German Literature

While disregarding the language of institutions and ministries, German-language literature, whether it comes from Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, Russia or Germany, is generally seen as an entire corpus with a variety of different cultural facets. So when, in their splendid novels, authors such as Hans-Ulrich Treichel, Norbert Gstrein, Angela Krauss, Melitta Breznik or Robert Menasse draw their readers into the complexities of the modern age and family histories, this seems like a genuinely valid, interesting literary confrontation with experiences that know no borders. Consequently, it is not at all surprising that a Rumanian-German writer like Herta M�ller receives such great acclaim and that young women like Ter�zia Mora (Seltsame Materie, 1999) and Zsuzsa B�nk (Der Schwimmer, 2001) enjoy such successful debuts with their stories and novels set in Hungary.

German literature comprises those literary texts originating within Germany proper and written in the German language. The term may also denote any literature composed primarily in the German language, though in other countries; for example Austria, Switzerland, the former Czechoslovakia, etc.

Some of the major movements or time periods of German literature include:

Medieval German Literature

p>German literature begins in the Carolingian period, first in Latin and then in Old High German. The most famous work in OHG is the Hildebrandslied, a short piece of Germanic alliterative heroic verse which is the sole survivor of what must have been a vast oral tradition. Other important works are the Evangelienbuch (Gospel harmony) of Ottfried von Weissenburg, the short but splendid Ludwigslied, and in the northern dialect of Old Saxon, a life of Christ in the style of a heroic epic known as the Heliand. The Old High German period is reckoned to run until about the mid-11th century, though the boundary to Early Middle High German (second half of the 11th century) is not clear-cut. The most impressive example of EMHG literature is the Annolied.

Some authors and works of the high Middle Ages include: - Herzog Ernst
- Heinrich von Freiberg
- Ulrich von T�rheim
- Rudolf von Ems
- Konrad von W�rzburg
- Heinrich Frauenlob
- Reinmar der Alte

The Baroque

The Baroque period was one of the most fertile times in German literature. Many writers reflected the horrible experiences of the Thirty Years' War, in poetry and prose. Grimmelshausen's adventures of the young and na�ve Simplicissimus, in the eponymous book, became the most famous novel of the Baroque period. Andreas Gryphius and Daniel Caspar von Lohenstein wrote German-language tragedies, or Trauerspiele, often on Classical themes and frequently quite violent. Erotic, religious and occasional poetry appeared in both German and Latin.

Enlightenment

The Age of Enlightenment refers to the 18th century in European philosophy, and is often thought of as part of a larger period which includes the Age of Reason.

The term also more specifically refers to an intellectual movement, "The Enlightenment," which is described as being the use of rationality to establish an authoritative ethics, aesthetics, and knowledge. This movement's leaders viewed themselves as a courageous, elite body of intellectuals who were leading the world toward progress, out of a long period of irrationality, superstition, and tyranny which began during a historical period they called the Dark Ages. This movement provided a framework for the American and French Revolutions, as well as the rise of capitalism and the birth of socialism. It is matched by the high baroque era in music, and the neo-classical period in the arts.

Sturm und Drang

Sturm und Drang (literally: "storm and stress") was a Germany literary movement that developed during the latter half of the 18th century. The period is most commonly characterized as having lasted from 1767 - 1785. It takes its name from a play by F. M. von Klinger.

The greatest figure of the movement was Goethe, who wrote its first major drama, G�tz von Berlichingen (1773), and its most sensational and representative novel, Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (The Sorrows of Young Werther, 1774). Other writers of importance were Klopstock, J. M. R. Lenz, and Friedrich M�ller. The last major figure was Schiller, who�s Die R�uber and other early plays were also a prelude to romanticism.

Classicism

Classicism, refers generally to a high regard for classical antiquity as setting standards for taste which the classicist seeks to emulate. Classicism is usually contrasted with romanticism; the art of classicism typically seeks to be formal, restrained, and Apollonian rather than Dionysiac, in Friedrich Nietzsche's well known opposition.

Romanticism

Romanticism was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in late 18th century Western Europe. It stressed strong emotion, imagination, freedom within or even from classical notions of form in art. Romanticism is also noted for its elevation of the achievements of what it perceived as heroic individuals and artists.

Young Germany

Young Germany (Junges Deutschland) was a group of German writers which existed from about 1830 to 1850. It was essentially a youth movement. The movement produced poets, thinkers and journalists, all of whom reacted against of Romanticism. The Romantic Movement was seen as apolitical, lacking the activism that Germany�s burgeoning intelligentsia required. As a result of the decades of compulsory school attendance in German states, mass literacy meant an excess of educated males which the establishment could not subsume. Thus in the 1830s, with the advantage of the low cost printing press, there was a rush of educated males into the so-called �free professions�.

Naturalism

Naturalism is a movement in theatre and film. In theatre, it developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It refers to theatre that tries to create a perfect illusion of reality, a non-poetic literary style that reflects the way real people speak.

Expressionism

Expressionism is the tendency of an artist to distort reality for emotional effect. Expressionism is exhibited in many art forms, including painting, literature, film, architecture and music.

Dadaism

Dadaism or Dada is a post-World War I cultural movement in visual art as well as literature (mainly poetry), theatre and graphic design. The movement was, among other things, a protest against the barbarism of the War and what Dadaists believed was an oppressive intellectual rigidity in both art and everyday society; its works were characterized by a deliberate irrationality and the rejection of the prevailing standards of art. It influenced later movements including Surrealism.

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