive und Sentimentalische Dichtung.” In the latter, he was the first to cast doubt on the authenticity of the (fake) Ossian poems of [questioned work of] Macpherson*. This, like his letters on the aesthetic education of man, "Briefe über die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen,” first appeared in “Die Horen.” Die Horen was an ambitious but short-lived literary periodical, edited by Schiller and published by Johann Friedrich [published by] Cotta*, one of Germany's leading publishers.
At this time, Schiller became close friends with Goethe and built a relationship that became of great importance to German literature. Meanwhile, in 1790, the Duke of Weimar doubled Schiller's salary, so he moved from Jena to Weimar.
His second period of dramatic activity, in 1796, began with work on “Wallenstein,” set during the Thirty Years' War and ended with the fragment “Demetrius,” left unfinished at his death. Schiller achieved his greatest dramatic success with the historical tragedy of “Wallenstein,” published in1799, composed in three parts, the second and third of which were translated into English verse by [translated by] Coleridge* in 1800.
“Maria Stuart,” 1800 and “Die Jungfrau von Orleans,” 1801, were both historical dramas, which Schiller followed with a “classical” drama with chorus, “Die Braut von Messina” in 1803 and his last finished play “Wilhelm Tell,” 1804. All his plays are concerned with the problems of freedom and responsibility, either political, as in the early dramas, or personal and moral.
Schiller also wrote fine poetry, and he and Goethe collaborated on a collection of ballads in 1797-98.
These ballads include some of his most popular poems, such as "Der Handschuh" ("The Glove"), "Der Taucher" ("The Diver"), "Die Kraniche des Ibykus" ("The Cranes of Ibycus") and the famous "Lied von der Glocke" ("The Song of the Bell"). Ill health continued to dog Schiller and he finally contracted tuberculosis, dying on 9th May 1805 at Weimar, three years after having been ennobled, with the addition of “von” to his name, by the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II.
Extra Connections: His favorite English writer was [a fan of] Thackeray*.
Wrote a play about [wrote about] Joan of Arc*
He disliked the work of [disliked work of] Kotzebue*
Assessment: Schiller contributed greatly to the modernization of German literature.
Oneliner: Friedrich von Schiller, leading German writer
Bibliography:
- Collier's Encyclopedia.
- Charles E., Schiller, London, 1975.
- Reed, T.J., Schiller, Oxford: OUP, 1991.