‘Sturm and Drang’ (storm and stress) was probably the most famous literary movement that emerged from Germany during the Romantic era. The movement was characterised by its intense portrayal ofemotions and individualism – a direct rebellion against the far more contained enlightenment era, marking the beginning of an independent modern German culture.
At the forefront of this movement were Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich von Schiller. They spearheaded this rejection of the enlightenment – a rejection of conventionality, a defiance of authority, and a promotion of political liberalism and expression. They gave a free rein to the imagination and formed a bridge between folk literature and high poetry, thereby opening up poetry to a wider audience, and opened their poems to the influences of music, art, politics, and science whilst maintaining a dreamy and nostalgic tone. These elements have remained at the heart of German poetry.
Born in Frankfurt in 1749, Goethe was the son of a merchant yet later became one of the most admired men in Europe. His early masterpiece ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther’ (1774), epitomizesthe ‘Sturm und Drang’ movement and catapulted him to instant fame. However, Goethe's legacy extends far beyond this poignant novel: his epic drama ‘Faust,’ a work he worked on throughout his life, stands as a magnum opus, exploring themes of human aspiration and the Faustian bargain – the idea of trading moral worth for material riches. His poetry, however, is particularly fascinating in terms of form, mood, and approachability. One of his more accessible poems ‘Der Fischer’ (the Fisherman) is a fine example of his ideas of ‘Sturm and Drang', highlighting the contrast between emotional extremes. The first stanza of this poem can be read below:
Das Wasser rauscht', das Wasser schwoll,Ein Fischer saß daran,Sah nach dem Angel ruhevoll,Kühl bis ans Herz hinan.Und wie er sitzt und wie er lauscht,Teilt sich die Flut empor:Aus dem bewegten Wasser rauschtEin feuchtes Weib hervor.
The waters purled, the waters swelled,—A fisher sat nearby,And earnestly his line beheldWith tranquil heart and eye;And while he sits and watches there,He sees the waves divide,And, lo! a maid, with glistening hair,Springs from the troubled tide.
Whilst Goethe had a much broader output which included the aforementioned ‘Faust’ yet also many scientific works, Schiller was much more focused on literature. Both were equally invested in the ‘Sturm and Drang’ movement, but Schiller was more interested in the pursuit of moral ideals as opposed the exploration of human nature that fascinated Goethe. Whilst many of his poems are too long to sample here, ‘Das Verschleierte Bild zu Sais’ (the Veiled Image in Sais) reflects this obsession with a passionate moral message, so I would encourage you to explore this if you are interested.
Within the landscape of German poetry during the Romantic era, ‘Sturm und Drang’ poetry stood as a stark departure from the Enlightenment's reasoned and logical format, with a seemingly random metre, punctuation, and rhyme. This literary revolution was exemplified by the likes Goethe and Friedrich Schiller, but not defined by them; Brentano, Hölderlin, and Tieck to name just a few also helped to defy the Enlightenment. Goethe's enduring legacy encompassed a diverse range of works, from the influential ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther’ to the philosophical depth of ‘Faust,’ while his poem ‘Der Fischer’ captured the essence of Sturm und Drang's emotional intensity. In contrast, Schiller focusses on moral and philosophical themes, as displayed in works like ‘Das VerschleierteBild zu Sais’ where he poses the partial pursuit of knowledge as manipulative as it keeps the mind closed to the bigger picture.
Even though their methods differed, Goethe and Schiller's collaboration and mutual influence played a pivotal role in defining the spirit of ‘Sturm and Drang’ and later heading up German Classicism. This remarkable period of expression paved the way for German poetry to flourish, as the intense emotions and unapologetic individualism of ‘Sturm und Drang’ continued to particularly resonate in the realms of literature, philosophy, and art.
Edward Crosthwaite Eyre (DWBA)
