biography
| name: |
Eichendorff, Joseph, Freiherr (Baron) von
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pronunciation:
[iykhendaw(r)f]
| sex:
| male
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| lived:
| (1788–1857)
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| biography:
| Writer, born into the Prussian aristocracy in the palace of Lubowitz, Upper Silesia. He studied philosophy and law, made the acquaintance of Novalis, Arnim, and Brentano, and later, when abroad, of Friedrich and Dorothea Schlegel. In 1816–44 he was a Prussian civil servant, during which time he promoted the rebuilding of the Teutonic Knights' Marienburg. A leading exponent of the Romantic movement, he is known above all for his lyrical poems, reminiscent of folk songs and revealing an intimacy with nature and desire for its harmony with religion and Man. They include O Täler weit, o Höhen, In einem kühlen Grunde, and Wem Gott will rechte Gunst erweisen (Schumann and Wolf were among the composers attracted to them). They were often incorporated into longer prose works akin to fairy tales and influenced by the peregrinatory cult of ‘Wandern’, such as his much-loved and influential idyllic novella Aus dem Leben eines Taugenichts (1826). Other works include the novel Ahnung und Gegenwart (1815), the novella Das Marmorbild (1819), the comedy Die Freier (1833), and his collected poems Gedichte (1837). |
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