Book Description
Thomas Carlyle's preoccupation with German literature and the German spirit, beginning in 1819, had acquainted him with two creative giants, Goethe and Schiller, motivating him to translate Wilhelm Meister and to write hisLife of Schiller.But then he discovered another great figure, even closer to his heart:Jean Paul Friedrich Richter.The study of Richter's works developed into a very personal encounter.Carlyle even adopted Jean Paul's mannerisms in his own style, and all of this had a decisive impact on the content, structure and style ofSartor Resartus (1833).Wulf Koepke's introduction places Jean Paul in the context of the English-speaking worldof the mid-19th century. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Jean Paul, the One and Only
For anyone unfamiliar with Jean Paul Richter, and that includes 99% of the English speaking world, these are basically the only works still available in print. Of all the works I have read by Jean-Paul, Army-Chaplain Schmelzle's Journey to Flaetz is still my favorite for its laugh out loud humor, its domesticity and the way Jean Paul engages the reader with an otherwise dull subject matter. I have read it three times and plan on reading it many more times in my life. The Life of Quintus Fixlein is a longer and tougher read, but well worth the effort. It contains a similar humor and abstruseness that is quintessentially Jean Paul.
I have read works by nearly every author in world literature and no one can hold a candle to Jean Paul. His works are brilliant, engaging, poetical and philosophical, and has influenced countless authors, if only indirectly. His more well-known disciples are Thomas Carlyle (who translates this text), George MacDonald and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The other two works of his that have been translated into English in the last 50 years, and are still obtainable, are The Life of the Merry Schoolmaster Maria Wutz and Jean Paul's Horn of Oberon.
For more information on Jean Paul in English please feel free to contact me. christopherwinkens@yahoo.com ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's preservation reformatting program. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Readable but Unilluminating
One of Victorian culture's greatest and most original writers was overdue a new biography. Simon Heffer gives us a readble and lively version of his life, but in the end does little to make Carlyle's work live for modern readers. I suspect that Heffer is really too sympathetic to Carlyle's late, ranting writings to re-think their significance. Instead he just wants to make excuses. It's a very great pity, because Carlyle is certainly a genius. His greatest works - like 'Sartor Resartus' - are unique, a wonderful kaleidescope of ideas and images written in his dazzlingly fractured prose. In a Victorian context he was certainly a racist, but the multiple sources of his thought, and his jumbled cross-language sentences give us a far better idea of what 'multi-ethnic' culture could be than a bag full of post-modern post-colonial theorists. ... Read more

Product Description
The Harvard Classics, Dr Eliot's five-foot shelf of books. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library's preservation reformatting program. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume is produced from digital images created through the University of Michigan University Library’s preservation reformatting program. ... Read more