“Ich bin ud bleibe bloß Poet und als Poet werde ich auch sterben.” Friedrich Schiller’s Sense of Poetic Calling and the Role of the Poetic Idea in his Emerging Professional Identity as a Dramaturge

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“ICH BIN UND BLEIBE BLOȕ POET UND ALS POET WERDE ICH AUCH STERBEN.“

FRIEDRICH SCHILLER’S SENSE OF POETIC CALLING AND THE ROLE OF THE POETIC IDEA IN HIS EMERGING PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY AS A DRAMATURGE

By

Agnes J. Cser

______Copyright © Agnes J. Cser 2018

Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the

DEPARTMENT OF GERMAN STUDIES

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

In the Graduate College

THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

2018

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STATEMENT BY AUTHOR

This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library.

Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that an accurate acknowledgement of the source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder.

SIGNED: Agnes J. Cser

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am very grateful for the steadfast support of my research advisor and dissertation chair, Steven D. Martinson, PhD. I am thanking Barbara Kosta, PhD, and David H. Chisholm, PhD, for serving on my dissertation committee, Albrecht Classen, PhD, for serving as the fourth member of my comprehensive exam committee, all the faculty and staff, and my teaching colleagues at the Department of German Studies, University of Arizona, for their support and encouragement. The guidance and professional knowledge of my professors were invaluable over the past five and half years. I thoroughly enjoyed working with each of them and am very much appreciative of their collaboration with me. I cannot express enough thanks to Dr. Steven D. Martinson, who as an expert in Friedrich Schiller steadfastly supported my research on the German poet’s productive literary oeuvre. I am very grateful to Dr. Barbara Kosta for supporting my graduate studies and professional development with scholarships and travel funds. My sincerest thanks to my first reader and editor, Alyson Luthi Wicker, for her priceless support and questions. My heartfelt thanks to my family and friends for helping me along my undertaking. Most of all, I am grateful to my dear husband Steve. Without his support and understanding I could not have finished my project. I truly appreciate him! My heart is overwhelmed with gratitude. Thank you all!

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Table of Contents

EDITIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS ...... 6

ABSTRACT...... 8

PART ONE: SCHILLER AND HIS SENSE OF POETIC CALLING...... 20

1. CHAPTER ONE: SCHILLER’S INTELLECTUAL AND

ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE LIGHT OF THE GERMAN

$8)./ٍ581* ...... 36 ENLIGHTENMENT

2. CHAPTER TWO: THE POET SCHILLER AND THE

DEVELOPMENT OF HIS POETIC POSTURE...... 57

3. CHAPTER THREE: THE POETIC IDEA (DAS DICHTERISCHE)

...... 129

PART II: THE TRAGEDIAN SCHILLER ...... 187

4. CHAPTER FOUR: SCHILLER’S DEBUT PLAY: „MENSCH...

SEIN": DIE RÄUBER ...... 202

5. CHAPTER FIVE: DON CARLOS (1787) Ein dramatisches Gedicht

...... 265

CONCLUSION: REFLECTIONS ON SCHILLER’S PROFESSIONAL

IDENTITY ...... 365

BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………..377 6

EDITIONS AND ABBREVIATIONS

I. ABBREVIATIONS ÄE Friedrich Schiller, Über die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen. (FA 8: 556-676).

Companion Steven D. Martinson, (ed.) A Companion to the Works of Friedrich Schiller. Discourse Rene Descartes, Discourse of a Method from the Well Guiding of Reason, and the Discovery of Truth in the Sciences. Printed by Thomas Newcombe. London: 1649.

D/R Kenneth Dewhurst and Nigel Reeves, Friedrich Schiller. Medicine, Psychology, Literature.

Elend der Geschichte Norbert Oellers, Schiller. Elend der Geschichte, Glanz der Kunst.

FA Friedrich Schiller, Werke und Briefe. (ed.) Georg Kurscheidt. Bd._8. Frankfurt am Main: Deutscher Verlag: 2002.

HT Martinson, Steven D. Harmonious Tensions: The Writings of Friedrich Schiller. PP Friedrich Schiller, Philosophie der Physiognomie. Rede Jakob Friedrich Abel, Rede über das Genie.

Rede über Güte Friedrich Schiller, “Rede über Die Frage: Gehört allzuviel Güte. Leutseeligkeit und große Freygebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend?“

Schaubühne-Rede “Was kann eine gute stehende Schaubühne eigentlich wirken?“ Schillers Gedichte Friedrich Schiller, Schiller. Sämtliche Werke. Gedichte. SHW Aurnhammer, Achim, et al., Schiller und die höfische Welt. 7

II. EDITIONS

Schiller, Friedrich. Werke. Nationalausgabe. Weimar: Hermann Böhlaus Nachfolger, 1962.

Schiller, Friedrich. Werke und Briefe. (ed.) Georg Kurscheidt. Bd.11. Frankfurt am Main: Deutscher Verlag: 2002.

Schiller, Friedrich. Briefe II. 1795-1805. Friedrich Schiller Werke und Briefe in zwölf Bänden. (ed.) Norbert Oellers. Bd. 12. Frankfurt am Main: Deutscher Klassiker Verlag, 2005.

Schiller, Friedrich. Schiller. Sämtliche Werke. Gedichte. Berlin-Weimar: Aufbau Verlag, 1980.

Schiller, Friedrich. Die Räuber. Durchgs. Ausgabe Stuttgart: Philipp Reclam, 2001.

Schiller, Friedrich. Don Carlos Stuttgart: Philipp Reclam, 1979. 8

ABSTRACT

My dissertation, „Ich bin und bleibe EORȕ Poet und als Poet werde ich auch sterben. “

Friedrich Schiller and the Role of the Poetic Idea in his Emerging Professional

Identity as a Poet-Dramaturge, examines how Schiller’s deep sense of poetic calling and his desire to ennoble human character informed his literary works. His conceptions of drama, early dramatic practice, and the exogenesis of his own aesthetic theories crystallized his understanding of what it meant to be a poet. Furthermore,

Schiller’s studies on human physiology strongly impacted his pursuit of portraying and developing whole characters on the stage as models of human behavior in the interest of forming an efficacious society. Schiller’s main material was the human being. His study of human nature, I argue, greatly informed his poetic impulse. As a dramatist, Schiller sought to capture human beings’ best possible expressions. The serious play of creating poetic form—therewith cultivating the beautiful--became for him a joyous inspiration.

In reestablishing ‘form’ as a key literary concept, the field of literary studies pursues ‘poetics of culture’ and diverse cultures of form.1 I contend that the imaginative intellectual quality of his poetic pursuit, das Dichterische, becomes intuitively comprehensible to us through Schiller’s conceptions and creative productions of form via Geistestätigkeit, the purpose of which is to drive human faculties towards mutual cooperation and wholeness of being.

1 See, for example, Robert Matthias Erdbeer, Florian Kläger, and Klaus Stierstorfer, 201. 9

This study thus explores how Schiller sought to counteract the one-sided development of human beings through his presentations of dramatic characters and their interactions. We focus, first, on theoretical conceptions of the aesthetic education of human beings and, second, the dynamic relationships that Schiller’s creative acts explore in his dramas, Die Räuber and Don Carlos. We seek to account for the sources that fed Schiller’s poetic imagination and the forces that determined the forms of his creative activities. Then trace the manners in which Schiller’s concept of the beautiful expose new interpretive perspectives, in particular how the poet’s dramatic art ennobles human character.

Methodology

Schiller dedicated himself to the creative activity of the light of his mind, his writings will guide my thoughts on this topic. Selected contributions to scholarship that relate to our topic are also consulted. We embark on a process of inquiry into the imaginative-intellectual quality of Schiller’s poetic pursuits that is both chronological and inductive in nature. Following the intuitive process that developed Schiller’s poetic consciousness, we scrutinize “sources” that fed the German author’s imagination and “forces” that guided his understanding of himself as a poet- dramaturge.2

Throughout this project, we engage the following seminal theoretical writings:

Die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen, Über das

2 Helmut Rehder, „The Four Seals of Schiller.” A Schiller Symposium (11). Following Helmut Rehder’s contribution to the Schiller Symposium of 1960, I propose to investigate the “sources that fed the German author’s imagination and the forces that determined the forms and directions of his creative mind,” that have been overlooked since. We go beyond Rehder, however, by paying very close attention to the manner in which Schiller responds to beauty and music. 10

Pathetische, Über die Tragische Kunst, Über Naïve und Sentimentalische Dichtung,

Anmut und Würde, and the Rezensionen über Bürgers und Matthissons Gedichte in light of his early medical writings, dramas, and correspondence. We narrow our task by focusing our attention on the nature of Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische.

The characteristic element of Schiller’s creative thinking consists in his consciousness of form: [D]enn durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des

Menschen [und nicht] auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt.3 By inquiring into how the artistic pursuit of giving humankind its fullest expression Schiller determined his vocation as a poet-dramaturge. Through his inquiries into the nature of beauty [die Schönheit] and the formation of the beautiful [das Schöne] Schiller’s personality as an artist

(Künstlerpersönlichkeit) emerged.

In Chapter 1, we trace Schiller’s intellectual and artistic development in the light of his writings on and his intuitive awareness of his calling as a poet. Chapter 2 delineates how Schiller began to devote himself to his profession as a poet and actualized his sense of purpose. In Chapter 3, we inquire into how Schiller developed the theoretical-practical foundation of his poetic pursuit, i.e. das Dichterische. We argue that by establishing beauty as the symbol of alliance between Geist and Sinn,

Schiller schooled himself in ways that men and women experience themselves as complete, i.e., whole human beings through the medium of art.

3 See 1) Friedrich Schiller, Über die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen, (NA 20: 382). 2) Dirk Oschmann, 2017, “Zwischen Theorie and Performanz. Schillers Begriff der ‚Form.‘“ 11

Part II contains a discussion of Schiller’s theories of drama. Chapter 4 addresses how Schiller’s debut play, Die Räuber, engaged the sensations in and between his dramatic characters and of his audience in his endeavor to ennoble human character. By considering seriously the tragic flaw of his characters, we claim that

Schiller’s purpose was to educate human beings how to negotiate either the improvement or deterioration of their state of affairs. In Chapter 5, we analyze key elements that helped to construct Schiller’s first polished (“classical”) drama, Don

Carlos. Throughout the dissertation, we seek to demonstrate how Schiller worked out and defined his professional identity as a poet-dramaturge at the intersections of his medical writings, aesthetic theories, and dramatic practice.

Scholarship on Friedrich Schiller

We begin and end the dissertation with Friedrich Schiller’s self-identification and prediction for the future. “Ich bin und bleibe bloß Poet and als Poet werde ich auch sterben.”4 Schiller lived and died a poet. Since the most recent commemoration of his death took place in 2005, we begin with some critical remarks on several book publications that appeared in that year. We remain sensitive to the state of research

(Stand der Forschung) in order to gain deeper insight into Schiller’s aspirations and accomplishments. We include several older contributions to scholarship that have not been sufficiently discussed by subsequent scholars but are still relevant to contemporary concerns. Comments on subsequent individual contributions to

4 See Schiller’s letter to Körner on 27 February 1792 (NA 26: 137).

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scholarly research from 2005 to the present day are included in each of the chapters of this dissertation. Along with, and at some variance from that body of work, our main purpose here is to explain Schiller’s self-realization of his vocation and professional identity as a poet-dramaturge.

The year 2005 witnessed a cascade of scholarly contributions on the work of

Friedrich Schiller. In order to jump start our discussion of Schiller’s personal and professional identity, we have selected four of numerous book publications that appeared in and around the two-hundredth anniversary of Schiller’s death.5

The trend to consider Schiller a philosopher has a considerably long history.6

It is continued by Rüdiger Safranski in his book, Friedrich Schiller Oder Die

Erfindung des Deutschen Idealismus (2004). While covering much of Schiller’s life and writings, Safranski keeps a close eye on one of the several activities in which

Schiller engaged: philosophy. But the concepts that philosophy must generate and work through cannot account for the creative or literary qualities of a poet’s work,7 such as the term idealism in the title of Safranski’s book. Frederick Beiser’s book,

Schiller as Philosopher. A Re-examination appeared in 2005.8 More so than

5 As is understandable given the rise of Germany to a recognized nation-state in 1871, Schiller has been tied to German literary history. He continues to be admired as one of the two classical writers of German literature and culture. It should come as no surprise, then, that many German scholars, most of whom share a professional identity as university professors treat Schiller’s life and work as a distinctly German writer. However, there is much in his work that speaks directly to people worldwide today. One of those is the formation of professional identity. 6 To call Schiller a poet-philosopher as many have done and continue to do is somewhat contradictory. The recognition that philosophical texts contain any number of literary tropes and poetry generates philosophical insights is insufficient for the construction of larger categories that define professional identities such as a poet or a philosopher. 7 Readers and audiences recognize forms of quality without recourse to reason. 8 See the review by Steven D. Martinson of Beiser’s book in Journal of the History of Philosophy 45 (2007): 663-664 for one perspective on the matter at hand. 13

Safranski, Beiser associates Schiller with philosophy much more overtly. Importanty, and unlike the trends of scholarship, Beiser maintains that Schiller’s concepts on aesthetics and morality are much clearer and more precise than Kant’s. The trend to privilege the philosopher Schiller over the poet continues.9

We offer two criticisms of Safranski’s masterful philosophical biography of

Schiller for consideration. First, with respect to Schiller’s dramas, Safranski asks where the freedom is in Die Räuber. Afterall, he maintains, “Freiheit ist, wenn sich ein Ich mit seinem Selbst zusammenschließt. Dieser Gedanke, der hier zum ersten

Mal aufblitzet, wird Schiller noch ein Leben lang beschäftigen, und er wird ihn grandios ausarbeiten” (115). Clearly, Safranksi’s thought is informed by the German idealism’s explorations or the subject and Subjektivität. It is not surprising that he should then draw out the seemingly negative developments in the dramatic action in

Die Räuber. He is disappointed that there is no final resolution (“Versöhnung”) of conflict.10 His position is understandable given his appropriation of Hegel’s aesthetics. Hegel was especially critical of Schiller’s Wallenstein for its ostensible privileging of death over life. Schiller’s trilogy did not reflect the resolution of conflict he expected of a true tragedy. Safranski writes in a similar manner. “Es gibt am Ende keine Versöhnung, sondern nur den Triumph der stolzen Freiheit bei Karl, der seinem Selbst getreu bleibt. Mit dem Pathos dieser Freiheit, nicht mit dem Pathos einer wiederhergestellten Ordnung endet das Stück” (115). But Schiller’s play

9 We await the appearance of Jeffrey Powell and Maria del Rosario Acosta’s volume of essays on Aesthetic Reason and Imaginative Freedom: Friedrich Schiller and Philosophy, forthcoming, December 2018, with SUNY University Press. 10 For a fine treatment of the question, see Lydia Moland, “An Unrelieved Haert: Hegel, Tragedy and Schiller’s Wallenstein,” New German Critique 38 (2011): 1-23. 14

concerns what underlies the seeming interest in remaining true to oneself, as Safranski asserts.11 Given Schiller’s understanding of the stage as a tribunal, if there is a question of identity of self, then it is the author who remains true to his calling or vocation as a poet-dramaturge.

Second, Safranski cannot appreciate the literary quality of Schiller’s drama because he expects a well worked-out design (“Plan”; 116) that must precede the writing of a drama. We recall here Schiller’s point that, in his case, a musical mood

(“musikalische Stimmung”) precedes the poetic idea (to Goethe in 1794). For

Safranski, however, “Den Autor interessierten offenbar mehr die philosophisch profilierten Charaktere als das Handlungsgeflecht” (116). Whether intended or not,

Safranski’s Auslegung does not capture the artistic texture (form) of Die Räuber, as his interpretation of Schiller’s self-review of the Mannheim premiere performance confirms. “Der Autor Schiller kann auch darum so leicht zu seinem öffentlichen

Kritiker werden, weil für ihn die poetische Arbeit weniger ein intimer, expressiver

Vorgang ist, der am besten im Dunkeln bleibt, sondern ein bewußtes Machen und

Experimentieren” (117). Furthermore, Safranski maintains, “Schiller testet also in seinem Laboratorium die Wirkung aller Materialien, der Gefühle, der Phantasien, der

Gedanken. Er wurde nicht zum Anhänger von Ideen, weil die Ideen von ihm abhingen, er teilte ihnen die Rolle zu, die sie im Kosmos seiner Einbildungskraft spielen sollten. In seinem letzten Brief an Wilhem von Humboldt definiert / Schiller den eigenen Idealismus. Am Ende sind wir ja beide Idealisten...und würden uns

11 The search for self is far more indicative of Goethe’s Faust than it is of Karl Moor. 15

schämen, uns nachsagen zu lassen, daß die Dinge uns formten und nicht wir die Dinge

(2. April 1805)” (119-120). But Schiller was not speaking as a philosopher of idealism but, rather, as a creative poet. We recall the last strophe of Goethe’s

Prometheus poem where we read of the creative artist. “Hier sitz’ ich, forme

Menschen/ Nach meinem Bilde” “Ich bilde Menschen nach meinem Bilde.” By placing the emphasis on the idealistic approach to freedom, Rüdiger fails to regard

Schiller’s purpose of forming Karl’s inner character to the extent that the protagonist decides to stop his criminal activities.

Another major contribution to Schiller scholarship that appeared in 2005 is

Norbert Oellers’ Schiller. Elend der Geschichte, Glanz der Kunst. Oellers’s book registers far greater sensitivity to the poet, Friedrich Schiller, than does Safranski.

There is good reason why Oellers devotes more than half of his study to discussions of Schiller’s dramas. Because, as we argue, he was, first and foremost, a poet- dramaturge. Oellers makes the important point that it was not the believability or probability of characters and actions, in which Schiller was most interested. Rather,

“das Dramatische ‘an und für sich’, das nur eine spannende, wenn auch im Einzelnen nicht recht nachvollziehbare Handlung verlangt und eine Sprache, die über die

Wirklichkeit hinausreicht und gerade in der Unwahrscheinlichkeit des Geschehens eine Stütze findet” (126).

For us, however, it is not the dramatic element in and of itself in which we are interested but, rather, how Schiller’s dramatic practice with his theoretical reflections grants him a clearer understanding of his calling as a poet. We add that, without his dramatic practice, the theory Schiller worked out would not have been possible. The 16

poet-dramaturge drew on his unique ability to create captivating characters and lasting memories of them in his own image. He also understood and employed the transformative power of dramatic effect by creating associations between his characters and the lives of his readers and audiences. The theatrical and aesthetic experience of Schiller’s literary-dramatic works draws the audience and readers closer not only to the characters on the stage in which the audience sees themselves but, also, to themselves whose lives are impacted by the theatrical experience and close and imaginative readings of his work. Norbert Oeller’s study contains select bibliographical references on primary and secondary sources and various documents that are especially helpful. In the course of our own interpretations, we will return to individual points that Oellers makes in his readings of Schiller’s Die Räuber, Don

Carlos, and theoretical writings.

Like Michael Hoffmann’s Schiller. Epoche—Werk—Wirkung (2003), Matthias

Luserke-Jaqui’s Schiller-Handbuch. Leben—Werk—Wirkung Stuttgart: J. B. Metzler,

2005, serves both the general reader and scholars alike by offering concrete and interpretive chapters on nearly all of Schiller’s work by highly capable scholars. Both handbooks provide reliable accounts of the then state of research. We draw on a number of insights by an array of scholars in this volume while going beyond the contributions on key points, seeking to determine Schiller’s profession as a poet- dramatist. Schiller’s self-understanding of his primary calling became clearer over time. At first, it was not evident either to him or his critics. In actuality, the volume transcends its goal of providing quick, precise, and compact information for readers

(VII). Many of the contributions are interpretations in their own right. The numerous 17

references to, and quotations from Schiller’s correspondence with Christian Körner are especially insightful. We also draw on that correspondence to illuminate key points of our study, in particular not simply the nature, but function of beautiful appearances in the shaping of humanity.

Steven D. Martinson’s A Companion to the Works of Friedrich Schiller (2005) was one of the few book-length publications in English that appeared in the Schiller-

Year 2005. It contains contributions by German, American, British, and Swedish scholars, creating an intellectual bridge over the Atlantic. Four of the contributions by

German scholars were translated into English by the editor (Dann, Von Stransky-

Stranka-Greifenfels, Janz, and Oellers).12 A fifth contribution by Dieter Borchmeyer was translated by Thomas Kovach. The volume is especially helpful since it opens up many different perspectives in a differentiated collective of scholars from different cultural and national backgrounds.13 It also includes a compact overview of Schiller- scholarship from the mid-1970s through 2004 and an extensive contribution on

Schiller’s reception in the twentieth century. In general, these volumes bypass the question of Schiller’s professional identity which the following study will now address.

My study demonstrates that in pursuit of refining human beings’ capacity of feeling through the training of the faculty of sensation (die Ausbildung des

12 In doing so, the volume captures what, since the end of World War II and the fall of the Third Reich, had become more and more the case. At first, mostly by Germans emigrating to the United States and England to occupy professorships in Germanistik (German Literaturwissenschaft) as practiced more than less in Germany which also made possible an active exchange of scholars and eventual sharing of ideas. As American graduate students themselves began to occupy professorships in the United States, the field became more and more diversified resulting in the establishment of German Studies departments and programs. Curiously, even before Goethe’s work, Schiller’s dramas had landed in America. For example, Die Räuber was first performed in the United States in New York City in 1796, well before Goethe’s reception by Margaret Fuller and the American Transcendalists. 13 For a review, see Robert Combs in Goethe Yearbook 14 (2006): 242-244. 18

Empfindungsvermögens), it was through the creative process of writing his early dramas that Schiller began to conceive aesthetics in conceptual pairs: the naïve and the sentimental, grace and dignity, beauty and the sublime. By inquiring how Schiller’s debut play, Die Räuber, and his first classical drama, Don Carlos, expand and further form not only the faculty of the intelligence but refine the sensibilities of the heart, i.e., the sensations (Empfindungen), I claim that Schiller’s professional identity unfolds in writing theory and creatively constructing dramas like Die Räuber and Don Carlos.14

In the final analysis, Schiller’s theory and dramatic works, taken together, are powerful tools in the Bildung, i.e. cultivation of the whole human being.

Recent developments in scholarship present Schiller more often as a theorist than a poet. 15 Such interest is largely due to poet’s intensive study of aesthetics, and his hiatus from poetic-dramatic production following his appointment as professor of history at the university in Jena in 1789. My point here is that Schiller was never able to reconcile the disparity between his lofty theoretical ideas and poetic creativity.16

14 The special volume of Euphorion on Schiller (2005) contains three essays on Die Räuber alone, the most discussions of any other work by Schiller (Guthke, Jahn, and Darras). 15See: Robert Matthias Erdbeer (Ed.) Florian Kläger (Ed.), Klaus Stierstorfe(r (Ed.), Literarische Forms / Literary Form. Theorien-Dynamiken-Kulturen. Beiträge zur literarischen Modellforschung / Theories-Dynamics-Cultures. Perspectives on Literary Modelling. (Heidelberg, 2018); Matthias Luserke-Jaqui, Friedrich Schiller (Tübingen, 2005), p. 212-265. For example, Frederick C. Beiser, Schiller as Philosopher (Oxford, 2005). Georg Mein, Die Konzeption des Schönen (Bielefeld, 2000), p. 165-217. David Pugh, and Dialectic of Love (Montreal, 1996). David Simpson, “Friedrich Schiller.” The Origins of Modern Critical Thought (Cambridge, 1988) p. 127-147. Klaus L. Berghahn, Ansichten eines Idealisten (Frankfurt, 1986); Andreas Wirth, Das schwierige Schöne (Bonn, 1974). 16 According to the pivotal letter to Körner on 8. Februar 1793 (NA 26:177-188), Schiller was driven between the logical and teleological (functional) understanding of the nature of an object. “Die theoretische Vernunft wendet ihre Form auf Vorstellung an, und diese lassen sich in unmittelbare (Anschauungen) und in mittelbare (Begriffe) einteilen. Jene sind durch den Sinn, diese durch die Vernunft (obschon nicht ohne Zutun des Sinnes) gegeben. In den ersten, den Anschauungen, ist es zufällig, ob sie mit der Form der Vernunft übereinstimmen, […] dort wird sie überrascht, wenn sie es findet. […] In den Begriffen ist es [die Übereinstimmung] notwendig, wenn sie sich nicht aufheben will. […] Das Objekt des logischen ist Vernunftmäßigkeit, das Objekt des teleologischen ist Vernunftähnlichkeit” (NA 26: 179-180). 19

Schiller knew that, when defining an abstract concept, the intelligence demands agreement between thought and its representation of form. In the case of intuitive comprehension, the mind is caught by surprise when sensing agreement between sense and reason. By explaining the difference between intuitive and logical comprehension, Schiller comes closest to comprehending why it was at first difficult to overcome the seeming contradiction between his theoretical pursuits and poetic creativity.

Schiller recognized that the art of poetry could be highly useful instrument of schooling for the reciprocal cooperation of reason and sense. My research discloses how Schiller’s understanding of das Dichterische becomes the underlying force of his creative activity giving form to his dramatic creations.

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PART ONE: SCHILLER AND HIS SENSE OF POETIC CALLING

Johann Christoph Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) was engaged in many different areas of professional activities as a poet, dramatist, philosopher, physiologist, and historian as well as a reviewer, editor, and writer of letters. He held several positions as a regimental doctor in Stuttgart, a theater critic in Mannheim and a co-director of the

Court Theater in Weimar. Most importantly, Schiller was the first German poet who, against all the odds and uncertainties of earning his living as a freelance author, decided early in his poetic career for the Dichterberuf.17 From this point on, Schiller pledged to concentrate on das absolute Ziel der eigenen Dichtung.18 His inner need was to write and, by writing, to determine the meaning of his existence. Schiller’s fame rests with his poetic, dramatic, and aesthetic works. The purpose of this dissertation is to inquire how Friedrich Schiller determined his vocation as poet- dramaturge in his correspondence, theoretical writings, and poetic and dramatic creations. We will argue that Schiller’s highest priority is found in the pursuit of ennobling human character: was die Menschheit innerhalb ihres Wesens veredelt, verdient das höchste Augenmerk (NA 20:88). Schiller’s primary objective was to cultivate human beings’ awareness to understand and actualize their purposes. There

17 G. E. Lessing is sometimes referred to as the first; however, he received significant financial assistance throughout his career. In the winter of 1783, Schiller decided for the “Dichterberuf.”. See Schiller’s letter to Streicher on Dezember 8 1782 (NA 23: 52). And on the same day to Schwan (NA 23: 54-55). 18 Also quoted by Marie Haller-Nevermann (8). Consider also the impact of Schiller’s most influential teacher Johann Friedrich Abel who delivered his Rede über das Genie at the Military Academy in 1774. According to Abel, a genius is both the product of nature and education. He underscored that a gifted person needed to be trained in how to keep all powers of his mind focused on the final product. “Kein einziges Produkt der Seele kann ohne Mitwirkung aller übrigen Kräfte gezeugt werden“ (Rede 19). Schiller’s goal was to continuously school himself in order to be able to produce excellent works in succession, as he said: „So habe ich Muth genug für die Ewigkeit zu arbeiten” (NA 16: 2). 21

are two major considerations. First, each human being should be free and in the position to discern his or her sovereign purpose [die Würde seiner Bestimmung] (NA

21:27). Second, men and women should experience themselves as whole human beings. In charging the arts with carrying out these tasks, the central motivating force behind Schiller’s poetic career was to fix his attention on producing literary works which, by tapping into both the intellectual and emotional faculties of human beings, develop the inner formation of character.19 As Schiller ascertained early in his career: poesy has no other aim than to school, i.e. form the whole human being in which process his or her true character is discerned.

Die Dichtkunst führt bei dem Menschen nie ein besondres Geschäft aus, und man könnte kein ungeschickteres Werkzeug erwählen, um einen einzelnen Auftrag, ein Detail, gut besorgt zu sehen. Ihr Wirkungskreis ist das Total der menschlichen Natur, und bloß, insofern sie auf dem Charakter einfließt, kann sie auf seine einzelne Wirkungen Einfluss haben (Über das Pathetische, NA 20: 219).

When, in ÄE 6, Schiller focused his attention on the disposition of his present age (die Aufmerksamkeit auf den Zeitcharakter),20 he concluded that, in spite of all the sophistication and schooling reason (the intellect),21 human experience was

19 See: Dirk Oschmann 2009. According to Oschmann, the pursuit of the cultivation of the whole human being is an underlying force of Schiller’s whole corpus. Regarding the human being, er soll an seiner Verstandesbildung ebenso arbeiten wie an seiner Herzensbildung und Körper und Geist in Einklang bringen“ (7). For Schiller’s concept of the „Totalität des Charakters “, see (NA 20: 318). Jeffrey L. High 2004 suggests that Schiller never could fully solve the mind-body problem. “Die Herstellung der Totalität des Menschen durch die Versöhnung seiner Fakultäten ist für Schiller das ungelöste Problem der Menschheit und daher auch das Problem der Figuren in seinen Dramen, wie die Beispiele seiner theoretischen Schriften und der Fokus seiner historischen Schriften belegen“ (19). 20 ÄE 6, FA 8: 570. 21 See: “ Die mannigfaltigen Anlagen im Menschen zu entwickeln, war kein anderes Mittel, als sie einander entgegen zu setzen. Dieser Antagonism der Kräfte ist das große Instrument der Kultur, aber auch nur das Instrument; […] Wieviel also auch für das Ganze der Welt durch diese getrennte Ausbildung der menschlichen Kräfte gewonnen werden mag, so ist nicht zu leugnen, dass die Individuen welche sie trifft, unter dem Fluch dieses Weltzweckes leiden“ (ÄE 6, FA 8: 576-77). 22

fragmentary. The majority of people had developed their character only partially.22

Instead of expressing the wholeness of one’s human nature, humankind became an imprint of his specialized knowledge.23 Paradoxically, as Schiller explains, specialization and the focus on the singular training or exertion of the intellect (die

Anspannung einzelner Geisteskräfte, FA 8: 577) advanced knowledge. However, it also meant the dismemberment of the nature of one’s being (Zerstückelung ihres

Wesens, FA 8: 575). In Schiller’s view, the Greeks had a different attitude toward life.

From the manner in which Greek art portrayed human character, it was obvious that when the intellect increased, it also pulled the body lovingly along: So hoch die

Vernunft auch stieg, so zog sie doch immer die Materie liebend nach (FA 8: 571). The

Greeks gave “equal respect to mental and physical prowess.”24 Schiller was of the conviction that these people were ‘happy’ and ‘beautiful’25 because they did not allow their nature to be ‘victimized’ by their life style.26

In overtly focusing on the powers of the mind, the intellect separated itself from the faculties of feeling and intuition. As a result, human actions are guided by either the extremes of reason or that of ‘sensual drives.’27 As the mass executions

22 ÄE 6, FA 8: 570-571. 23See: „Anstatt die Menschheit in seiner Natur auszuprägen, wird er bloß zu einem Abdruck seines Geschäfts, seiner Wissenschaft (FA 8:573 Anstatt die Menschheit in seiner Natur auszuprägen, wird er bloß zu einem Abdruck seines Geschäfts, seiner Wissenschaft“ (ÄE 6, FA 8:573). 24 C.M. Bowra, Classical Greece. “The GREEKS gave equal respect to mental and physical prowess because they believed that the ideal life would be the one spent in the pursuit of excellence in all things. The complete man would be equally active as an athlete, philosopher, judge, poet or at any other worthy pursuit” (27). 25 See: ÄE 6. “Durch gymnastische Übungen bilden sich zwar athletische Körper aus, aber nur durch das freie und gleichförmige Spiel der Glieder die Schönheit. […] und glückliche vollkommene Menschen erzeugen“ (FA 8: 576). 26 ÄE 6, translated by Reginald Snell, p. 37. 27 Jeffrey L. High, „Abstract.“ According to High, Schiller’s first writings on aesthetics and moral philosophy reveal that from early on Schiller faulted actions that were dominated “by either sensual 23

following the French Revolution (5 September 1793 – 28 July 1794)demonstrated,28 the masterminds of the French Revolution equated virtue with terror, and rational understanding turned against itself. Given the stark contrast between the ideals of revolution and the violent actions of the Terror, Schiller wrote in ÄE 8 that it is not sufficient to regard the manner in which understanding (der Verstand) exerts influence on the character. We must realize that the characteristics of the human mind and soul provide insights into our state of affairs. According to Schiller, our faculty of sensation “is bound to thinking, but it is only our hearts that can open the way to unlock the powers of our mind and soul.”29 Hence, the urgent need of our age,

Schiller declares, is to expand and refine the capacity for feeling further training the faculty of sensation (Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens). We gain better insights

drives or abstract reason” (vii). As we have proposed, Schiller’s pursuit of ennobling human character begins already in his early writings; for example, in “Rede über die Frage: Gehört allzuviel Güte, Leutseeligkeit und große Freigebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend? “ (NA: 20: 3-9)---Hereafter cited as RFG. Schiller argues:„Die Liebe zur Glückseeligkeit […] ist es, die zwischen zwei Gegenneigungen den Ausschlag geben soll. […] Das Wesen der Tugend […] ist das harmonische Band von Liebe und Weißheit“ (NA 20: 3-4). 28 G. P. Gooch discusses in detail Goethe’s reception of and reaction to the French Revolution that I summarize here in brief. Goethe had just returned to Weimar from Italy (first journey to Italy, 1786-88) when the news of the French Revolution shook the world. From the point of view of “classical harmony and measure” (176), Goethe found the violent methods of the Jacobins to be repulsive. Schiller was also repulsed. He Goethe claimed that is was contempt that drags man down. Having accompanied Duke Carl August twice into war Goethe wrote several plays that dealt “in a serious and comprehensive spirit” with the causes and the results of the Revolution (190). Goethe was annoyed by the ignorance of the masses. On the one hand, the revolts and brute attitudes of the lower classes were fueled by rebellious propaganda. On the other hand, the injustice of the higher classes led to animalistic brute behaviors on both sides (174-207). 29 Friedrich Schiller, “Empfindungen des geistigen Lebens.“ Philosophie der Physiognomie, para 11. „Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; Sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen. […] Wir werden sehen wie der Menschenschöpfer Denken an Empfinden gebunden hat. Empfindung ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder Verschlimmerung bewusst ist“ (NA 20: 28). 24

into how life functions enhanced level of insight, i.e. Einsicht would inspire

‘improvement.’30 Schiller describes these sentiments in ÄE 8 as follows:

Nicht genug also, dass alle Aufklärung des Verstandes nur insofern Achtung verdient, als sie auf den Charakter zurückfließt; sie geht auch gewissermaßen von dem Charakter aus, weil der Weg zu dem Kopf durch das Herz muss geöffnet werden. Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens ist also das dringendere Bedürfnis der Zeit, nicht bloß weil sie ein Mittel wird, die verbesserte Einsicht für das Leben wirksam zu machen, sondern selbst darum, weil sie zu Verbesserung der Einsicht erweckt (FA 8:582).

Schiller’s pursuit of understanding human character began earlier in his poetic career.

In his first medical dissertation, the Philosophie der Physiologie, Schiller recognizes that the mind and soul not only think but also feel. It is through feelings that the human mind registers the improvement or deterioration of one’s disposition.

Empfindung ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbeȕerung oder

Verschlimmerung bewusst ist (NA 20:28). According to classical philosophy the ability to understand or know something without engaging the reasoning process or supplying empirical evidence is associated with the Greek word noesis (seeing intuitively with the mind's eyes).31 In Schiller’s own day, Moses Mendelsohn’s

Letters Concerning the Sensations (Briefe über die Empfindungen, 1755) influenced

Schiller’s thinking about the profound effect of feelings and actions. Schiller also studied Immanuel Kant regarding the role of senses in perception and cognition in his first critique, Kritik der reinen Vernunft. “Erkenntnis erst entsteht, wenn Sinnesdaten

30As suggested by Reginald Snell, 50. 31 As Schiller knew according to classical philosophy, intuitive comprehension was the ability to understand or know something without any direct evidence of reasoning process. During the “unpoetical period,” however, Schiller was also able to locate the theoretical foundation of the act of intuition, as his pivotal letter to Körner on 8 February 1793 attests (NA 26: 177-183). 25

im menschlichen Verstand verarbeitet werden.”32 And it was through his encounter with Immanuel Kant’s Critique of the Power of Judgment [Kritik der Urteilskraft] that

Schiller succeeded in defining his own concept of the beautiful.33 Doing so, Schiller inquired into how intuition figured into the activity of the intellect. In a pivotal letter to Körner on 8. February 1793,34 Schiller determines that Reason [theoretische

Vernunft] performed the task of discernment via two different functions, logical reasoning and intuitive comprehension. Schiller contends that intuitive comprehension occurs suddenly and takes us by surprise.35 To Schiller, since the transmission of knowledge also involves the senses, the intellect is taken by surprise when it senses agreement. 36 Schiller here advances the idea that intuitive comprehension requires reciprocal cooperation from the body and the mind in the

32Immanuel Kant, Kritik der reinen Vernunft. Ausgabe der Preußischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. (Berlin 1900), AA III, 75. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kritik_der_reinen_Vernunft#cite_note-10 33 See Schiller’s letter to Körner on 25 January 1793. Upon encountering Immanuel Kant’s Critique of the Power of Judgment [Kritik der Urteilskraft], Schiller’s main concern was to develop his own term of the beautiful. As he states: “Die Untersuchung über das Schöne, wovon beinahe kein Teil der Aesthetik zu trennen ist, führen mich in ein sehr weites Feld.[…] Die Schwierigkeit einen Begriff der Schönheit objektiv aufzustellen […] ist fast unübersehbar“ (NA 26: 175). 34 See Letter to Körner on 8 Februar 1793 (NA 26: 179). “Die theoretische Vernunft wendet ihre Form auf Vorstellungen an, und diese lassen sich in unmittelbare (Anschauungen) und in mittelbare (Begriffe) einteilen. Jene sind durch den Sinn, diese durch die Vernunft selbst (obschon nicht ohne zutun des Sinnes) gegeben. In den ersten, den Anschauungen, ist es zufällig, ob sie mit der Form der Vernunt übereinstimmen; in den Begriffen ist es notwendig, wenn sie sich nicht selbst aufheben sollen. Hier fordert also die Vernunft Uebereinstimmung mit ihrer Form; dort wird sie überrascht wenn sie findet.’” (NA 26: 179). In pursuit of understanding the nature of the beautiful, Schiller insists that our understanding of the world has to do with the senses. 35 See Letter to Körner on 8 Februar 1793. “Die theoretische Vernunft wendet ihre Form auf Vorstellungen an, und diese lassen sich in unmittelbare (Anschauungen) und in mittelbare (Begriffe) einteilen. Jene sind durch den Sinn, diese durch die Vernunft selbst (obschon nicht ohne zutun des Sinnes) gegeben. In den ersten, den Anschauungen, ist es zufällig, ob sie mit der Form der Vernunt übereinstimmen; […] die Vernunft […] wird überrascht wenn sie findet’” (NA 26: 179). 36 See Letter to Körner 8 February 1793. Intuition transmitted via the senses, that is “unmittelbare Anschauungen […] durch den Sinn gegeben.“ „[…] die Vernunft […] wird überrascht wenn sie Uebereinstimmung findet” (NA 26: 179). 26

acquisition of knowledge. The experience of beauty and insight gained by intuition is interconnected through our mental activities.

As we have noted, the German poet’s evaluation of the disposition of his age in ÄE 6, was a decisive moment in his intellectual development. The stark contrast between the ideals and reality, between order and violence had shown that

‘intellectual enlightenment’ alone could not exert sufficient influence upon the character of the human being, “since the way to the head must pass through the heart.”37

In exploring the German poet’s self-assignment to ennoble human character through his literary works, I pose several critical questions. How does Schiller’s artistry contribute to the cultivation of the faculty of sensation

(Empfindungsvermögen)? How do his literary works, in particular his dramas, help us discern either the improvement or deterioration of our state of affairs? What role does sensation play in the refinement of feelings, if any? What evidence is there that

Schiller portrays whole characters on the stage? 38 How, then, does Schiller form his material in order to drive human faculties towards cooperation? An assignment that

Helmut Rehder proposed at the Schiller Symposium of 1960 has not been undertaken to any satisfactory extent. What are, he asked, the “sources that fed the German author’s imagination and the forces that determined the forms and directions of his creative mind”? Going beyond Rehder, we pay close attention to how Schiller

37 ÄE 8, „Nicht genug also, dass alle Aufklärung des Verstandes nur insofern Achtung verdient, als sie auf den Charakter zurückfließt; sie geht auch gewissermaßen von dem Charakter aus, weil der Weg zu dem Kopf durch das Herz muss geöffnet werden (FA 8: 582). Transl. By Reginald Snell, 50. 38 In Schiller’s oeuvre whole characters strive for interacting between sense and reason, though they don’t assume perfect character traits. 27

conceived of his personal project and defined his professional identity in both theory and dramatic practice, in particular by forming his literary-dramatic characters in such a manner that impact theatergoers and readers alike. In short, I argue that the pursuit of ennobling human character was Schiller’s highest priority: was die Menschheit innerhalb ihres Wesens veredelt, verdient das höchste Augenmerk (NA 20:88). While das Dichterische in Schiller’s oeuvre discloses the imaginative-intellectual quality of his poetic pursuit, I contend that it was guided by the artistic principle of capturing human beings’ best possible expression, i.e. der Menschheit ihren möglichst vollständigen Ausdruck zu geben (NA 20:437).39

In Auseinandersetzung with the work of numerous cultures, both ancient and modern, in the area of art and poetry, Schiller conceived his own aesthetic terms-- the naïve (das Naive), the sentimental (das Sentimentale), grace (Anmut), and dignity

(Würde) while himself working to expanded and refine the faculties of reason and understanding and the sensibilities of the heart. How was this to be achieved?

Through form. For, as Schiller writes, durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des

Menschen [und nicht] auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt.40 Most assuredly, by directing feelings towards the ethical value of the human, Schiller’s works justify their lasting imprints on the pages of European and world literatures. For Schiller, dramatic art as informed by theoretical reflection lends fullest expression to humankind. In the process of developing his professional identity and goals, Schiller determined his

39 „In einem wahrhaft schönen Kunstwerk soll der Inhalt nicht, die Form aber alles tun; denn durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des Menschen [und nicht] auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt“ (ÄE 22, FA 8: 641). 40 See ÄE 22, FA 8: 641 28

vocation as a poet. In and through the very process of gaining clarity about the main objectives of his professional activities, that is, the “Form seiner Tätigkeit,”41 Schiller came to understand and embrace his vocation as a poet-dramaturge.

To be sure, scholarship has provided numerous insights into Schiller’s literary works and his engagements with aesthetic theories. However, we concern ourselves here with his emerging professional identity. The present dissertation seeks to disclose Schiller’s sense of attunement with his poetic vocation on his way to becoming one of the world’s most gifted dramatists, second perhaps after William

Shakespeare. We seek to articulate the development of Schiller’s response to his own calling as a poet, in particular his sense of mission to point the world in the direction of excellence of character. In the ninth letter of Über die ästhetische Erziehung des

Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen, Schiller calls on the individual to shape the world:

[…] gib der Welt, auf die du wirkst, die Richtung zum Guten […] wenn du ihre Gedanken zum Notwendigen und Ewigen erhebst […] handelnd und bildend, in dem innern, nicht bloß in dem äußern Menschen […], daȕ nicht nur der Gedanke sondern auch der Sinn ihre Erscheinung (von der Wahrheit) liebend ergreife (ÄE, FA 8: 586).

It was through the experience of the beautiful (das Schöne) that a sensitive heart was able to discern the inner truth (innere Wahrheit) a work of art conveys.42 Schiller’s artistic creed finds its first beautiful expression in Don Carlos. Here the Marquis Posa is given to say:

41 See ÄE 23, FA 8: 646 42 “[…] die innere Wahrheit, die ich die philosophische und Kunstfreiheit nennen will, welche in ihrer ganzen Fülle im Roman oder in einer poetischen Darstellung herrschen muss, […] Die innere Übereinstimmung, die Wahrheit wird gefühlt und eingestanden, ohne dass die Begebenheit wirklich vorgefallen sein muss“ (To Caroline von Beulwitz, 10 December 1788; NA 25: 154). 29

Die Wahrheit ist vorhanden für den Weisen, Die Schönheit für ein fühlend Herz. Sie beide Gehören für einander. Diesen Glauben Soll mir kein feiges Vorurteil zerstören. (Act 3, Scene 21, 4356-67)

I propose that Schiller’s primary material (Stoff) was the human being which sparked his poetic impulse. His primary goal was to capture human beings’ best possible expressions through the formation of the beautiful. While disclosing the imaginative-intellectual quality of Schiller’s poetic pursuit, I contend that it was through the pursuit of beauty and truth that Schiller best expresses his own sense of attunement with his poetic vocation which is the cooperative interaction between the light of his mind and the powers of his creative energies.

I show that, by asserting that poesy’s aim was to form the entire human character, Schiller sought to counteract the one-sided rational development of human beings. By reconfirming the intrinsic value of inner feelings, Schiller endeavors to give equal precedence to the cultivation of sensibility and the workings of the intellect. As Lothar Pikulik43 reads Schiller, sense and reason stand side by side in equilibrium:

Die Kantsche Philosophie inspiriert Schiller, über die Empfindungen nicht nur psychologisch, sondern auch philosophische zu reflektieren, um sie zugleich in ein angemessenes Verhältnis zur Vernunft zu setzen. Und die Angemessenheit ergibt sich für ihn aus dem seiner eigenen Anlage entspringenden Bewusstsein, dass die Empfindungen eigenen Wert besitzen, der es nicht erlaubt, sie gegenüber der Vernunft gering zu schätzen. So plädiert Schiller für die Gleichgewichtung der beiden Seiten (Pikulik, 225).

43 Lothar Pikulik, “Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit“ (2005). 30

Pikulik’s explanation is “Consistent with the early mind-body paradigm, [in which] one impulse proves to be indispensable to the other.”

While it is the poet and not the philosopher who possesses the artistic skills to portray and evoke emotions, my task also involves articulating how Schiller evokes genuine feelings in heightened situations and therewith further cultivates the whole human being. For example a short statement in Don Carlos--“Der König hat geweint”

(IV, 23)—evokes both sympathy (Mitleid) and admiration (Bewunderung) such that the dramatic effect works both ways.44

Pikulik attempts to differentiate emotions posed a new and complex problem in eighteenth-century German letters. By convention, the concept of

‘Empfindung’ was used indifferently regardless of whether inner feelings or corporeal sensations were at work--Pikulik contends--that by employing

“Empfindung” in a sense of ”Gefühl,” Schiller not only differentiated inner feelings (seelische Empfindungen) from corporeal sensations. He also contributed to the process of the sophistication of emotions. Today some hold that “Although emotions have long been categorized as purely cognitive, it is now clear that the mental representation of an emotional experience includes motor and visceral (relating to deep inward feelings rather than to the intellect)

44 In the “Briefwechsel über das Trauerspiel” (1756/57), Lessing, Mendelssohn,and Nicolai debated the nature of tragedy (Trauerspiel). Mendelsslohn proposed that the primary effect of tragedy was admiration (“Bewunderung”), whereas Lessing argued that that the main effect of tragedy is arousal of compassion (“Mitleid”). It seems that Schiller captured both effects in his dramatic art and theory. We will not need to provide specific references since most scholars of the eighteenth century are aware of the same—only not in the way you see it with respect to Schiller. The discussion does not take place in the Hamburgische Dramaturgie, although it is there that we find Lessing’s signature definition. 31

components as well as cognitive ones’ (Dantzer, 1989). 45 As Moses

Mendelssohn had communicated through his character Euphranor, already in his influential Briefe über die Empfindungen (1755) “too much conceptual clarification of feelings will destroy emotion.” “Allzu sorgfältige

Zergliederung der Schönheit stört das Vergnügen […] Die Lust verschwindet, wenn wir unsre Empfindung allzu sorgfältig aufzuklären suchen.“46 These are points of which Schiller was well aware and knew how to translate their contents into dramatic practice.

Contemplating how to attract the attention of the audience or reader,

Schiller thought about how an individual who is endowed with a life force actively displays the self ([wie] sich ein Individuum lebend abdrückt, NA 28:

22). Schiller admits to Fichte that, in borderline situations, he often lets gestures (the body) speak for the self instead of via words.47

MOOR: Wirklich, Schufterle?—Und diese Flamme brenne in deinem Busen, bis die Ewigkeit grau wird! –[…] (Sie gehen zitternd ab. Moor allein, heftig auf und ab gehend.) (Die Räuber, 2. Akt, 3. Szene, 71-72)

Reiterating that it is the poet and not the philosopher who possesses the artistic skills to portray emotions, we submit that this task became central to his pursuit ennoble character through the forms of dramatic art.48 The task is

45 In Michel Cabanac, 70. 46 Moses Mendelssohn, „Briefe über die Empfindungen.“ Schriften zur Philosophie und Ästhetik I, 8-9. 47 Regarding Schiller’s employment and the significance of gesticulation on the stage, see Guthrie. For a helpful discussion of Schiller’s relation to Fichte and Idealism, see Pott, 1980. 48 Norbert Oellers underscores the dramatist’s capabilities. „Handlung, Sprache und Komposition (Aufbau, Form) sind das unverwechselbare Eigentum des Dichters“ (Oellers, 2006, 113). All the same, in Schiller’s experience, the human heart remains the authoritative agency of the inner life of human 32

facilitated by beautiful appearances and their Bildung in the formation of characters that address the point.

Pikulik affirms: “Die Eigenart des feinen oder edlen Empfindens besteht für

Schiller besonders in der ästhetischen Fähigkeit, das Schöne wahrzunehmen

[…]“ (225). The beautiful (das Schöne) is tied to the noblest part of our being. Beauty is perceived initially through the senses than available to us through cognition. First, however, aesthetic principles are known by intuition (Anschauung). When our feelings coincide with the sensation of beauty, we trust them as sources of knowledge.

Wenn ich der Verbindung nachdenke, in der das Gefühl des Schönen und Großen mit dem edelsten Teil unsers Wesens steht, so kann ich sie unmöglich für ein blossses Spiel der Empfindungsart halten, welches keiner andern als empirischer Regeln fähig ist. Auch die Schönheit, dünckt mir, muss wie die Wahrheit und das Recht auf ewigen Fundamenten ruhn. […] Gewöhnlich hält man eine Erklärung des Schönen nur darum gegründet, weil es mit dem Anspruch des Gefühls in einzelnen Fällen übereinstimmen ist. […] wenn es wirklich eine Erkenntnis des Schönen aus Prinzipien gäbe, den Ausspruch des Gefühls nur deswegen trauen sollte, weil er mit der Erklärung des Schönen übereinstimmend ist.49

Schiller will state in ÄE 16,

Für den Menschen unter dem Zwange entweder der Materie oder der Formen ist also die schmelzende Schönheit Bedürfnis, denn von Größe und Kraft ist er längst gerührt, ehe er für Harmonie und Grazie anfängt empfindlich zu werden (FA 8: 618).

Regarding Letter 16, in which Schiller attributes to the beautiful (das Schöne) a releasing (“auflösende”) and a tensing (“anspannende”) effect, Steven Martinson maintains that “the releasing effect of beauty is required in order to keep both the

beings, as Blochmann has observed: “[…] so bleibt für ihn [Schiller] doch das ‘Herz’ auch jetzt noch die entscheidende Instanz des inneren Lebens” (490). 49 See Schillers letter to F. Ch.v. Augustenburg on 9 February 1793 (FA 26: 183-187). 33

material- and the form-impulses within their borders” (HT 178-179). According to

Lesley Sharpe, Schiller fails to deliver a satisfactory treatment of the ‘energetic’ or tensing and ‘melting’ or releasing beauty (Companion, 147). In our view, Schiller contends that, in the age of specialization, human beings need to experience the releasing effect of beauty. For, “under the one-sided pressure of either matter or the intellect, we respond easier to power and to the monumental than sensing harmony and grace” (FA 8: 618). In the poem Die Künstler, Schiller comes closest to expressing what we term the practical value of beauty for truth projects the possibility of right action. “Was wir als Schönheit hier empfunden, / Wird einst als Wahrheit uns entgegengehn.“50

Driving Schiller’s pursuit of beauty is the conviction that no passion or sentiment can enslave the inclination of the human mind toward freedom. On this point, we see a connection between beauty and the power of the sublime. In the essay,

Über das Pathetische (1793), Schiller asserts that the most fitting subject matter of poetry is the portrayal of freedom which accompanies the expression of beauty.

Die ästhetische Kraft, womit uns das Erhabene der Gesinnung und Handlung ergreift, beruht also keineswegs auf dem Interesse der Vernunft, dass recht gehandelt werde, sondern auf dem Interesse der Einbildungskraft, dass recht Handeln möglich sei, d.h. dass keine Empfindung, wie mächtig sie auch sei, die Freiheit des Gemüts zu unterdrücken vermöge. […] in jeder Äusserung der Freiheit und Willenskraft, und wo nur irgend der Dichter dies antrifft, da hat er einen zweckmäȕigen Gegenstand gefunden (NA 20: 220).

By portraying the sublime experience of freedom, it becomes possible to pursue the right course of action (dass recht Handeln möglich sei). The above passage from the

50 Schiller, „Die Künstler.“ Schillers Gedichte, 204. 34

essay Über das Pathetische (1793) discloses that Schiller is indebted to Kant for he underscores the importance of the power of will [Willenskraft] in forming character.51

Schiller’s idea of freedom emerged from the artist’s inner need and was the result of his mind’s reflective activity between the actual and the ideal.

In the mid-eighteenth century, the new field of aesthetics began to shape the discourse of German intellectuals. While Schiller himself actively participated in these theoretical debates, as a writer, he also contemplated how beauty can improve life.52

Concentrating on the tragic flaws of his characters, the dramatist performs the aesthetic education of human beings through training human faculty of feelings how to register either the improvement or deterioration of the state of human affairs. This entailed the faculties’ “reciprocal, yet taut interaction.”53 Clearly, Schiller’s dramatic practice informed his later theories on aesthetics. These and other aspects of his writing disclose a process of development through which he began to recognize his calling as a poet. Chapter 5 concerns key elements that transformed Don Carlos into his first classical play. Our discussion then turns back to the question how the mental dispositions of grace and dignity differ from each other and how these terms contribute to our appreciation of beauty and the sublime.

Inquiring into how Schiller’s debut play Die Räuber and his first classical piece Don Carlos actually expand the faculties of the intelligence and refine the

51 Blochmann observes: “Was Kant ihm an dieser Stelle geschenkt hat, ist die von Schiller aufgegriffene Kategorie des Willens, […] ein erhabener Charakter zu werden” (497). 52 Schiller refers to literature as “die wirksamste aller Triebfedern des menschlichen Geistes, die seelenbildende Kunst” (NA 26: 185). 53 See Martinson, HT 176. 35

sensibilities of the heart, I claim that, on the basis of theory and conception of these two early dramas, Schiller’s professional identity unfolds. The dramatic works constitute powerful tools of Bildung to which their lasting imprints on European letters and world literature attest. 36

CHAPTER ONE: SCHILLER’S INTELLECTUAL AND ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE LIGHT OF THE GERMAN (ENLIGHTENMENT (AUFKLٍRUNG

In this chapter, we consider how the poet’s artistic and intellectual development drew upon the intellectual and literary climate of the German Enlightenment. We seek to determine the relationship between Schiller’s understandings with those of influential representatives of Enlightenment, in particular, Lessing, Mendelssohn, and

Kant without locking him into a particular discursive network. Beginning with

Schiller’s first medical dissertation [read: thesis], Philosophie der Physiologie, we consider how young Schiller’s critical and creative engagement with the body-mind problem of his age initiated his poetic pursuits of ennobling human character which he then understood to be the primary purpose of his calling as a poet. I pose questions, as why, for example, Schiller was concerned with the creative process of the mind/soul [Geist]. Why did he consider the idea of freedom [Freiheit] central to the creative process? While the influence of contemporary events upon Schiller’s engagement in his theoretical writings is obvious, I contend that, already at this early stage of his career, the “forms and directions” of Schiller’s critical intellect succeed to portray to us that his main objective was to understand and fulfill his purpose as a poet. We begin with some notes on his childhood and early education. 37

1.1 SCHILLER’S CHILDHOOD AND HIS SENSE OF HARMONY

Schiller’s childhood and early education impacted the disposition he developed concerning his life as a poet and dramaturge. Three father figures supervised Schiller’s upbringing: his biological father, Caspar Schiller, his pastor, Philipp Ulrich Moser, and his political father, Duke Karl Eugen.The boy, Friedrich Schiller, began his formal education in Lorch where he took up private lessons in Latin with Pastor Moser and, the following year, in Greek.

Schiller’s natural father was a remarkably serious man who, from time to time, was severely strict. His mother, Elisabeth Dorothea nee Kodweiß, was reputably docile. As his letters disclose, Schiller treated his father and mother with love and respect until the end of his life. He held Pastor Moser in high esteem as witnessed in his drama Die Räuber.54 His disposition toward Duke

Karl Eugen proved another matter. On the account of injuries suffered from the monarch’s absolutist behaviors, Schiller harbored harsh feelings toward

Karl Eugen throughout his life, although he made some gesture in the direction of reconciliation close to the time the duke died in 1793.

Later in life, Schiller pictured the three years he had spent in Lorch as

Elysium, that paradisiac state of naïve innocent childhood where one is at harmony with nature. Elysium became a leitmotiv for Glückseligkeit,55 which found its

54 Pastor Moser appears as a character in Act 5, Scene of Die Räuber. Moser confronts Franz about the crimes of patricide and he is the mouthpiece of Schiller’s message: Human beings who commit such actions are not worthy of the title of Homo sapiens. „Sie werden nicht von Menschen begangen, auch ahnden sie Menschen nicht“ (136). 55 In his „Rede über die Frage: Gehört allzuviel Güte, Leutseeligkeit und Große Freigebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend?“ (NA 20: 3-9), Schiller states that the motivational force behind actions should be our love of happiness: „Liebe zur Glückseeligkeit muss diese Quelle [der Tat] sein“(3). 38

expression in many different forms of his work, including his poems, dramas, and theoretical works. In Schiller’s first drama, Die Räuber, even though the main character, Karl Moor, is endowed with all the aptitudes for greatness, in consequence of his own misperceptions, he turns to rebellion, pledging to live outside society as given and become a criminal. Curiously, at the very worst of his atrocities, Karl is suddenly reminded of the happiness of his childhood and desires to regain that state of innocence. He feels remorse and desires to regain his childlike-state and experience.

Die Seligkeit einer einzigen Träne which he had shed as a child. Karl’s emotional outburst of remorse is so powerful that it evokes our sympathy.

MOOR: Es war eine Zeit, wo sie mir so gern flossen—o ihr Tage des Friedens. Du Schloss meines Vaters—ihr grünen, schwärmerischen Täler! O all ihr Elysium Szenen meiner Kindheit! —Werdet ihr nimmer zurück kehren—nimmer mit köstlichen Säuseln meinen brennenden Busen kühlen? (3.2, 87).

In ÄE 9 the writer will advise that truth and beauty ensure that one’s heart is tuned to harmony. 56 He cautions that if we want to impart to the world the way of the good, we must follow the right model. We guard our hearts by making harmony our companion.57 Hence,

Damit es dir nicht begegne, von der Wirklichkeit das Muster zu empfangen, das du ihr geben sollst, so wage dich nicht eher in ihre

56 Friedrich Schiller, “Brief Neun,“ Über die ästhetische Erziehung in einer Reihe von Briefen. FA 8: 586.—hereafter cited as ÄE 9. 57 Reginald Snell, translator of Schiller’s Über die ästhetische Erziehung in einer Reihe von Briefen, observes that Schiller’s attention to the shaping force of harmony in childhood underscores the author’s wisdom that Herbert Reed had called Education through Art. “The aim of imaginative education … is to give the individual a concrete sensuous awareness of the harmony and rhythm which enters into the constitution of all living bodies and plants, which is the formal basis of all works of art, to the end that the child, in its life and actitivities, shall partake of the same organic grace and beauty. By means of such education we instil into the child that ‘instinct of relationship’ which, even before the advent of reason, enables it to distinguish the beautiful from the ugly, the good from the evil, the right pattern of behaviour from the wrong pattern, the noble person from ignoble.” In Snell, 18. 39

bedenkliche Gesellschaft, bis du eines idealischen Gefolges in deinem Herzen versichert bist (FA 8: 586).

In illustration of how much Schiller’s artistic expression was tied to his disposition of harmony, the idea of the happy state of childhood in the treatise Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung served as a model for Die Idyll i.e. pastoral genre (FA 8:

706-810).

[…] ja jeder einzelne Mensch hat sein Paradies, sein goldenes Alter, dessen er sich, je nachdem er mehr oder weniger poetisches in seiner Natur hat, mit mehr oder weniger Begeisterung erinnert (FA 8: 771).

In this later writing, Schiller did not advocate returning to the simplicity of childhood.

In direct criticism of Jean Jacques Rousseau, Schiller labels such desire a state of

Bedürftigkeit (“beggarliness”; FA 8: 775). Such attitudes would mean toying with the heart while disregarding the working of the intellect. By revisiting the memories of our childhood, the feelings attached to the blissful state of past harmony should rather sober us to seize the moment and labor to attain a greater sense of harmony (FA 8:

775).

The pastoral genre is birthed at a particular moment of history when peace of civil life is contrasted with the disturbance of war.58 As Schiller contends, on the grounds that the pastoral genre is meant to impose upon us a harmonious disposition, we seek out the pastoral repose, die Idylle, only, if our faculties are desperately in want of peace and tranquility within and without:

Der Zweck der Idylle ist den Menschen […] in einem Zustand der Harmonie und des Friedens mit sich selbst und von außen darzustellen. […] Wir können sie daher nur lieben und aufsuchen, wenn wir der

58Agnes J. Cser, “The Pastoral Mode of Writing under the Shadow of the Holocaust.” 40

Ruhe bedürftig sind, nicht wenn unsre Kräfte nach Bewegung und Tätigkeit streben (FA 8: 770-771).

We observe that the disposition of harmony developed his early formative years greatly influenced and even sustained the directions of Schiller’s creative energies and guarded his life as a friend. His poetic persona bears witness to this major current of his life in the poem, Die Ideale.

Von all dem rauschenden Geleite, Wer harrte liebend bei mir aus? Wer steht mir tröstend noch zur Seite Und folgt mir bis zum finstern Haus? Du, die du alle Wunden heilest, Der Freundschaft leise, zarte Hand, Des Lebens Bürden liebend teilest, Du, die ich frühe sucht' und fand, […] (In Gedichte 242)

Die Ideale beautifully evokes feelings that young Schiller most likely experienced from an early age and throughout his tender friendship with harmony. As the elegiac tone of the poem attests, the experience of harmony that instills a delicate disposition belongs and, for Schiller, belonged to childhood. As a prevailing mood, harmony accompanies the mature poet’s sense of beauty, freedom and the sublime. The poem also confirms that writing philosophical treatises alone could never have satisfied

Schiller’s desire to ennoble the heart of his readers by directing their feelings and thoughts towards mankind’s ethical value. He simply needed to create literary works that expressed his commitment to humanity and motivate human beings. The reader will also recall our critique of Rüdiger Safranski. 41

1.1 SCHILLER AT THE ACADEMY: PHILOSOPHIE DER PHYSIOLOGIE

The history of Schiller’s formation of his professional identity as a poet was often interrupted by the necessity of breadwinning, periods of study, and doubts about the trajectory of his career. Though it is hard to establish exactly when the poet in Schiller awakened, the manner in which he engaged the intellectual climate of his age through his first medical dissertation Philosophie der Physiologie discloses the young medical student’s attunement to his calling as a poet. While inquiring into the relationship between the corporeal and rational natures of the human being, Schiller not only provides evidence of his “Bestimmtheit und Bestimmtsein” for the vocation of the poet. Remarkably, it is the intellect of the poet in the young medical student that demands due attention to the creative process. On the one hand, Schiller observes that we form ideas of the natural world based on our experience and sense perception.59

On the other hand, young Schiller is preoccupied with the philosophy of the mind. As

Alt observes, “following Platner who declared that the brain was the seat of the soul, the young medical student refrained from separating the mind (Geist) from the soul

(Psyche)60 and remained consistent in treating these immaterial domains as the inseparable entity of human thinking and feelings in his medical writings.61 Schiller thus becomes aware that, while material ideas are indispensable to the workings of the

59 See HT 24. “The formation of ideas owes a great deal to the data provided by the natural world and the cooperation of sensation and experience.” 60 Hereafter, Schiller’s concept of mind and soul is referred to as „Geist.“ 61 Peter-André Alt, Schiller Leben-Werk-Zeit. I. (München, 2000), „ […] verzichtet Schiller auf eine nähere Unterscheidung zwischen Geist und Psyche; beide Bereiche werden von ihm auch in späteren medizinischen Studien als immaterielle Zonen menschlichen Denkens und Empfindens aufgefaßt […]“ (158),—hereafter cited Alt. 42

creative intellect, the attention the immaterial soul pays to an idea of the material world is central to the creative process.

The formative influence of the intellectual world upon young Schiller’s development as an artist is of utmost importance. In 1773, at age 13, Schiller entered the Military Academy by order of Duke Karl Eugen.62 Upon entering the duke’s military academy, the Solitude, Schiller was not allowed to choose his vocation. He was to study law. Duke Karl Eugen operated as one of the monarchs of “enlightened” absolutism. Although he sought to bolster his own authority by improving the lives of their subjects, it was not without coercion. To be sure, young Schiller received an excellent education at the Academy. Nevertheless, with the establishment of the

Academy Karl Eugen purposed not only to shine as a pedagogue but also to raise young talented officers for his dukedom. Schiller was subjected daily to the military rigor from which he suffered some mental injury. Not only was he often sick, but his academic performance also suffered.

On one of several occasions Karl Eugen requested from his Eleven to describe one’s self as well as fellow students. These types of writing exercises were designed to supplement the intellectual-academic training of future civil servants with moral education (moralische Ausbildung), as Friedrich Strack observed.63 Schiller

62 Friedrich Bruschell described the situation in the following terms. „Karl Eugen hatte eine militärische Pflanzschule gegründet mit der Absicht, sowohl als Pädagoge glänzen zu können wie einen Nachwuchs von Offizieren und Beamten zugewinnen, die er in seinem Sinn erziehen könnte“(13). 63 “Schillers Festreden.” SHF. „Sein [des Herzogs] Ziel war die Ausbildung kenntnisreicher und umfassend gebildeter Staatsdiener, die öffentliche Verantwortung übernehmen konnten” (113). Ford additional Explikation, Alt, p. 95-98. “Entsprechend den Richtlinien des philosophischen Unterrichts umȕtun die Zöglinge ihre psychologischen Befunde genau begründen und systematisch an verschiedenen Parametern überprüfen, um neben Beobachtungsfähigkeit und Urteilsvermögen auch die eigenen Argumentationslogik zu schulen. […] Zu bedenken bleibt hier, dass der Nachweis von 43

concluded his report with a self-portrait. The writer confessed that law was a rigorous discipline and it did not allow him to live up to the natural talent he had.

The German Enlightenment posed the difficult question of humankind’s ultimate perfectibililty.64 Proponents of the German Enlightenment contemplated the possibility of a grand synthesis -- a single view of a universe uniting all knowledge, tradition and faith. In order to appreciate the uniqueness of Schiller’s view of the relation between mind and body in human beings, we must consider the work of

French philosophers.

The founder of seventeenth-century rationalism, Rene Descartes, understood the human soul to be a thinking vessel. His famous statement, cogito ergo sum,65 made it possible that truth (reality) can be established by clear and distinct ideas.66 At the same time, however, Descartes envisioned that the body and soul [mind] operate separately.67 They run parallel to each other without interacting.

According to Cartesian dualism, the body represents the material world and the mind the world of consciousness. Descartes valued passions negatively and attributed to the body everything that was repulsive to the soul. Unlike Descartes,

Schiller integrated the faculty of sensation (Empfindungsvermögen) into the domain

Verfehlungen durch einen Bericht strengste Disziplinarstrafen, Einkerkerung und Prügel zur Folge haben konnte“ (95). 64 “The uniqueness of the German Aufklärung is found in the interaction between the enlightened ideas of French, English and Italian philosophes and the troublesome questions of the German Aufklärer concerning the problem, first discernible in Leibniz’s monadology, of man’s ultimate perfectibility” (Martinson 1977, 1). 65 “I think, therefore, I am.” 66 Rene Descartes, Discourse of a Method from the Well Guiding of Reason, and the Discovery of Truth in the Sciences. (London: Thomas Newcomber, 1649); in D/R, 110, -- hereafter cited as Discourse. 67 Discourse. “[…] my Soul by which I am what I am, is wholly distinct from the Body […]” (52 f). In D/R 111. 44

of the mind and soul. In fact, he was the first to develop an interactionist theory of the relationship between body and mind.68

In the early phase of the German Enlightenment, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz perceived reason to be the “highest faculty and clarity of conception, “the supreme act of mind” (D/R 113). For as he argued, “the mind is the rational soul, a faculty peculiar to men and absent in ‘brutes.’”69 According to the central doctrine of his The

Monadology, the universe cannot be separated. Leibniz proposes that the universe consists of immaterial soul-like entities, the “windowless monads”70 that are “joined in an unbroken --’Chain of Being,’--from the lowest atom to the highest, God

Himself.”71 Based on his concept of the “pre-established harmony” of the universe,

Leibniz does not suppose, however, that the body and mind interact but, rather, that the mind mirrors what happens in the body. One of Leibniz’s great merits is having developed a consistent and coherent argument of the Grand Design of the universe as an indivisible interconnected whole.

Ernst Cassirer observed that the German life of the mind [Geistesleben] was indebted to Leibniz’s monism. Cassirer captures the manner in which the monistic thought of Leibniz influenced the world of ideas:

[…] was sie [die Leibnizschen Philosophie] an einer gedanklichen Kraft besaß, das erschöpfte sich nicht in den Streitigkeiten der Schule über das Einfache und die Monaden, über die Harmonie der Seele und Leib […]. Vielmehr trat diese Kraft erst dort ganz zutage, wo der Inhalt der Probleme, mit denen das 18. Jahrhundert ringt, bereits über die Grenzen des Leibnizschen Systems hinausgewachsen war. In der

68 As underscored by Martinson (HT 36) 69 In D/R, 137. “The Monad ology” (1714) para. 4, 23 70 In D/R, 113. “The Monad ology” (1714) para.7, 3. 71 In D/R, 114 and „Gottfried Leibniz: Metaphysics“ http://www.iep.utm.edu/leib-met/ 45

beherrschenden Macht, die sie über diese sich neu gestaltenden Fragen ausübt, tritt die Grundanschauung der Monadologie noch einmal in ihrer Fülle und Ursprünglichkeit heraus. […] die Mannigfaltigkeit der Anregungen, die das deutsche Geistesleben des achtzehnten Jahrhunderts von außen her empfangen hat, […] Gegenüber all der zuströmenden Fülle des Stoffes wird eine […] geistige Form behauptet. Sie ist […] ein bewegliches und bildsames Ganze […und wird] zu Richtlinien des Denkens und Forschens […].72

Cassirer underscored the abundantly rich and agile system of Leibniz that gave food for thought and inspired vibrant research and spiritual-intellectual activities of the mind/spirit (Geist). Although Schiller’s first medical dissertation rejects the “pre- established harmony” of the universe, the constant and non-interactive relation between body and mind.73 In illustration, the young medical student refrained from separating the mind (Geist) from the soul (Psyche) and remained consistent in treating these immaterial domains as an inseparable entity of human thinking and feelings in his medical writings.74

Pursuing Schiller’s sense of calling as a poet, I turn the discussion to the manner in which he dedicates himself to the “Geistestätigkeit, die sich am Stoff entfaltete.”75 Unexpectedly, perhaps, the Philosophie der Physiologie demonstrates

Schiller’s inward calling as a poet.76 While both Descartes and Leibniz challenged the young medical student’s thinking about the philosophy of the mind and the mind’s

72 Ernst Cassirer, 1916, 100-101. 73 Philosophie der Physiologie. “[…] Unsere Vorstellung einer Welt […] wir deuten, Kraft eines von Ewigkeit festgesetzten Zusammenklangs, wie zwei gelichaufgezogene Uhren auf eine Sekunde. – So ist also die Welt ohne Absicht da. […] Meine Glückseligkeit ist Traum. Diese Meinung ist nichts als ein witziger Einfall eines feinen Kopfes, die er selbst nimmermehr glaubt“ (NA 20: 13). 74 Peter-André Alt, 2000: „ [Schiller] verzichtet ...auf eine nähere Unterscheidung zwischen Geist und Psyche; beide Bereiche werden von ihm auch in späteren medizinischen Studien als immaterielle Zonen menschlichen Denkens und Empfindens aufgefasst […]“(158). 75 Marie Haller-Nevermann, 10. 76 Friedrich Schiller, Philosophie der Physiologie. NA 20: 10-29. 46

relationship to the body, it is the intellect of the poet that emerges in claiming that the

Aufmerksamkeit (attention) which the immaterial soul exhibits to a particular idea of the material world is central to the creative process. The medical dissertation also anticipates Schiller’s later aesthetic theory. For already here, he upholds the sublimity of the mind and soul (“die Erhabenheit des Geistes”; NA 20:12). Most importantly, young Schiller differs from both Descartes and Leibniz in the attention he gives to the harmonious ‘design of the universe and the end toward which his powers are working,’77 since “all powers are active and act on each other, like strings of a thousand-voiced instrument sounding together in one melody” and point to the recognition, appreciation, and fulfillment of human purpose.78

Soviel wird […] erwiesen sein, dass das Universum das Werk eines unendlichen Verstandes sei und entworfen nach einem trefflichen Plane. […] und alle Kräfte wirken, und ineinander wirken, gleich Saiten eines Instruments tausendstimmig zusammenlautend in eine Melodie: so soll der Geist des Menschen […] aus dem Zusammenhang der Ursachen und Absichten all den groȕen Plan des Ganzen entdecken […] Gottgleichheit ist die Bestimmung des Menschen. (NA 20: 10).

Observing the marvelous design of the universe, young Schiller proposes that, although humankind can never have attained the perfection of the Creator, every human being is characterized by both Bestimmung und Bestimmtsein which, as Peter-

Andre Alt rightly underscores, entails moral self-determinations (Alt, I, 159).

Furthermore, for Schiller, self-determination to recognize and fulfill one’s own purpose is contingent on inner freedom. As he writes in Kallias, oder über die

77 See HT 36 and D/R 258; NA 20: 41. 78 Translated by Anita Gallagher. < http://www.schillerinstitute.org/fid_97- 01/fid_983_schill_trns.html> 47

Schönheit: Frei sein und durch sich selbst bestimmt sein […Diese Art von]

Bestimmung geschieht …nicht von auȕen, [sondern] von innen (FA 8: 298). One’s moral responsibility is to first to discern and then and actualize one’s capabilities in accordance with one’s own nature. In the early medical writing, Schiller also suggests that individuals enjoy the things that bring them closer to their own purposes: Was den Menschen jener Bestimmung näher bringt, […] das wird ihn ergötzen (NA 20:

11). Hence, if we wish to determine our purpose (vs. destiny) in life, will entertain the question of the improvement of our mind and soul.

While it may remain unclear how we register different kinds of feelings, they are central to Schiller’s claim that perfection is tied to pleasure and displeasure to imperfection,79 which lies at the heart of his dramatic practice. For what consequences might there be if one elects not to do so? The dramatist Schiller was highly adept at exploring both the question and the consequences.

For young Schiller, it follows that by in recognizing, appreciating, fulfilling one’s own purpose, one will also increase the happiness of his fellow man. Both are

DFKLHYHGWKURXJKÄhEHUVFKDXXQJ)RUVFKXQJ%HZXQGHUXQJGHVJURȕHQ3ODQV>WKH

Great Design] der Natur“(NA 20:12). Schiller’s view of the healthy interaction between mind and body and that “transformative force” to which he refers in his medical writings helped him determine his purpose as a poet-dramaturge. Finally, and most tellingly, that the medical student embedded a fragment of his drama-in-

79 „Vollkommenheit [ist] an Vergnügen, Miȕvergnügen an Unvollkommenheit gebunden (NA 20:11). 48

progress, Die Räuber, in his medical writing in support his argument provides evidence in itself of Schiller’s growing sense of purpose as a poet-dramaturge.

An analysis of that transformative force (“Mittelkraft”)80 that mediates between mind and body is likewise important for understanding the relation between the early medical writings and Schiller’s subsequent writings. Schiller argues, first, that the sensory organs (“Organe”), namely our senses as instruments of sensation and perception are parts of a “Nervengeist.” Second, the “Mittelkraft” operates in the pathways of the nerves, which not only regulates but convert the stimuli of the outside world into material ideas (materielle Ideen; NA 20: 14-15).81 Third, the transformative force fulfills its mediating function by connecting the Nervengeist (NA

20: 16, para. 6) with the Denkorgan (NA 20: 20, para. 8). It shields the mind from becoming overstimulated. In this way, also, the Mittelkraft helps form ideas.

Importantly as well, Schiller explains, the alliance between the Nervengeist and the

Denkorgan does not compromise the activities of the soul (Psyche), since the latter is immaterial. Das Denkorgan, oder das Instrument des Verstandes, [ist...] weder Sinn noch Seele“ (NA 20:20).

Even more specifically, Schiller wants to know how these two complementary natures interact with each other. What are the material ideas of the thought organ, and how are they produced from the material ideas of sensation (NA 20: 20, para. 8). He

80 „Es ist wirklich eine Kraft zwischen der Materie und dem Geist. […] Ihr Dasein lichtet, weckt, belebt alles um ihn—ich nenn sie Mittelkraft“ (NA 20: 13 para. 2). 81 See, also, Alt, I. 161.

49

is unable to find a satisfactory theory.82 Although it is apparent to him that the material ideas reach the thought organ, he cannot explain their material connection.

Da ich nun die materielle Assoziation nicht aus der Mechanik des Denkorgans erklären kann, weil diese bestimmt und ewig, jene aber unendlich mannigfaltig und veränderlich ist (NA 20: 25).

In an attempt to prove how our sensuous nature (Nervengeist) interacts with the thought organ (Denkorgan) the medical student draws an analogy to (vs. providing empirical evidence of) the sounds of two vibrating strings that interact with each other. He refers to this phenomenon as the vibrations of strings i.e.

Saitenschwingungen. For example,

Wenn ich zwei Klaviere neben einander angebe, und auf einem derselben eine Saite rühre, und einen Ton angebe, so wird auf dem andern Klavier die nämliche Saite und keine andere, ohne mein Zutun zittern, und eben den Ton, freilich matter angeben (NA 20: 24, para. 9).

Young Schiller uses an illustration of two pianos placed beside each other. When a key is played on one of them, the second piano will respond with the same sound

“admittedly more quietly (freilich matter).” By way of a poetic metaphor, Schiller cautions that even though sensation and the organ of thought cooperate with each other, the second instrument simply echoes the first one. Wondering how to explain this phenomenon, Schiller considers making the soul the organizing principle: Sie

82 The elements of Schiller’s argument point to the evidence that the body-mind relationship was “ein aktuelles Problemgebiet,” a provocative topic, it was intensively discussed at the Academy. While Schiller examines several theories, he accepts neither the claim that the soul is a material substance, nor the idea that the natural world rules over the soul. He confirms the illusive nature of these various theories. “In der Tat, ich habe den Kitzel nicht, und find es meiner Absicht gemäßer, Theorien umzustoßen, als neuere und bessere zu schaffen, oder schaffen zu wollen“ (NA 20: 26). The problem remains unresolved. For detailed information about the various theories and their impact upon Schiller’s examination committee, see Alt, 2000, 156-166, D/R, 170-175; and Martinson, HT, 23, 33- 36. 50

Seele empfindet es; das IST die sinnliche Idee (NA 20: 24, para. 9). Provided, however, that it is the Nervengeist that transmits the vibration of the strings into the

Denkorgan, how can it be that it is the soul i.e. die Seele that senses the vibration of the strings and detects the material idea? Schiller wonders. To be sure, it is the Seele

(soul) that empfindet (senses), not the Verstand.

Schiller writing registers conflicting imperatives in his thought process.

Although it is true that the material (Stoff) triggers the creative energies of the mind and soul, at the same time, it appears to be equally true that the mind’s reasoning power is supposed to be the highest faculty and the supreme act of human beings. The idea recalls the Enlightenment in which context Schiller was writing his text. It is though he were asking: isn’t the main operation of the intellect supposed to generate thought by the reasoning power of the mind?

Vorstellung ist nur der Grund […] der Stoff, worin der Verstand wirket und schafft. […] Das Hauptgeschäft des Verstandes wäre […] Überschauung, Forschung der Kräfte, der Absichten […] nämlich das Denken“ (NA 20: 19 para. 8).

It is strikingly original that the writer cannot dismiss the obvious, namely that material ideas [Vorstellungen] are indispensable to the creative process of the mind. He does not yet understand the connection between reason, creative energies, and the working of the intellect (understanding).83 He simply concludes:

Die materielle Assoziation ist der Grund, auf welchem das Denken ruht. Der Leitfaden des schaffenden Verstandes. Durch sie allein kann er Ideen zusammensetzen, und sondern, vergleichen, schlieȕen, und

83 Schiller’s letter to Körner of 8 February 1793. Schiller inquires into how intuition figures into the working of the intellect. Schiller concludes that the intellect [theoretische Vernunft] performed the task of understanding through two differenct functions, logical reasoning and intuitive comprehension” (NA 26: 177). 51

den Willen entweder zum Wollen, oder zum Verwerfen zu leiten. […] (NA 20: 26 para. 10).

The thought process that young Schiller so skillfully constructed until now appears to have arrived at a sticking point. Although the act of material association is the foundation on which thinking rests, the proposal that the mind’s reasoning power is supposed to be the supreme act of the human being does not fully satisfy the

German poet’s pursuit of the key to the working of the creative intelligence.

Only upon probing the idea of freedom does Schiller come to understand that the key to the working of the creative intelligence is not the reasoning power of the mind, but the free activity of the soul. As Schiller puts it, the intellect releases its creative energies as a result of the soul’s influence on the thought organ. Provided that freedom fixes its attention in an arbitrary manner on certain material ideas

(Vorstellungen). It can amplify them and, as a consequence, she can also intensify the working of the intellect. The work of attentiveness (Aufmerksamkeit) is described as follows:

Die Seele hat einen tätigen Einfluss auf das Denkorgan. Sie kann die Materielle Ideen stärker machen, und nach Willkür darauf haften, und so macht sie auch die geistigen Ideen stärker. Das ist das Werk der Aufmerksamkeit (NA 20:26 para.10).

In summary, it is the poet in the young medical student that emerges here when claiming that the attention the immaterial soul exhibits through its free activity vis-à-vie the material world is central to the creative process.

In his essay „Über Schiller und den Gang seiner Geistesentwicklung,”

Wilhelm von Humboldt claimed that thought was a matter of existence for Schiller: 52

“[…] der Gedanke war das Element seines Lebens […].”84 In the conversations they had during the years of 1793-97, Humboldt came to admire poet’s active mind

[“geistige Lebendigkeit”].85 “He handled the thought (den Gedanken) as if it were a collaborative acquisition,” Humboldt writes of Schiller, “nevertheless, I always felt that he was the generator of an idea.”86 These years mark what has been termed

Schiller’s “unpoetical period,” at which time he was working out his ideas on aesthetics (but not only aesthetics). The picture that Humboldt paints of Schiller’s poetic genius, however, has received far less attention. But Humboldt adds, „das

Dichter Genie war auf das engste an das Denken in allen Tiefen und Höhen geknüpft“

(Humboldt 27). Naming Schiller a Dichtergenie, Humboldt portrays Schiller a “große

[] geistige [] Natur [].”Nevertheless, he praises Schiller from the point of view of the ideals of the Enlightenment. He either did not know of or ignored the fact that his friend felt very uneasy about the adverse effects that resulted from the singular training of human faculties at the Solitude. Humboldt’s encomium conveys no awareness that Schiller’s poetic genius was determined to give humankind its fullest expression. As we know, the characteristics of the human mind and soul instructed

Schiller that body and mind interacted, also productively through action. But this presupposed that a person’s capacity of feeling (Empindungsvermögen) had been trained, i.e., refined. While Humboldt was motivated to highlight his friend’s most outstanding characteristics, such as the lively activities of his mind, his portrayal of

84 Wilhelm von Humboldt, 28 85 Ibid., 26 86 „Er behandelte den Gedanken immer als ein gemeinschaftlich zu gewinnendes Resultat, schien immer des Mitredenden zu bedürfen, wenn dieser sich auch bewusst blieb, die Idee allein von ihm zu empfangen […]“ Ibid., 28. 53

his friend is not wholly reliable. It does not address the actuality and purpose

Schiller’s poetic genius was striving for. Even though they were raised in the spirit of the Enlightenment, Schiller simply operated differently than did Humboldt.

Man sagt gewöhnlich, dass der Dichter seines Gegenstandes voll sein müȕe, wenn er schreibe, mich kann oft eine einzige, und nicht immer eine wichtige Seite des Gegenstandes einladen, und erst unter der Arbeit selbst entwickelt sich Idee aus Idee.87

Some time ago, Friedrich Burschell noted that, while he believed in the creative power of the mind/spirit (Geist), freedom became the central problem of

Schiller’s life (118). One of the substantive ties between Schiller’s theory and dramatic practice is that of freedom. And indeed, the problem of freedom presents itself right way. Contending that “the human mind and soul has power over the strength of motives, it alone advances motives,”88 Schiller proposes that should a certain material idea adhere itself to the Denkorgan, it will tyrannize the intellect in all chains of physiological associations. Thus, a particular fixed idea or passion could dominate the will of the mind and restrict the free activity of the soul to exert its influence on the thought organ. Any type of enslavement like this could result in actions that individuals performs mechanically and arbitrarily, Schiller states.

So kann es Leute geben, die zuletzt mechanisch gutes oder böses tun. Anfangs hatten sie es frei, moralisch getan, da nämlich ihre Aufmerksamkeit noch unbestimmt war. Jetzt aber ist die Idee auch ohne Aufmerksamkeit die lebhafteste, sie fesselt die Seele an sich, sie herrscht über den Verstand und Willen. (NA 20:27, para. 10).

87 Letter to Körner, 25 May 1792 (NA 26: 141) 88 Friedrich Schiller, Philosophie der Physiognomie.“ Sie (die Seele) hat auch Macht auf die Stärke der Beweggründe; ja sie selbst ist es, die sich Beweggründe macht“ (NA 20: 26 para.10). 54

Individuals who are inattentive to moral freedom, do not know how a habitual or recurrent idea can easily enslave one’s will. Schiller juxtaposes the (moral) freedom of the soul to the tyranny of a particular material idea that restricts the mind’s faculty of reasoning and wrongly determines one’s course of action. This idea, which will prove to be so important for an understanding of Schiller’s art of drama, is rooted already in the early medical writing on the philosophy of physiology.

Moralität des Menschen hat ihren Grund in der Aufmerksamkeit, d. h. im tätigen Einfluss der Seele auf die materiellen Ideen im Denkorgan. (NA 20: 27, para. 10).

By the last paragraph (para.11) of the Philosophie der Physiologie Schiller has integrated the faculty of sensation (Empfindungsvermögen) into the domain of the mind and soul, one effect of which is happiness.

Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen. Dies allein macht sie glücklich. Jenes allein macht sie des letztern fähig. Wir werden sehen, wie genau der Menschenschöpfer Denken an Empfinden gebunden hat. Empfindung ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder Verschlimmerung bewusst ist. Darin also von der Vorstellung unterschieden, dass sie hier nur den Zustand eines äuȕeren Wesens, dort aber ihren eigenen empfindet (NA 20:28, para. 11). [Emphasis mine]

Analogous to, but opposite of Descartes who called for clarity of reason,

Schiller argues that Empfindung is distinct.89 By reflecting upon the operation of the mind and soul, Schiller assures that the soul is not only an entity of thinking but of

89 Alt depicts the conflict that between Scharffenstein and Schiller passed in the literary circle. Poesy had centrality in their dispute. „Schiller betont, dass auch Emotionen, die die Literature vermittle, authentischen Charakter besitzen könnten“ (Alt, I, 99). Schiller verehrt Klopstock im Brief [an Scharffenstein] weil er ihm ‚viel zu danken’ hat. Es hat sich tief in meine Seele gesenkt. […] ich hab eine Quelle gefunden, die mein Herz vollmacht und segnet“ (NA 23: 5).

55

feeling as well. Unlike Descartes, it is not through cognition but by way of sensations

(feelings) that our soul registers and advances the knowledge of the improvement or the deterioration of free moral state of being. Schiller equipped, “I like to hear the murmur of the springs, but I dislike the ugly croaking of the raven” (NA 20: 29). In theoretical terms, when we respond either with pleasure or dislike to the various sounds of the natural world, we do not merely think about them. We feel the change that took place in our state of being as a consequence of the nature of an external object, or being. It is a decisive point. For, as a consequence of our experience of pleasure or dislike, we will need to determine whether we responded to our own condition i.e. Zustand or to the representation of the condition of an external matter.

As he claims: “Darin also von der Vorstellung unterschieden, dass sie hier nur den

Zustand eines äußern Wesens, dort aber ihren eigenen empfindet“ (NA 20: 28).

Schiller’s views on how feelings develop our knowledge of self anticipates his conception of the aesthetic education of man. He reasserts his distinctive observation:

“By virtue of the first law of nature, which stands at the pinnacle of this dissertation on mankind, I can only enjoy what brings me nearer to perfection and only dislike what makes me more imperfect. Nothing should displease me, other than what makes me less perfect.”90

Schiller again calls attention to the ability of the faculties of soul and mind to to train states of mind through the faculty of sensation. This is accomplished when the

Nervengeist and Denkorgan are co-operative. In that case, they are “indispensable to

90 Translated by Anita Gallagher. (< http://www.schillerinstitute.org/fid_97- 01/fid_983_schill_trns.html>). 56

the formation of ideas” and most beneficial to humankind. The reciprocity between these faculties is facilitated by the Mittelkraft, which anticipates the Spieltrieb of

Schiller’s later theory of art.

The idea of a Spieltrieb and the equal interaction between body and mind, is implicit already in the early writings begins to form in Schiller’s thinking and will guide his poetic sensibility of the beautiful. Most importantly, the attention the immaterial soul exhibits through her free activity to a particular idea of the material world is central to the creative process. As opposed to the condition of enslavement in which a fixed idea robs the soul of its freedom of attention, thereby enslaving the will of its ability to act freely while retaining moral responsibility (NA 20: 27, para. 10;

D/R 163).

In conclusion, while he has in mind fundamental ideas of Leibniz, Descartes, and

Mendelssohn, Schiller investigates how material ideas reach the thought organ and, at that point, become thoughts. In doing so, he recognizes that although the apparition of attention concerns the mind and soul, creative intelligence is founded on freedom. It lies beyond the domain of reason and enters a different realm. Already the young

Friedrich Schiller sought to ground the attention of his creative mind upon the idea that art’s task is to enable human beings actualize their own purposes by learning to function freely and morally at one and the same time. 57

CHAPTER TWO: THE POET SCHILLER AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF HIS POETIC POSTURE

Ich bin und bleibe bloȕ Poet und als Poet werde ich auch sterben. An Körner am 27. Februar 1792 (NA 26:137).

One of the oldest monuments to Friedrich Schiller (Schillerdenkmal) was erected in

1876 on the Schillerhöhe, park and museum quarter in Marbach. Designed by Ernst

Friedrich Rau, this fine work of sculpture portrays the most famous son of this small

German town, the poet Friedrich Schiller. The monument promulgates Schiller as a glistening light of never ceasing youth who lived among the people as a poet and died a poet as well. In his contribution Schillerhaus und Schillerdenkmal am Neckar, Ernst

Müller draws out the significance of the endorsement by quoting Schiller: “Ich bin

XQGEOHLEHEORȕ3RHWXQGDOV3RHWwerde ich auch sterben.”91

The Schillerdenkmal memorializes the form and the stature of the German poet in monumental size: dressed in a long coat, waistcoat, breeches and buckled shoes, he holds a writing scroll in his left hand and a pen in his right hand, ready to record his thoughts while stepping forward. In addition to this youthful energetic stance, the design of the head stands out. Modeled after the famous bust sculpture of

Johann Heinrich Donnecker, commonly referred to as “Kolossalbüste,” the beautiful portrayal of the Apollonian head wonderfully fits into the overarching theme of the monument embodying the poetic ideals that Schiller sought. Posterity often claims that Donnecker’s “Kolossalbüste” 92 became a cult image and contributed to the

91Ernst Müller, 1905/06, 84-88. See Letter to Körner of 27 February 1792 (NA 26:137). 92 Klaus Fahrner, Bilddiskurs zu Friedrich Schiller, 78-79. Upon learning about Schiller’s sudden death, Dannecker’s idea was born to redesign his original Schiller Büste to a so called „Kolossalbüste.” 58

idealization of Schiller following his death, an attitude that was prevalent in nineteenth-century Germany. To engage scholarly debates that address this particular issue is beyond the scope of this dissertation. Instead, I draw attention to the poetic inscriptions that were written on the sides of the monument and direct our attention to

Das Dichterische in Schiller’s oeuvre. This consideration stands in concord with the main topic of my inquiry, namely how Schiller determined and professed his vocation and comprehended his professional identity as a poet-dramaturge.

The base of the monument lists four cities: Marbach, Stuttgart, Mannheim, and

Weimar. Each city signifies a major milestone in the development of Schiller’s poetic path.93 Marbach is his birth town; Stuttgart was the place where Schiller’s intellectual development took place. Mannheim signifies the premiere of Schiller’s first play Die

Räuber, and Weimar stands for the classical period as well as for the German poet’s friendship and collaboration with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Inscribed in the front of the statue’s torso is the German poet’s name and biographical data: November 10,

1759 to May 9, 1805. On the left and right sides of the monument, two great poetic moments render das Dichterische in Schiller’s oeuvre.94 On the back torso of the monument, Goethe reminisces that Schiller’s light of the mind appeared among us like a vanishing comet. 95

93 Ten years (May 1789 to December 1799) were left out of Schiller’s life. One reason has to do with the fact that Schiller’s poetic production was at low key. As an appointed as Professor of History, Schiller wrote most of his historical and aesthetic works while in Jena. However, he also composed philosophical and elegiac lyrics in Jena. Most importantly, the year 1797 marks in Schiller’s poetic career “Balladenjahr.” Schiller’s ballads were very well received in Germany. 94 „Das weibliche Ideal (An Amenda)“; „Die Macht des Gesanges“. 95 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, „Epilog zu Schillers ‚Glocke‘“ 59

IMAGE ONE: Schillerdenkmal an der Schillerh٠he Marbach96

Hier ist ewige Jugend bei niemals versiegender Fülle, Und mit der Blume zugleich brichst du die goldene Frucht. Schiller „ An Amenda“

Wie mit dem Stab des Götterboten Beherrscht er das bewegte Herz: Er taucht es in das Reich der Toten, Er hebt es staunend himmelwärts. Schiller „Die Macht des Gesanges“

Er glänzt vor uns, wie ein Komet entschwindend, unendlich Licht mit seinem Licht verbindend. Goethe „ Epilog zu Schillers ‚Glocke‘“

By imparting pleasure and surprise at once, Schiller’s Dichterwörter address the recipient in a distinct manner. The first inscription quoted from the poem Das weibliche Ideal (An Amanda) celebrates at once blossoming youth and harvest time.

According to Franz Kern, the poem sings the praise of “Anmut” (charm) and

“Würde“(dignity) of a virtuous person, whose inclinations are guided by wisdom and love.97 Though it is possible to read these lines as depicting the characteristics of the ideal female that Schiller most likely had in mind at the time of writing this poem, I suggest that the sentiments of ewige Jugend (everlasting youth) and niemals

96 Aus dem Bildband Marbach, Jan Thorbecke Verlag. 97 Franz Kern, “die zur Natur gewordene […] sittliche Denkart […] ein[es] sittlichen Wesens" (269). 60

versiegende Fülle (never ceasing bounty) encourage a vision of the poet’s blossoming creative energies.

The second quotation comes from the poem Die Macht des Gesanges which, among other poems, inaugurated the classical period in Schiller’s poetic career. When the poem is read out loud, we can hear how the diction and rhythm interact with semantics. The cadence imprints itself in our minds as recipients. While these two short quotations from Schiller’s Dichterwörter remind us that poetry is “something sui generis (of its own kind) that is based on a perfectly sound intuition,” as William

Witte puts it. 98 They are reminiscent of the sentiments that the “pursuit of beauty was to him [Schiller] a matter of greatest moment in human affairs.”99

When Schiller sent his Die Macht des Gesanges to Wilhelm von Humboldt in

1795, his friend responded. “Das Dichterische ist drin. […] Sie berührt die innerste

Natur des Menschen, […] den Zusammenhang des Gedankens und der Empfindung.“

(NA 35: 348). Nevertheless, instead of addressing how the “Charakter des

Dichterischen“ plays itself out in this poem, Humboldt busies himself coming to terms with the unique subject matter of the poem. As he observes, this poem has us ponder the essence of the imagination, enabling the recipient to contemplate what is hard to rationalize and envision the impossible as possible. According to Humboldt,

Die Macht des Gesanges invokes a sense of hope for the future; nevertheless, by anticipating the future as incomprehensible, this hope is not without inner

98 William Witte, 1972, 61. 99 Ibid. 61

contradiction. Reason and imagination have difficulty to operate with each other in harmonious alliance. Humboldt’s letter to Schiller reads as follows:

Denn darin besteht ja das eigentliche Wesen der Einbildungskraft noch das Unvorstellbare vorstellen, das Inkompatibel zugleich festhalten, das Unmögliche möglich machen zu wollen (NA 35: 348-349).

Walter Hinderer contends that Die Macht des Gesanges could be considered the highest achievement of modernity.100 We are most interested in the way in which the poetic images of spring and harvest bring before our eyes the fruits of the poet’s hard labor and the ennobling force of poetry. The poet is the messenger of harmony

(“Götterbote”).101 As such, the poet animates with his poetic words the human heart to deeds, like the divine messenger with his staff.

Wie mit dem Stab des Götterboten Beherrscht er das bewegte Herz. Er taucht es in das Reich der Toten, Er hebt es staunend himmelwärts.

In retrospect, Schiller’s Dichterwörter on the monument in Marbach portray great poetic moments. At the same time, they raise multiple questions. How should we understand the poetic pictures when contemplating the possibility of harvesting

Blume (flower) and die goldene Frucht (the golden fruit)? Why should we assume that poetry could motivate the human heart to action? When I contemplated the poetic inscriptions on the Schillerdenkmal, I was prompted to wonder about the poetic ideals that Schiller pursued. How can we make sense of das Dichterische in Schiller’s

100 Walter Hinderer, 2006, 110. „Seine [Humboldts] anthropologische Begründung der Kunst ändert aber nichts daran […]. Aus den individuellen Voraussetzungen seines Geistes hat Schiller eine fundamentale Grenzerweiterung der Poesie vorgenommen, die seine eigene Dichtung den höchsten Punkt der Moderne bezeichnen lässt“ (ibid.). 101 Here we are reminded oft the poem Die Teilung der Erde. „Willst du in meinem Himmel mit mir leben, So oft du kommst, er soll dir offen sein.“ In Gedichte, 277. 62

oeuvre, and what obligations does it impose upon the artist? It was the beginning of the present research study.

DAS DICHTERISCHE: PURPOSE OF RESEARCH

In pursuit of achieving humankind’s best possible expression through the formation of the beautiful, das Dichterische was both a poetic impulse and underlying theme of his dramatic creation. The central motivating force behind Schiller’s poetic career was to fix his attention on producing literary works by tapping into both the intellectual and emotional faculties of human beings in his writings, thus inspiring the inner shaping of character. As Schiller early in his poetic career ascertains, poesy has no other aim than to school, i.e., form the whole (complete) human being. As I am arguing, the pursuit of ennobling human character was Schiller’s highest priority: Was die

Menschheit innerhalb ihres Wesens veredelt, verdient das höchste Augenmerk (NA

20:88).

Throughout the present project, I propose to engage critically and selectively the following seminal theoretical writings: Die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen, Über die Tragische Kunst, Über das Pathetische, Über

Naïve und Sentimentalische Dichtung, Anmut und Würde, and his Rezensionen über

Bürgers und Matthissons Gedichte in light of his early medical writings, dramas, and correspondence. Some difficult questions are raised here. Why did Schiller concern himself in the 1790s with concepts like Anmut and Würde, das Naïve and das

Sentimentalische, Schönheit and Freiheit? Why did he take nearly ten years to contemplate the nature and role of art before again engaging in the writing and directing of drama? Because, as we argue, Schiller was, first and foremost, a poet- 63

dramaturge, we are interested how his dramatic practice with his theoretical reflections grants him a clearer understanding of his calling as a poet. However, since the scope of this dissertation does not allow us to engage with Schiller’s theoretical writings in their entirety, our task here is to narrow the focus by examining the nature of Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische and answering the question how it inspired the desire for the excellence of human character. Identifying ‘forces’ that guided his understanding himself as a poet-dramaturge and sources that informed his imaginative-intellectual pursuits, chapter two delineates the manner in which Schiller devoted himself to his profession and actualized his sense of purpose.

To be sure, scholars have discussed Schiller’s theoretical writings and from many different perspectives.102 Similarly, his teleological stance regarding the French

Revolution has been examined carefully.103 Schiller’s views about the body-mind relation in terms of the “harmonious tension” has been carefully researched in the context of the German Aufklärung.104 Schiller’s distinct poetic language also has long been the topic of recent research.105 Scholars often address Schiller’s ideas about the aesthetic education of the human being, but they ignore das Dichterische, the poetic treatment of the aesthetic education of the whole human being. Occasionally, the discussion of das Dichterische is exhausted by the mere examination of Schiller’s theory of the beautiful.106 It is most remarkable that while das Dichterische is a

102 See 1) Andreas Wirth, 1974. 2) Klaus L. Berghahn, 1986; 3) David Simpson, 1988 David Pugh, 1996; 4) Walter Hinderer, 1998; and 5) Georg Mein, 2000. 103 Jeffrey L. High, 2004. 104 Steven D. Martinson, 1996. 105 Dirk Oschmann, 2007. 106 See Georg Mein, „Die Konzeption ästhetischer Freiheit.“ Die Konzeption des Schönen, 185-210. 64

recurrent theme in Schiller’s letters and theoretical writings, the quality of his

Dichterberuf has received very little scholarly attention.107 In making sense of “Das

Dichterische,” as the peculiar quality of Schiller’s Dichterberuf, it is necessary to chart how the idea developed and how it shaped Schiller’s vocation of the poet and his sense of poetic calling.

SCHILLER’S SENSE OF CALLING: A METHODOLOGICAL CHALLENGE

Ich schreibe als Weltbürger, der keinem Fürsten dient. Frühe verlor ich mein Vaterland, um es gegen die große Welt auszutauschen, die ich nur eben durch die Fernröhre kannte. Ein seltsamer Missverstand der Natur hat mich in meinem Geburtsort zum Dichter verurteilt. Neigung für Poesie beleidigte die Gesetze des Instituts, worin ich erzogen ward, und widersprach dem Plan seines Stifters. […] aber Leidenschaft für die Dichtkunst ist feurig und stark, wie die erste Liebe. (Schiller’s announcement in „Rheinischen Thalia“, 11. 11. 1784; NA 22: 93).

Schiller’s recognition that he had become a poet was a result of a long process of personal development. It was often interrupted by the necessity of breadwinning, periods of study, and feelings of doubts about the self-understanding of the trajectory of the poetic pursuits. Nevertheless, throughout his many different areas of professional activities as a poet, dramatist, historian, reviewer, editor and writer of letters, Schiller repeatedly reassured that his calling was to be a poet.

To inquire into Schiller’s poetic posture is a challenging undertaking. First,

Benno von Wiese proposed that due to their monumental dimensions and diverse nature, Schiller’s writings verge on the inconceivable, (grenzt ans Unfaßbare”).108

Second, as Martinson attests: his “act of writing was a moment in which not one but

107 Two contributions signal the aspect of das Dichterische in Schiller’s oeuvre: Klaus L. Berghahn, 1986 and Matthias Luserke-Jaqui, 2005. 108 Benno von Wiese. Friedrich Schiller, 351. 65

several or more activities cooperated simultaneously” (HT 9). At times, Schiller’s commitment to his chosen vocation is obscure. However, by paying close attention to his keen sense of attunement with the poetic vocation on the journey of becoming a great dramaturge, his sense of poetic calling was an intuitive process. From this unique perspective we critique the development of das Dichterische in Schiller’s oeuvre.

Schiller’s letters faithfully preserved his character for posterity. His literary works also attests to his profession as a writer. The German poet repeatedly pledged himself to work with his mind with all the odds he encountered (“Allen Mühsalen und

Allen Widerständen zum Trotz, dem Geist und der Dichtung”).109 The critical issue for Schiller was to probe his calling as a poet, his Bestimmung und Bestimmtsein, first, through asserting his profession, second, through schooling the self in order to meet the challenges of the poetic vocation, and third through producing literary works with lasting appeal.110 Nevertheless, we can first register Schiller’s feelings of doubts about his poetic pursuits as early as at the end of 1780, at the time when he impatiently promoted the publication of his first major work Die Räuber. In a letter to

Johann Wilhelm Peterson, he names three reasons for his urgency: first, he was desperately in need of money, second, he was interested in knowing das Urteil der

109 Walter Müller-Seidel, „Einführung“ (NA 23:189). 110 Friedrich Schiller, ed. Rheinische Thalia, erstes Heft, Lenzmont 1785, Zuschrift (unpag.). Schiller widmete seine Zeitschrift an Karl August, Herzog zu Sachsen. „Sollten Sie Durchleuchtigster Herzog, den Beifall, den Sie ihm [dem ersten Akt des Dom Karlos] damals schenkten, auch jetzt nicht zurücknehmen, so habe ich Muth genug für die Ewigkeit zu arbeiten“ (NA 41, Teil II. A). Cited originally by Heinrich Bosse „So habe ich Mut genug für due Ewigkeit zu arbeiten ‚Friedrich Schiller dankt sich in der ‚Rheinischen Thalia‘. Dank sagen Politik, Semantik und Poetik der Verbindlichkeit. 2013, 81-93. 66

Welt (the verdict of the world) and, thirdly, he was most concerned about what the future held for him as a dramaturge and an author.111 At the end of 1782 Schiller asserted for the first time that he was a poet. Diesen Winter sehe ich mich genötigt nur

Dichter zu sein (NA 23:54). In this letter written from Bauerbach to Friedrich Schwan in Mannheim on 8 December 1782, we find the decisive turning point in Schiller’s life. Compelled to explain why he fled from Württemberg, he wrote: Nur das Verbot,

Schriftsteller zu sein mich aus württembergischen Diensten getrieben hat.112 (“I was driven out from my duties in Württemberg, because my duke forbade me to become a writer.”) In order to attend the premiere of Die Räuber, the young dramaturge left his post without Duke Karl Eugen’s permission, whereupon his duke imposed upon him writing ban.113 Considering these circumstances, the German poet’s flight from

Württemberg was a risky yet decisive undertaking. At that time his position in the literary world was still uncertain.

Upon arriving in Bauerbach, Schiller felt like a rescued man, saved from dangerous waves after suffering shipwreck, thanks to his benefactress Henriette von

Wolzogen. The next day, on December 8, 1782, he wrote two letters. In the first one to Andreas Streicher he confidently reasserts his poetic pursuits: […] kein Querstrich

YRQDXȕHQZLOOPHLQHGLFKWHULVFKHQ7UlXPHVW|UHQ (NA 23: 52). (“From now on no

111 Friedrich Schillers letter to Johann Wilhelm Peterson, Ende November/Anfang Dezember 1780 (NA 23: 15). 112 Friedrich Schiller’s letter to Friedrich Schwan on December 8 1782 (NA 23: 55). 113The satirical passage in Die Räuber serves as an additional occasion to Karl Eugen to impose the writing ban upon Schiller. Spiegelberg: “[…] zu einem Spitzbuben will’s Grütz-- auch gehrt darzu ein eigenes Nationalgenie ein gewisses, dass ich sage, Spitzbubenklima, und da rat ich dir, reis du ins Graubünder Land, das ist das Athen der heutigen Gauner“ (Act 2, Scene 3, p. 61). Several sources suggest that Karl Eugen did not wish to entangle himself in foreign politics on account of Schiller’s first drama. 67

power from outside will disturb my dreams of becoming a poet!”) In the second letter to Swan, he comments about this happy moment in the same tone: “Now, I am finally in the right mindset to be able to devote myself entirely to the activities of writing.”

[…] Nunmehr bin ich in der Verfassung ganz meiner Seele zu leben, und ich werde sie sehr benutzen. Diesen Winter sehe ich mich genötigt nur Dichter zu sein, […]Wenn ich nun von dieser Seite nicht bald in meinem Vaterland von mir hören lasse, so wird man meinen Schritt grundlos und unnütz finden“ (NA 23: 54-55).

More concerned was Schiller in Bauerbach, however, to prove that his flight was out of a worthy cause. His task was to make a name for himself in the literary world and prove that he was poetically gifted. During the winter of 1782-83 Schiller had a very productive time in Bauerbach. Already two days after his arrival in

Bauerbach, he requested at least a dozen of library materials from the district librarian

Reinwald: among others, Lessing’s critical writings, Home’s Grundsätze der Kritik,

Hume’s account of Carls 1sten in England, Wieland’s Agathon, the story of Don

Carlos and last but not least, the philosophical writings by Mendelssohn, Sulzer and

Garve.114 These reading materials indicate that Schiller read them with the specific purpose in mind of developing himself to be a better poet.

Two weeks later, the German poet turned to Reinwald again. At this time, he requested Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet at the soonest. As he indicated, he needed to read or reread Shakespeare’s drama for his own piece, most likely he was working on Kabale und Liebe. In addition to revising his drama Die Verschwörung des Fiesko zu Genua, while in Bauerbach Schiller also busied himself in designing the titular

114 See complete list of works in Schiller’s letter on 9 December 1782 (NA 23: 55-56). 68

character of his next drama Don Karlos, Infant von Spanien. He asked himself: how could a poet move, stir, and enkindle his audience? While being surrounded by the idyllic scenery of Bauerbach, Schiller wrote to Reinwald on an early April morning about the manner he imagined to design his literary character Don Karlos:

Ein groȕer Dichter muss die Kraft zur höchsten Freundschaft besitzen, […] Freunde unserer Helden sein müssen. […] –dass wir sie als Menschen auȕer uns denken müssen, die uns ihre geheimsten Gefühle vertrauen, und ihre Leiden und Freuden in unsern Busen ausschütteln. (NA 23: 78-79).

A poet should engage with his heroes as human beings and feel their pains and fears as his own. Only then, when the poet is moved to compassion about the plight of his hero, is he able to stir the passions and move the human heart. Thus, writing was of utmost priority in the German poet’s activities in Bauerbach. At the same time, he also read several books about contemporary aesthetic theories and turned to the work of other dramatists, such as Shakespeare, for inspiration.

In the light of how Schiller probed his calling as a poet, his Bestimmung und

Bestimmtsein, we also need to recall that, in the first chapter of the Philosophie der

Physiologie (1779), he emphasizes that the happiness of humankind depends to a great degree on the pursuer’s ability to recognize, appreciate and fulfill his own purpose. A beautiful law decided that men and women could be happy only under the condition of living in close proximity with their purpose.

Ein schönes Gesetz hat Vollkommenheit an Vergnügen, Miȕvergnügen an Unvollkommenheit gebunden. Was den Menschen jener Bestimmung [i.e. Glückseligkeit] näher bringt, es sei nun mittelbar oder unmittelbar, das wird ihn ergötzen (NA 20: 11). 69

In his announcement of his first literary magazine Rheinische Thalia in 1784, Schiller reconfirms that his calling was to be a poet: he had Neigung für die Poesie. It would seem that by birth he was condemned to be a poet, Schiller emphasizes a sense of dislocation in a world that is ruled by institutional rules and despotism of the Duke

Karl Eugen. In alluding to Shakespeare’s image of the genius in Germany,115 the young German poet is strikingly original when he asserts that it is his love for the

Dichtkunst (art of poetry) that dictates actions. But he also qualifies his statement: his passion for Dichtkunst is ardent and fierce, just like being in love for the very first time.” („ Aber Leidenschaft für die Dichtkunst ist feurig und stark, wie die erste

Liebe.“116)

And indeed, as in this emphatic announcement we can witness, it was on the account of his youthful passion burning for the Dichtkunst that Schiller had such blossoming energies that never dried up until he met his end. Nevertheless, as

Charoline von Wolzogen attests, Schiller learned to temper his fierce passion through the pursuits of harmony and beauty.117 Moreover, in claiming that he was writing as a

115 Jakob Friedrich Abel, Rede über das Genie. Abel observes that it was passion that fueled Shakespeare’s genius: “Der große Shakespeare wäre vielleicht ewig ein namenloser Wollenhändler geblieben, […] wenn nicht eine Leidenschaft ihre Seelen entflammt hätte“ (14). 116 Schillers Ankündigung der „Rheinischen Thalia“ 11.11. 1784. „Ich schreibe als Weltbürger, der keinem Fürsten dient. Frühe verlor ich mein Vaterland, um es gegen die große Welt auszutauschen, die ich nur eben durch die Fernröhre kannte. Ein seltsamer Mißverstand der Natur hat mich in meinem Geburtsort zum Dichter verurteilt. Neigung für Poesie beleidigte die Gesetze des Instituts, worin ich erzogen ward, und widersprach dem Plan seines Stifters. […] aber Leidenschaft für die Dichtkunst ist feurig und stark, wie die erste Liebe“ (NA 22: 93). 117 Caroline von Wolzogen. Schillers Leben. Wenn Caroline visited her sister and brother in law in Würtenberg, she was surprised to find Schiller “sehr milder Stimmung.” To prove her point, she also quotes Schiller’s school friend Herr[n] von Hoven: “[…] ich sage nur, wie ich Schiller nach der Trennung von zehn Jahren wieder gefunden habe. Ich fand einen ganz anderen Mann an ihm. Sein jugendliches Feuer war gemildert. […] an die Stelle seiner vormaligen Nachlässigkeit im Umzuge war eine anständige Eleganz getreten […]“ (200-201). 70

global citizen, he also sought to excite attention beyond the borders of his homeland to the ennobling influence of feelings. As early as 1784 Schiller held that the excellence of the poet can be best measured not by perfection, but by the efforts to continuously school the self in developing sensitivity towards the demands of his poetic calling through the own Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens. With this,

Schiller foreshadows the poetic pursuits he theorizes in the Eighth Letter, his

Aesthetic Education of the Human Being (ÄE 8, FA 8:582).

Most remarkably, just a few days before his impending marriage to Charlotte von Lengefeld, Schiller again felt compelled to reassert his calling as a poet. This time, however, he was concerned less with his impact on the reading audience. Rather, he labors towards the prospects of successfully combining his personal happiness with his sense of poetic calling. In the letter dated on February 14, 1790, Schiller addresses both his bride Charlotte and his future sister-in-law Caroline in a strikingly surprising manner.

Liebe allein, ohne dieses innere Tätigkeitsgefühl, würde mir ihren schönsten Genuss bald entziehen—wenn ich glücklich bleiben soll, so muss ich zum Gefühl meiner Kräfte gelangen, in muss mich der Glückseligkeit würdig fühlen, die mir wird. […] Es ist nicht Egoisterey, nicht einmal Stolz, es ist eine von der Liebe unzertrennliche Sehnsucht, sich selbst hochzuschätzen.118

Schiller confesses that the love he felt for his future wife Lotte was inseparable from the love of his poetic career. For personal happiness alone could not satisfy his soul but would soon strip him from its most beautiful pleasures. As he denotes, if he

118 Schiller’s letter to Caroline von Beulwitz und Charlotte von Lengefeld, Jena, 14 Februar 1790 (NA 25: 418-419). 71

wanted to remain happy, he also needed to prosper as a Dichter; otherwise, he could not retain his self-esteem regarding his own person.119 To Schiller, love and respect for other human beings could only endure on the basis of true self-love. By boldly asserting that he was a poet, he proposes to remain a poet also as a family man. “It is not egotism, not even pride, for my yearning to esteem myself highly is inseparable from love” (Sehnsucht, sich selbst hochzuschätzen).120 Most assuredly, the love relationship that Schiller desired to realize in his marriage was not to inhibit, but rather encourage his creative energies to blossom fully (zum Gefühl meiner Kräfte gelangen).

Aber Amor und der Genius der Dichter sind auf einander nicht neidisch, vielmehr ist es ihr Interesse, wenigstens bei mir, freundlich zusammen zu halten. […] Die höchste Fülle des künstlerischen Genusses mit dem gegenwärtigsten Genuȕ des Herzens zu verbinden, war immer das höchste Ideal das ich vom Leben hatte, und beide zu vereinigen ist bei mir auch das unfehlbarste Mittel, jeden zu seiner höchsten Fülle zu bringen (NA 26:419).

In submitting that Amor and the genius of the poet should not be jealous of each other, but rather should peacefully sojourn forward hand in hand, Schiller preserves his image of the poet of ideals. In yearning to establish a relationship of love and friendship with his future wife Charlotte, Schiller writes, “In all my life the highest ideal that I was reaching for was to attain to the utmost powers of my creative

119 See Harald Gerlach, “Man liebt nur, was einen in Freiheit setzt.” Die Lebensgeschichte des Friedrich Schillers. During his stay in Bauerbach (1782-83), Schiller believed that he was in love with his benefactress daughter, Charlotte von Wolzogen. It was to the extent that the writer was ready to quit his Bichterberuf and live happily ever after with Charlotte in the idyllic country side (Gerlach 66-68). However, when seven years later Schiller discusses with Charlotte von Lengefeld his Dichterberuf, his letter to his future wife portrays him as grown man, ambitiously guarding his heart to achieve both personal and professional happiness. 120 Translation in HT 16. 72

energies and to join this experience with the present pleasures of my heart” (NA

26:419). Schiller’s pursuit of harmonious cooperation between the seemingly competing forces of personal happiness and the fullest fruition of his creative energies grew out of personal experience as well as was the result of his strong desire to succeed in his chosen vocation.121 From early on, Schiller insists that a beautiful law decided that men and women could be happy only under the condition of living in close proximity with their purpose.122

Throughout his life, Schiller endeavored to combine personal happiness with his calling as a poet. As a young medical student, Schiller was aware that the well- being of the body supported the operation of the intellectual-spiritual network of the human mind.123 During his courtship with Charlotte and to a certain extent also with

Caroline, Schiller confessed to his lifelong friend Körner that female charm could easily captivate him and unsettle his equilibrium. When the idea of establishing himself as a family man surfaced, he was, however, concerned with how to discipline misplaced passion. In wondering about how to find true happiness, he asked himself:

“How could I be truly happy, if I don’t even understand how to make somebody happy?” ([…] glücklich sein, ohne glücklich zu machen, aber wie? NA 24: 178). A few years later, while working on his Die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in

121 After several ill-fated attachments, Schiller confesses to Körner:“[…] ich verehre, ich liebe die herzlich empfindende Natur und eine Kokette, jede Kokette, kann mich fesseln. Jede hat eine unfehlbare Macht auf mich durch meine Eitelkeit und Sinnlichkeit, entzünden kann mich keine aber beunruhigen genug. […] Ich habe hohe Begriffe von häuslicher Freude und doch nicht einmal Sinn dafür […] glücklich sein, ohne glücklich zu machen, aber wie?“ (NA 24: 178). 122 See Schiller’s Philosophie der Physiologie (NA 20: 11). 123 See Martinson, HT 24; Schiller’s “Versuch über den Zusammenhang der tierischen Natur des Menschen mit seiner geistigen” (NA 20: 54). 73

einer Reihe von Briefen, Schiller was able to release his anxieties (Entspannung) as a consequence of the tension-laden mindset (Anspannung) he experienced during the time of searching for happiness. In धE 27, he states his point: When finding happiness, the experience of love has such emotional effect that the recognition of its meaning is astonishment: Die Liebe muss eine Gabe sein.124 Love is a gift. Similarly to the idea of beauty, it would be hard to define the meaning of ideal love as a single concept in Schiller’s oeuvre.125 Once we realize love, it is present in our life through its continual tensing (anspannend) and releasing (entspannend) effect. Two people achieve happiness only through reciprocity.126 To Schiller the value of love is priceless. Finding true love is a humbling experience, for love is an undeserved gift

(Gabe).

Since, however, his passion for the poetic profession equally mattered to him,

Schiller aimed at successfully combining personal happiness with the demands of his

Dichterberuf. While the idea of “Harmonious tension” permeates his writings; “the metaphor of the string instrument” incorporates “a cooperative, but tense interaction

(Wechselwirkung)” between body and mind (HT 179). This phenomenon, I would argue, suggests that, on the account of their reciprocal interaction, the two participants in this love relationship, Schiller and Charlotte, were enabled to play beautiful duets

124 See ÄE 27, FA 8: 673. 125 See for reference, HT, 152-153; 178-179. 126 Before his courtship to Charlotte von Lengefeld, Schiller had two ill-fated amorous attachments: The one with Henriette von Arnim disappointed him because he felt that his feelings for her were neither respected nor reciprocated (NA 331: 13). During his long-term attachment to Charlotte von Kalb, Schiller found himself caught up in studying the inner landscape and the psyche of this attractive woman. As a consequence, he decided that it was impossible that he ever could have been in love with her. For “ihre prüfende Klugheit […] die zärtesten Gefühle, ihre eigne sowohl als fremde, zerschneidet […]” (NA 25: 344). 74

throughout their life together, inspite of their struggles.127 Schiller’s monumental work that he created after his marriage to Charlotte von Lengefeld speaks for itself.128

Schiller’s pursuit of the harmonious relationship between the powers of his mind and his personal happiness reflects his schooling in the works of the eighteenth century philosophical doctors, especially Schiller’s instructor in philosophy, Jakob

Friedrich Abel. As Martinson observes: “It is a curious fact that the writing of eighteenth-century philosophical doctors’ work on the nature of the genius almost always emphasized harmony” (HT 14).129 Most certainly, the key significance of harmony is addressed in Abel’s inspiring speech on the nature of the genius Rede über das Genie which he delivered at the Hohe Karlsschule at the end of 1776.130 In wondering what constitutes genius, Abel launches his speech by posing a central question: Is a great mind (der große Geist) born, or is it possible to attain this goal through education alone? “[…] ob der große Geist geboren oder erzogen werde? “

127 See for references in HT, 37; 152-153; 178-179. 128 Schiller married Charlotte on February 22, 1790, shortly after his appointment as a professor at the University of Jena. As numerous sources confirm, there is no reason to doubt that she was the right companion to Schiller. Charlotte was bright, intelligent, affectionate and supportive. During their marriage, Schiller created his theoretical essays and classical dramas. In addition, as Gaby Paler has shown, Charlotte wrote her own literary works. Her narrations document Schiller’s corrections (NA 16: 225-360). In: Gaby Paler, Charlotte Schiller, 11-16. 129 “Anmerkungen” to Abel’s Rede. Note 21. Martinson guided my attention to the theme of harmony in the writings of the eighteenth century philosophical doctors in the “Anmerkungen” to Abel’s Rede. Several sources attests to this phenomenon. See Note 21: „Der wesentlich durch Leibniz vermittelte Harmoniegedanke gehört unlösbar zur geistigen Welt des 18. Jahrhunderts. Schillers Denken wird von ihm geprägt.“ Compare Wilmhelm Iffert, Der junge Schiller und das geistige Ringen seiner Zeit, 1926. Garve fordert „die harmonische Übereinstimmung von Empfindungskraft und Vernunft.“ For Thomas Abbt, „eine gewisse Zusammenstimmug der Seelenkräfte scheint die Größe des Geistes […] hervorzubringen.“ In: Vom Verdienste (Berlin, 1772), 13 130 Jakob Friedrich Abel, Rede über das Genie. Abel concluded: „ So wenig Erziehung allein den großen Mann macht so wenig macht ihn die Natur allein“(7). Natürliche Anlage, Leidenschaft und Erziehung durch Übung (aber keine falsche Übung) der Seelenkräfte garantieren die Vortrefflichkeit des großen Geistes für Abel (7-15). The main focus of Abel’s work on the genius is, however, to answer the second question: „Welches die Kennzeichen des Genies sind? “ (15). 75

(Rede 7). Abel proposes that neither nature nor education alone produces a great talent. For a great mind is the work of nature (Anlage) as well as the work of upbringing (Erziehung). “Der große Geist ist ein Werk der Natur und Erziehung zugleich“ (Rede, 7). Though human beings are various talents and at various degrees, their bodies house the powers of their soul, says Abel. On the one hand, exercise, passion and even the least insignificant stimulus can awake the slumbering faculties of a natural talent; whereas, on the other hand, the same stimuli will not do much for an unfortunate child of nature.

Abel also observes that the outer circumstances could likewise have bearing on the genius. History instructs that, at times, superstition, foolishness, and despotism could hinder and embarrass nature. Nevertheless, these conditions never could fully suffocate the flame of the genius. In Schiller’s case, Karl Eugen’s restraining order threw fuel on the fire of the German poet’s poetic genius. Moreover, Abel suggests also to consider that many nations and talents in the past were motivated by their adverse circumstancHV³:HQQQLFKW(U]LHKXQJGDVLVWlXȕHUOLFKH8PVWlQGHXQG

Leidenschaft, sie bildeten“(Rede 14). Because inferior and wrong practices can weaken even the most gifted talent, Abel underscores the significance of exercising our mental powers i.e. “Seelenkräfte” in a right manner.

Keine Kraft der menschlichen Seele wird gut, wird vortrefflich außer durch Übung, die beste Kraft wird geschwächt oder falsch gerichtet durch mangelhafte oder falsche Übung” (Rede 12).

To Abel, passion (Leidenschaft) is an important component of education. He proposes that without passion no great and praiseworthy product was ever brought to life. “Ohne Leidenschaft ist nie etwas Großes, nie etwas Ruhmvolles geschehen” 76

(Rede 19). As Abel explains, when we are passionately in love with our purpose, it is easier to stay focused as well as keep exerting our faculties until our greatest work comes to life. In addition, the correctness of the concepts can be often a sign of the genius. “Die Richtigkeit der Begriffe ist oft Zeichen des Genies” (Rede 33). In the second part of his speech, Abel calls to attention that the great moments of art can be likened to such a prosperous disposition of the soul, i.e. “ jene glückliche Stimmung der Seele” (Rede 16), in which all the powers of the soul (das Denkungs- und

Empfindungsvermögen) operate harmoniously with each other and at an exceptional high degree.

Focusing on the final product of the mind, Abel proposes, “Kein einziges

Produkt der Seele kann ohne Mitwirkung aller übrigen Kräfte gezeugt werden. Sobald die kleinste leiseste Empfindung […] ob Vergnügen oder Missvergnügen, […] in die

Seele tritt, arbeiten plötzlich alle Kräfte zusammen” (19). Ultimately, to Abel, passion, harmonious interaction between the powers of the soul, and correctness of concepts appear to be the most significant constituents of the genius—after the rights of nature. For all that, what really stands out in Abel’s Rede is that, in spite of the fact that he was a professor of philosophy, he generates enthusiasm for Dichtkunst. For poets are favored by the goddesses of joy, charm and beauty -- “sie sind die Lieblinge der Grazien”131 (11). As several sources attest, Abel did not only speak with

131 Charis (ޖNHܼrܼs/; GreekȋȐȡȚȢ LVDgiven name derived from a Greek word meaning "grace, kindness, and life." In Greek mythology, a Charis or Grace is one of three or more minor goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity, and fertility, together known as the Charites or Graces. Charis means also something like generosity or generous gift. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charis_(name) 77

enthusiasm about poets, but he also used their poetic words to illustrate his point in his lecture. At the end of his speech, he guides our attention to the manner in which the genius operates by intuition. As he observes: the genius appears to be closest to his own nature when his deep feelings guide him in a manner as if they were his second sight (Rede 35). Rüdiger Safraski claims that, most likely, these lines sparked

Schiller’s insight, Naiv muss jedes wahre Genie sein Oder es ist keines (FA 8: 718).

In retrospect, on the topic of the nature of the genius, Abel emphasizes passion, harmony and the pursuit of the correctness of concepts. At the onset of his journey of becoming a great dramaturge, Abel’s Rede had a great impact on young

Schiller. Abel’s inspiring speech on the genius most likely sparked that fortunate creative moment i.e. “jene glückliche Stimmung der Seele” (Rede 16) that gave birth to the idea of das Dichterische. In his pursuit of capturing human beings’ best possible expression, Schiller must have been inspired to envision the ideal human condition in which all the powers of the soul (das Denkungs- und

Empfindungsvermögen) interacted with each other in a tense but harmonious manner.

In his first medical dissertation Philosophie der Physiologie, Schiller proposed that while the working of the creative intellect, i.e. the Einbildungskraft is founded on freedom, the attention that the immaterial soul exhibits to a particular idea of the material world is central to the creative process.

2.2 CHARTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF SCHILLER’S POETIC IDEA (DAS DICHTERISCHE) Ist der Mensch in den Stand der Kultur getreten, […] wo jenes harmonische Zusammenwirken seiner Natur bloȕ eine Idee ist, die Erhebung der Wirklichkeit zum Ideal oder was auf eins hinausläuft, die Darstellung des Ideals den Dichter machen muss (NSD, FA 8: 732-734). 78

Following the intuitive process that developed Schiller’s poetic consciousness, we here look at how Schiller’s theoretical reflections assist him in understanding his calling as a poet. We contend that in order to counteract the one-sided development of human beings, at the heart of Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische is “die Menschheit zu behaupten, welche jene [die Hand der Natur] in ihm [im Menschen] anlegte und eröffnete” [to portray the essence of human being that nature bestowed upon him.]132

While Schiller’s intense poetic sensibility for the beautiful lifted his imagination above the common experience of life, his writings are devoted to building of the inner human character and appealing to feelings in order to reach the intellect. From early on in his poetic career, Schiller considered poesy to be an exquisite instrument of schooling, i.e. forming both his rational and emotional faculties and cooperating with each other during the process of poetic creation in which each carries out his or her individual task.

Ihr Wirkungskreis ist das Total der menschlichen Natur, und %ORȕ, insofern sie auf dem Charakter einflieȕt, kann sie auf seine Einzelne Wirkungen Einflugȕ haben. (Über das Pathetische, NA 20: 219).

Thus, as Schiller sees, the poet speaks to the heart as if in a voice of music, and his words—like a spirit-stirring trumpet— move human beings to actions. By engaging the intellect and the heart in harmonious interplay, the poet’s task is to create a sense of wholeness.133

Proposing that das Dichterische is the underlying theme of Schiller’s dramatic works, in this section I will examine why to consider his artistic pursuit of capturing

132 ÄE 19, FA 8: 631. 133 See Über Bürgers Gedichte and Über Matthissons Gedichte (NA 22: 245; 272). 79

human beings’ best possible expression to be the essential power and the unique quality of his Dichterberuf. [Der] Begriff der Poesie, der kein andrer ist, als der

Menschheit ihren möglichst vollständigen Ausdruck zu geben (FA 8: 734).

Furthermore, why could das Dichterische attend to the task of refining human beings’ capacity of feeling through the training of the faculty of sensation (Ausbildung des

Empfindungsvermögens: ÄE8, FA 8: 582). We embark on a process of inquiry into the imaginative-intellectual quality of Schillers poetic pursuit by inquiring into, as

Helmut Rehder did, “the sources that fed the German author’s imagination and the forces that determined the forms and directions of his creative mind” (Rehder, 11).134

We go beyond Rehder, however, by paying very close attention to the manner in which Schiller responds to beauty and music, inquiring into how the idea of the whole human being achieves poetic value and imaginative experience, and how it excites the characteristic element in the German poet’s creative thought, the consciousness of form.135

Apart from the difficulty of the subject matter, my task is facilitated first and foremost by the writings of the poet and dramaturge himself.

Ist der Mensch in den Stand der Kultur getreten, und hat die Kunst ihre Hand an ihn gelegt, so ist jene sinnliche Harmonie im Menschen aufgehoben. Und er kann nur noch als moralische Einheit, d. h. als nach Einheit strebend, sich äuȕern. Die Übereinstimmung zwischen seinem Empfinden und Denken, die in dem ersten Zustande wirklich

134 See Die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen, more particularly, letters 6, 8, 9, 22; Über das Pathetische, Über Naïve und Sentimentalische Dichtung, Anmut und Würde, and the Rezensionen über Bürgers und Matthissons Gedichte. 135 See literature: 1) Schiller, Über naïve und sentimentalsche Dichtung.“ 2) Berghahn, Klaus L. Schiller. Ansichten eines Idealisten. 3) Blochmann, Elisabeth. „Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit.“ 4) Longinus. Vom Erhabenen 5) Luserke-Jaqui, Matthias. Friedrich Schiller. 6) Moses Mendelssohn, „Briefe über die Empfindungen.“ 7) Steven D. Martinson, Harmonious Tension: The Writings of Friedrich Schiller. 80

stattfand existiert jetzt bloȕ idealisch, […] als ein Gedanke (NSD, FA 8: 734).

In defending his position, Schiller has us consider the idea that the poet’s task of recreating the imaginative experience of wholeness in human beings is determined, first and foremost, by modern cultural conditions.136 As William Witte has seen, making sense of the German poet’s creative activity with respect to human experience is a challenging undertaking, for his [Schiller’s] “critical intellect inspires at the same time the noblest flight of his poetic genius, […] which is peculiarly and uniquely his own.”137

On the one hand, we will engage the question how the poetic idea of the whole human being inspires the artistic creation of form, and, thereby motivates human actions. On the other hand, der sentimentalische Dichtungstrieb zum Ideale in the

German poet’s poetic pursuits challenges the critical acumen of any scholar, to which the diverse nature of the vast secondary literature on Schiller attests.138

136 See Schiller’s letter to Friedrich Christian von Augustenburg on Juli 13, 1793. Enlightenment is “bloß theoretische Kultur” (NA 26: 263). Proposing that due to fragmentation, the faculty of intuition separated itself from thinking, Schiller’s impetus is the need to create such art that equally develops human mental faculties. 137 William Witte, Schiller, xiv. 138 See literary examples 1) Lothar Pikulik. „Die Mündigkeit des Herzens: Über die Empfindsamkeit als Emanzipations und Autonomiebewegung“ (2001). The article argues in favour of independence of Empfindsamkeit (sensibility), a movement that, in Pikulik’s view, clearly puts forward the sphere of feelings as an alterntive to reason. Pikulik contends that the emancipation of feelings can be seen in the theory of “gemischten Empfindungen”, for example in Mendelssohn’s Briefe über die Empfindungen und in Schiller’s observation on the sentimental and on the sublime. Pikulik concludes that the term sentimentality is self-experience of feeling as the Aufklärung is the self-experience of reason. As this example shows, Pikulik champions that too much reflection on feelings lead to the soul worship (Seelenkult). 2) Klaus L. Berghahn, “Schillers mythologische Symbolik erläutert am Beispiel der ‚Götter Griechenlands.‘“ Berghahn looks at Schiller’s poetic notion of the classical gods as a product of a naive phantasy, „schöne Wesen aus dem Fabelland.” However, they also represent a single philosophical worldview of sense and reason. In drawing on the treatise Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung, Berghahn shows that the ideal state of the gods is merely a beautifuly fiction: “der elegesche Dichter sucht die Natur, als eine Idee und in einer Vollkommenheit, in der sie 81

Problematizing the relationship between the rational and the physical, Schiller’s material [Stoff] is der Mensch, von welchem die Rede ist (FA 7: 563). It is a poetic impulse in capturing humankind’s best possible expression through the formation of the beautiful (ein mögliches Bilden [des Schönen], ÄE 27, FA 8:671). As also in ÄE

16, Schiller poignantly remarks that the artist’s task is “to create beauty from beauties

(aus Schönheiten Schönheit zu machen, ist die Aufgabe der ästhetischen [Bildung] FA

8: 617). Schiller’s creation of remarkable beautiful forms driving human faculties

“towards mutual cooperation” (HT, 15) discloses the imaginative-intellectual quality of his poetic pursuit.139 To Caroline Beulwitz, he writes: Der Mensch, wenn er vereinigt wirkt, ist immer ein groȕes Wesen (NA 25: 146). Since the time of his medical dissertation, it was self-evident to Schiller that physical needs some times overpower the intellect. As he observes, above all else, human beings feel, sense, and perceive. Der Mensch ist ein empfindendes Wesen,140 a sensitive person and an intelligent as well. Schiller’s “poetic genius”141best expresses itself when “the desire to meet the needs of the human mind and soul can never be satisfied” within him.142

Denn er [der Mensch] ist ein vernünftig empfindendes Wesen (NA 20: 199).

nie existiert hat“ (FA 8: 750). As Berghahn argues, the charm of the poem is that while it longs for the return of the ideal, the golden age of the gods never existed (161). 139 See, most recently, Dirk Oschmann, „Zwischen Theorie and Performanz. Schillers Begriff der Form“. 2017, 188-189. Schiller’s aesthetic form concept is the imaginative-intellectual center of his poetic creativity. For example: „Formelhaftigkeit der rhetorischen Figur “Chiasmus” bestimmt die Performanz der Darstellung“ (Oschmann 188). 140 NA 20: 199. 141 William Witte, Schiller, xiv. 142 Friedrich Schiller, Was kann eine gute stehende Schaubühne eigentlich wirken? “Es ist leicht einzusehen, in wie fern diese Bemerkung mit der Frage zusammenhängt: „Was wirkt die Bühne?“ –Die höchste und letzte Forderung, […] ist Beförderung allgemeiner Glückseligkeit. Was die Dauer des physischen Lebens erhält, wird immer sein erstes Augenmerk sein; was die Menschheit innerhalb ihres Wesens veredelt, sein höchstes. Bedürfnis des Tiermenschen ist älter und drängender -- Bedürfnis des Geistes vorzüglicher, unerschöpflicher” (NA 20: 88). 82

However, on the one hand, from the anthropological point of view, as Martinson emphasizes: „The goal, toward which Schiller’s writings seem to be directed, is the mutual cooperation of all of the human being’s capacities—not the detachment of the rational from the physical-material but, rather, the greatest degree of cooperative interaction between mind and body” (HT 15). On the other hand, Witte excites our attention to Schiller’s poetic posture in claiming that ‘none but the most casual reader’ of Schiller’s works can fail to observe the ‘intimate interaction’ between the German poet’s ‘critical and creative faculties’ (xi).

In responding to the body-mind dilemma, already in his early writings,

Schiller’s poetic genius envisioned that art’s task is to address the possibility of a mutually cooperative relationship between the rational and sensuous human faculties.

In his third medical dissertation, for example, Schiller underscores building inner character through the exercising of all human faculties, for [die] Vollkommenheit des

Menschen liegt in der Übung seiner Kräfte durch Betrachtung des Weltplans.143 Four years later, the theme of ennobling human character recurs when Schiller poses the big question in Schiller’s first Schaubühne-Rede, he asks: “If then, the arts exercise all the powers of the mind and soul and the heart, why should we doubt her dignity?”

Warum sollte man nicht […] die Würde der Kunst auȕer Zweifel setzen deren Ausübung alle Kräfte der Seele, des Geistes und des Herzens beschäftigt?144

143 Über den Zusammenhang der tierischen Natur des Menschen mit seiner geistigen. “Vollkommenheit des Menschen liegt in der Übung seiner Kräfte durch Betrachtung des Weltplans“ (NA 20: 41). “Man’s perfection consists in the exercise of his [one’s] powers through observing the design of the world“(HT 36). 144 Was kann eine gute stehende Schaubühne eigentlich wirken? (NA 20: 89). 83

The answer did not come immediately. Only two years later was the writer able to answer the question. In response to Kant’s Critique of Judgment, Schiller states in his essay Anmut und Würde that “The task is given to humankind to establish an intimate concord between his physical and spiritual-rational faculties, and always be a harmonizing entity, like a full-sounding anthem. Since such ennobled beauteous character would be the highest yielding of a most mature humanity, in reality such disposition exists merely as an idea for which we yearn. Even if we were striving most vigilantly, it would be impossible to aspire to this ideal entirely”:

Es ist dem Menschen zwar aufgegeben, eine innige Übereinstimmung zwischen seinen beiden Naturen zu stiften, immer ein harmonierendes Ganze zu sein, und mit seiner ganzen vollstimmigen ganzen Menschheit zu handeln. Aber diese Charakterschönheit, die reifste Frucht seiner Humanität, ist bloß eine Idee, welcher gemäß zu werden, er mit anhaltender Wachsamkeit streben, aber die er bei aller Anstrengungen nie ganz erreichen kann (FA 8: 373).

Lesley Sharpe rightly confirms: Though “dualism is symptomatic of human condition,

[…] Schiller always felt a strong pull from theories of human wholeness, where human beings are not caught in a battle between two realms but can rediscover harmony of thought and feeling.”145 Schiller’s perusal of the idea of such a human being that is a constant harmonizing entity is most perplexing to us in its imaginative quality. Witte challenges us, however, to consider that “what matters most to us in

Schiller’s poetic legacy is that part of it which is peculiarly and uniquely his own and which no one else could have given to us” (Witte xiv). Truly, it matters whether the poetic truth becomes comprehensible to our mind’s eyes. Schiller guides the poet to

145 Lesley Sharpe, „Concerning Aesthetic Education”. In: Companion (148). 84

be a dear companion to humankind.146 In tuning our disposition to a benevolent harmonious mood (in eine wohltätige harmonische Stimmung),147 the poet should have the skill to make us to feel as human beings do, -- Schiller insists:

Ungeachtet d[ies]er Abhängigkeit unserer Empfindungen von zufälligen Einflüssen, die außer seiner Gewalt sind, muss der Dichter unsern Empfindungszustand bestimmen. Er muss also auf die Bedingungen wirken, unter welchen eine bestimmte Rührung des Gemüts notwendig erfolgen muss.148

As a writer, Schiller matured under the tutoring hands of such role models as

Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, Albrecht Haller, John Milton, Shakespeare, Plutarch,

Homer, Horace.149 The references that link Schiller’s creative energies to a certain musical disposition i.e. eine gewisse musikalische Gemütsstimmung150 suggest the inspirational power of music at the great moment of art, as well as confirm his schooling in the works of the eighteenth century philosophical doctors, Jakob

Friedrich Abel and Moses Mendelssohn, on harmony.151 Lastly, while Schiller’s concept of das Dichterische arrives at its best expression in the treatise Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung,152 it is difficult to make the term concrete. As we know, Schiller’s artistic posture matured during a long process of personal

146 Über Bürgers Gedichte (NA 22: 246) 147 Über Bürgers Gedichte (NA 22: 256) 148 Über Matthissons Gedichte (NA 22: 268-269) 149 Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung (FA 8: 706-810)--hereafter cited as NSD. 150 See Schiller’s letter to Goethe on 18 March 1796. „Eine gewisse musikalische Gemütsstimmung geht vorher, und auf diese folgt bei mir erst die poetische Idee“ (NA 28: 201-202). 151 Steven Martinson confirms that Schiller was influenced not only by the works of the philosophical doctors of his age on harmony, but also by Moses Mendelssohn, Über die Empfindungen. “Das Gefallen an der Übereinstimmung des Mannigfaltigen, gründet sich auf eine positive Kraft der Seele. […] Die Natur soll meine Zeuge zu sein. Die kleinsten Teile der Schöpfung hören nicht auf, in gegenseitiger Übereinstimmung, so viel zu allgemeinem Endzwecke beizutragen, als sie vermögen“ (Mendelssohn, Fifth letter, 60-61). 152 Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung (FA 8: 706-810).—hereafter NSD. 85

development and was the result of a professional act of writing letters, reviews and theoretical works,153 interrupted by the necessity of breadwinning,154 periods of study155 and feelings of doubts about the self-understanding of the trajectory of his pursuits. At this point in our discussion, we chart the idea of das Dichterische by tracing its sources, forms and elevated subject matter, thus helping to define Schiller’s emerging artistic posture and professional identity. Depicting Schiller’s pursuit of das

Dichterische is useful for an understanding of the appeal that Schiller’s dramatic works have long had.

2.3 PROFESSORSHIP AND THE PROSPECTS OF WRITING LITERARY

THEORY

During the so-called “unpoetic” period (1787-1796), Schiller wrote some of his most outstanding works on German literary theory. 156 In recognizing that “art is primarily concerned with intuitive comprehension (Anschauungen)” (HT 9), Schiller strived for modes of poetic representation that vividly portrayed the main idea before our mind’s eyes. To Körner, he writes: Die Hauptsache kommt nun bei einem Künstler darauf hinaus, ob der Hauptgedanke, um den ich mich bewege, den höchsten Grad der

153 Here I consider Schiller’s writings that consists in 1) his letters too numerous to list them here 2) Reviewes: Bürgers Gedichte (NA 22: 245-264); Über Matthissons Gedichte (NA 22: 265-283), 3) Essays: Über das Pathetische (NA 20: 196-221), Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung (FA 8: 706-810). 154 A) 1789-1792: Professor of History and Philosophy in Jena. B) Schiller schreibt Geschichte: 1) Geschichte des Abfalls der Vereinigten Niederlande; 2) Geschichte des Dreißigjährigen Krieges. C) High observes that Schiller devoted great deal of time and energy to write articles for „die Neue Thalia” (High 113). Letter to Körner on 15 October 1792 (NA 26: 161). 155 On 13 December 1791 Schiller writes to Körner about the stipend and his prospects. “Ich bin auf lange, vielleicht auf immer aller Sorgen los; ich habe die längst gewünschte Unabhängigkeit des Geistes. Heute erhalte ich Briefe aus Kopenhagen vom Prinzen von Augustenburg und vom Grafen von Schimmelmann, die mir auf drei Jahre jährlich tausend Thaler zum Geschenk anbieten“ (NA 25: 117). 156 Consider Abel’s statement: “Die Richtigkeit der Begriffe ist oft Zeichen des Genius” (Rede 33). 86

Anschaulichkeit erhalten hat (NA 25: 211). Since the time he decided to follow his

Dichterberuf, Schiller was challenged by the requirements of his chosen profession.

In addition to writing poetry and drama, he realized that it was necessary to clarify his concepts and write his theories of drama. As Witte proposes, “The poet’s adventure into the world of reasoned exposition was an intellectual element […] of an emotional experience”157 that inspired the inner building of human being by the means of poesy

[my emphasis].

During his professorship of philosophy at the University of Jena (1789-90),

Schiller wrote several letters that signal his pursuit of becoming a better writer.

To Caroline von Beulwitz on 15.05.1790:

[…] Ich fing gestern die Vorlesungen über die Tragödie an, und finde gar viel Vergnügen in dieser Arbeit. Ich entdecke viele Erfahrungen, die die Ausübung der tragischen Kunst mir verschafft hat und von denen ich selbst nicht wusste, dass ich sie hätte. Zu diesen suche ich den philosophischen Grund und so ordnen sie sich unvermerkt in ein lichtvolles zusammenfügendes Ganze, das mir viel Freude verspricht“ (NA 26: 19-20).

To Körner on 16.05.1790:

[…] ich lese neben einem Privatum über die Universalgeschichte, noch ein Publikum über den Teil der Ästhetik der von der Tragödie handelt. Bilde dir nicht ein, dass ich ein ästhetisches Buch dabei zu Rate ziehe. Ich mache diese Ästhetik selbst, und darum wie ich denke um nichts schlechter (NA 26: 22).

To Huber on 30. 09.1790:

157 See Witte, Schiller. “While combining the gifts of the poet and the philospher, Schiller never lost sight of the diffence beween philosopher and poet. The thinker seeks to establish logical connections to build up a coherent system; although he ought to take the facts of emotional experience into account, his approach should remain unemotional. The poet’s adventures in the world of thought, on the other hand, generates strong emotions; they appear in the finished poem not in the form of reasoned exposition but as intellectual elements of an emotional experience” (60). 87

[…] Nebenher habe ich diesen Sommer an einer Theorie des Trauerspiels geschrieben […] Ich wollte diese Theorie bloß allein aus eigenen Erfahrungen und Vernunftschlüsseln entwickeln, ohne einen Führer dabei zu gebrauchen. […] obgleich die wenige Zeit die ich darauf wenden konnte, […] keine große Fortschritte darin tun ließ“ (NA 26: 43-44).

Schiller was a well-known author of four dramas when he entered professorship. At the University of Jena, he had a chance to lecture about his own drama theories. They were founded on the practical experience he had as a dramaturge.158 Furthermore, he searched for a philosophical foundation of his poetic pursuit to express his ideals in an enlightening and memorable forms. As to Caroline von Beulwitz, Schiller writes:

Zu diesen suche ich den philosophischen Grund und so ordnen sie sich unvermerkt in ein lichtvolles zusammenfügendes Ganze, das mir viel Freude verspricht“ (NA 26: 19-20).

Finally, Schiller saw the philosophical foundation of his drama theory in the context of the emerging field of aesthetics, initiated by Alexander

Baumgarten159 and his pupil Georg Friedrich Meier. Unfortunately, as Schiller admits to Huber, he had little time to write down how to facilitate the poetic treatment of the whole human being from the aesthetic160 standpoint. Here

158 Die Räuber (1781), Die Verschwörung des Fiesko zu Genua (1783); Kabale und Liebe (1784); and Don Carlos (1787). 159 Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten, Mediationes (1735). Baumgarten coined the term aesthetics. 2) A. G. Baumgarten: Theoretische Ästhetik. Die grundlegenden Abschnitte aus der „Aesthetica“ (1750/58) defines the decscipline of the Aesthetics as the science of understanding initiated by the senses, i.e., „die Wissenschaft der sinnlichen Erkenntnis“ (§ 1). https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%84sthetik#Begriffsgeschichte 160 Aesthetic (ästhetisch) is according to Schiller a ‘much abused word.’ Elizabeth M. Wilkinson writes: Derived from the Greek "aisthetikos", ‘perception by the senses, esp. by feeling, but also by seeing hearing, etc. ’the Latin aesthetica was made by Baumgarten (1750) into the name of new ‘science’: the science of what were usually referred to as ‘inferior faculties of the mind, imagination and intuition, and their products, art and poetry” (Wilkonson 304). Curiously, the term defined by 88

Schiller foretells that he intends to write about the aesthetic education of human beings.

At the beginning of 1791, Schiller’s health deteriorated and he had to interrupt his professorship. In support, Prince Augustenburg offered him a generous stipend towards the end of the same year. Schiller was excited about this opportunity. To Körner, he writes: Ich bin auf Lange, vielleicht auf immer aller Sorgen los; ich habe die längst gewünschte Unabhängigkeit des Geistes

(NA 26: 117). („ For a while, I am free from financial worries and can devote myself to the independence of my mind.”) To his benefactor Jens Immanuel

Baggasen Schiller confessed that, ever since he decided for the poetic career, his deepest desire was to be able to educate himself to become a better author:

“When I decided for the Dichterberuf, I knew little of the difficulties and requirements of such endeavors. What would I not have given for two or three years of study in order to clarify my concepts and shape my ideals?”161

Ich habe mir diesen Beruf gegeben, eh ich seine Forderungen geprüft, seine Schwierigkeiten übersehen hatte. Was hätte ich nicht um zwei oder drei stille Jahre gegeben, die ich frei von schriftstellerischer Arbeit bloȕ allein dem Studieren, bloȕ der Ausbildung meiner Begriffe, der Zeitigung meiner Ideale hätte widmen können (NA 26: 121).

Schiller not until ÄE 20.4, and then in footnote. “Das Gemüt geht also von der Empfindung zum Gedanken durch eine mittlere Stimmung über, in welcher Sinnlichkeit und Vernunft zugleich tätig sind, eben deswegen aber ihre bestimmende Gewalt gegenseitig aufheben, und durch eine Entgegensetzung eine Negation bewirken. Diese mittelere Stimmung, in welcher das Gemüt weder physisch noch moralisch genötigt, und doch auf beide Art tätig ist, verdient vorzugsweise eine freie Stimmung zu heißen, und wenn man den Zustand sinnlicher Bestimmung den physischen, den Zustand vernünftiger Bestimmung aber den logischen und moralisch nennt, so muss man diesen Zustand der realen und aktiven Bestimmbarkeit den ästhetischen heißen. […Die ästhetische Erziehung] hat zur Absicht das Ganze unsrer sinnlichen und geistigen Kräfte in möglichster Harmonie auszubilden“ (ÄE 22, FA 8: 633-34). 161 Translation is mine. I reference it, if otherwise. 89

Schiller’s aesthetic ideas started to form during his academic years, as is evident from his very first speech, in which he defined virtue (Tugend) as a harmonious alliance of love and wisdom. The moral source of our actions should be the pursuit of happiness.162 The task to form his own poetic theories was a challenging undertaking. As scholars such as S.D. Martinson and J. L. High state, on the one hand, Schiller strove to remain on the right path towards Gottgleichheit-- often in conflicting imperatives with his “conscious awareness of the limitation of his own theorizing” (HT 33). On the other hand, Schiller felt challenged by the difficulty of combining theory with the outpouring of his genius. High states this point succinctly: das Problematische an einer auf der Theorie basierenden Kunst anstelle von dem Erguss eines Genies. 163 For, according to Schiller’s own testimony, it was in the arts and not in literary theories that his creative energies expressed themselves most fully. As he submits in another letter to Körner on 25 May 1792:

Eigenglich ist es nur die Kunst selbst, wo ich meine Kräfte fühle; in der Theorie muss ich mich immer mit Prinzipien plagen. […] Aber um der Ausübung selbst willen philosophiere ich gern über die Theorie. […] Wie ist es nun möglich, dass bei einem so unpoetischen Verfahren doch etwas Vortreffliches entsteht? (NA 26:141).

162 Rede über die Frage: Gehört allzu viel Güte, Leutseeligkeit und groȕe Freigebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend? (NA 20: 3-9). Schiller delivered his speech on 10. January 1779 in which he calls attention that the Grand Design of the universe attests to highest intelligence, best described in terms of harmonious tie of love and wisdom: “Das Wesen der Tugend ist das harmonische Band von /LHEHXQG:HLȕKHLW´ 1$  163 High provides well researched evidence claiming that in response to the violent events of the French Revolution Schiller multifaceted creative activities increased rather than decreased. As professor of philosophy Schiller not only fulfilled his teaching duties, but among others, he was also writing his own poetic theory. For reference consult: (NA 26: 19-20; 22:43-44; 141-142) In: Schillers Rebellionskonzept und die Französische Revolution, 108-117. 90

The questions pose themselves here. Why then does Schiller persists in clarifying his concepts? Why the endeavor to write his own aesthetic theories, when his creative powers blossomed fully only through creating art?

Sapere aude164

In addition to the historical event of the French Revolution, Schiller’s poetic creativity das Dichterische was embedded into the vibrant artistic environment that featured eighteenth-century German letters. Born into the age of the German

Aufklärung, Schiller experienced the movements of Würtenberger Pietismus,

Empfindsamkeit (1740-1790) and the Sturm und Drang (1765-1790). Curiously, each of these artistic currents focus on the development of the inner world of emotions.

Empfindsamkeit stands for tender style [tender style] [sentimentality, sensitivity]

[empfindsamer Stil], “the enlightened function of which was to cultivate a sensitive heart [ein fühlbar Herz].”165 In this respect, Lessing also exalted the nature of the sensitive heart, in fact “the need to cultivate the feeling of the human heart [Gefühl der Menschlichkeit]”166:

Sie teilet die Eigenschaften des Herzens aus, ohne den Edlen und den Reichen vorzuziehen. […] Ein fühlbar Herz – wie unschätzbar ist es! Es macht unser Glück, auch alsdann wenn es unser Unglück zu

164 Latin dictum. Translated verbatim into German as “Wage, weise zu sein.” Known in German speaking countries through Immanuel Kant’s philosophical “Wahlspruch (motto) der Aufklärung” (1784). Kant translated sapere aude! “Habe Mut, dich deines eigenen Verstandes zu dienen.” Immanuel Kant, Kants gesammelte Schriften, hrsg. von der Königlichen Preußischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Here Band 8, 35. See also Schiller’s letter to Körner (18. & 19. Februar 1793) „Es ist gewiss von keinem sterblichen Menschen kein größeres Wort noch gesprochen worden, als dieses Kantische, was zugleich der Inhalt seiner ganzen Philosophie ist: Bestimme dich aus dich selbst“ (NA 26: 191). The Latin dictum is generally associated with Kant, nevertheless, it goes back to the ancient poet Horace. Link: http://wortwuchs.net/sapere-aude/ 165 PE 104 166 PE 104. 91

machen scheint.167 (It [nature] distributes qualities of the heart without privileging the nobility of the wealthy. […] A feeling heart—how priceless that is! It brings us good fortune, even when it seems to bring misfortune.)

Lessing perceived the human heart as a ‘life force’ of the ‘private’ and ‘public places’

(103). Instead of overexerting one mental faculty over the other one, Lessing encouraged to balance the functions of mind and body.

In contrast to the sensitive style of the Empfindsamkeit, turbulent and stormy emotions and emotional unrest characterized the Sturm und Drang (1765-1790)

[Storm and Stress]. In cautioning that extremism in judgement could prevail at all ages, Martinson had shown in his study On Imitation, Imagination and Beauty (1978) that the intellectual history of the German Aufklärung reflects “a search for synthesis, in the uniting of reason and emotion” (On Imitation, 4). Gerhard Sauder argued in like fashion. He claimed that the sentiments of the Empfindsamkeit did not counter but rather balanced the pursuits of the German Aufklärung. In briefing on the

Empfindsamkeit from various standpoints, Sauder elaborates that at the end of the seventeenth century theorists pushed for developing the mind and the heart at the same pace and level. The proponents of contentment [Zufriedenheit] cautioned against excessive demands on the one or the other faculty in isolation: Gleichgewicht von ‘Kopf’ und ‘Herz’—Zufriedenheit.168 It is apparent that even before feelings became suspect of Empfindelei (evasive, not sincere emotionalism), bourgeois ethos demanded balance. As Sauder contends, by mid-eighteenth century the pursuit of

167 Gotthold Ephraim Lessings Sämtliche Schriften. Ed. Karl Lachmann and Franz Muncker. 3rd ed. 23 vols. Stuttgart; Leipzig: G. J. Göschen, 1886-1919. 69. (In: Projects of Enlightenment, 104). 168 Gerhard Sauder, Empfindsamkeit. „Verstand und Herz sollten in gleichem Maße entwickelt werden ‘so dass glückliches Gleichgewicht unter allen Kräften herrscht‘“ (125),--hereafter cited as Sauder. 92

balancing the activities of the mind and heart fostered the ambition to unite the powers of the mind with imagination. For Schiller the main task arises in building the inner character through exercising human faculties (Übung seiner Kräfte169).

Elizabeth Blochmann advances the idea that the “Kopf-Herzproblem” is a main problem of the time which was characteristic both during the Aufklärung and the

Empfindsamkeit.170 We understand more clearly the connection between the “heart and head,” if we read the original version of Schiller’s ÄE 8 in his address to Prince

Augustenburg on 13 Juli 1793:

Auf den Charakter wird bekanntlich durch Berichtigung der Begriffe und durch Reinigung der Gefühle gewirkt. Jenes ist das Geschäft der philosophischen, dieses vorzugsweise der ästhetischen Kultur. Die Aufklärung der Begriffe kann es allein nicht ausrichten, denn von dem Kopf ist noch ein gar weiter Weg zu dem Herzen, und bei weitem gröȕere Teil der Menschen wird durch Empfindungen zum Handeln bestimmt. Aber das Herz allein ist ein unsicherer Führer und die zarteste Empfindung wird nur ein desto leichterer Raub der Schwärmerei, wenn ein heller Verstand sie nicht leitet. Die Gesundheit des Kopfes wird also mit der Reinheit des Willens zusammen treffen müssen wenn der Charakter vollendet heiȕen muss. Dies dringende Bedürfnis unsers Zeitalters scheint mir die Veredlung der Gefühle und die sittliche Reinigung des Willens sein (NA 26: 265-66).

In summary, Schiller argues that it does not suffice to clarify our concepts alone, but we need to refine also our feelings. Granted that the majority of people carry out their actions based upon the impulses of their feelings, a long way leads from the head knowledge to the heart. Unfortunately, as Schiller continues, the heart itself is a very unreliable compass and even the most refined emotion could fall prey to infatuation

169 Über den Zusammenhang der tierischen Natur des Menschen mit seiner geistigen. “Vollkommenheit des Menschen liegt in der Übung seiner Kräfte durch Betrachtung des Weltplans“ (NA 20: 41). “Man’s perfection consists in the exercise of his [one’s] powers through observing the design of the world“(HT 36). 170 Elizabeth Blochmann, „Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit“ (498). 93

without the guidance of a clear-sighted mind. A healthy head should pair with pure- sighted willpower, if our desire is to form our character. Therefore, the most urgent need of our age is to ennoble feelings and purify our degenerated willpower.

Blochmann succinctly gets at the heart of ÄE 8 when she writes as follows:

[dass] Die Barbarei des Zeitalters nicht auf dem Mangel an Aufklärung beruhe, sondern auf der ‘Feigheit des Herzens‘, die mit der Erkenntnis nicht ernst zu machen wag[t]“ (498).

In Schiller’s view, the goal of the aesthetic education is to increase the strength of the heart and to combat the indolent tendencies of our human nature. While

Schiller argues from his particular understanding of the relationship between body and mind, the poetic project of ennobling human character cannot disregard the condition of the heart nor the sluggishness of the body. In ÄE 8 Schiller quotes the distinctive Latin dictum: sapere aude that he translates as “dare to be wise” (Erkühne dich, Weise zu sein, FA 8: 581). The entire hexameter reads in English as follows:

“He who has begun is half done; dare to know, dare to begin.”171 In a German context, sapere aude radiates Kant’s great idea of self-determination. Since, however, the quote sapere aude originates from the great Roman poet Horace, it is Schiller’s indirect expression that he is determined to handle the subject of the aesthetic education of man in the light of his calling as a poet. Like Horace,172 Schiller distances himself from as well as positions himself in relation to the archaic times of

171 Horace, Dimidium facti, qui coepit, habet: sapere aude, / incipe. Rudolf Helm‘s translation: „Einmal begonnen ist halb schon getan. Entschließ dich zur Einsicht! Fange nur an!“ (Horaz: Satiren und Episteln, 220 f.) 172 Horace, The ‚Ars Poetica‘ and its Tradition. Ed. O.B. Hardison, Jr. and Leon Golden.—herafter: Ars Poetica 94

Greek culture. Alluding to Horace, Schiller presents himself as a poeta doctus173 (a learned poet), well versed not only in literary theory and philosophy but also in the literary works of previous authors.174 Again with reference to Horace, Schiller speaks with subtlety about the poetic pursuit of treating the subject matter of aesthetic education with wisdom and excellence, to ‘profit and delight’ himself as well as his readers (Ars Poetica, 22: 333-345).

Douglas Lane Patey suggests that “in the context of the Weimar classicism, in which the new German ‘reading mania’ gave rise to a potentially bad taste, […]

Schiller adopts a style deliberately too complex and philosophical for any but for those who were the ‘educated’ to understand.”175 Even though Schiller seems to promote a class of literate critics, actively involved in retaining the beautiful idea of the whole human being (das schöne Ganze der menschlichen Natur aufbewahren, FA

8: 796), his solution is that of the poet. While such a class that was active only in the dynamic use of the mind and not having to work for its living existed merely as an idea, Schiller submits that the distinctive sensibility of retaining the beautiful idea of the whole human being belongs to the poet. It is the poet’s task to fit the verse to the subject matter. O.B. Hardison, Jr. comments: “Horace shows by the famous line that

'poets wish to either benefit or delight’ and he considers poetry both illuminating and

173 Rolf Selbmann, “Von Orpheus zum poeta doctus: Zum Dichter Bewuȕtsein in der Antike.“ 7-13. 174 Schiller’s knowledge of other cultures’ literature can be traced in his literary creations, in his letters, and in the essay Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung. 175 Compare: Douglas Lane Patey, “The institution of criticism in the eighteenth century.” The Cambridge History of Literary Criticism, 4. Vol., 3-31, here 31. 95

useful for the human condition.”176 Horace makes it plain: “The foundation and source of literary excellence is wisdom.”177

Schiller and Kant

In alluding to Schiller’s poetic endeavors, in his article “Schiller und die

Empfindsamkeit,” Lothar Pikulik (2005) proposes that the age of Empfindsamkeit was a historical breakthrough in the understanding of the human psyche

(seelengeschichtlicher Umbruch).178 In appreciating the mental and soul-forming qualities that the epoch of Empfindsamkeit emphasized, Pikulik is one of the most recent advocates of Schiller’s groundbreaking influence on the development of feelings at the onset of modernity. In his view, Empfindsamkeit was an influential artistic movement that shaped not only the field of psychology but also the arts and social life,179 as well as our thinking about the phenomenon of feelings:

[…] der seelengeschichtliche Umbruch von damals [zeitigt] nachhaltige Folgen nicht nur in Psyche und Psychologie, sondern ebenfalls im Denken, in der Kunst und im sozialen Leben […] (215).

Previously, Dewhurst and Reeves argued that Schiller’s medical, philosophical and aesthetic writings reflect that he was influenced by the emerging “infant psychology and psychiatry” of his age. More particularly, the role of sensation

[“wahrnehmen”]180 interested Schiller in Abel’s doctrine of sense perception.181

176 “General Introduction,” Ars Poetica (XIV). 177 Ars Poetica, (309-22), 22. 178 Lothar Pikulik, “Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit“ (2005). 179 Nikolas Wegmann, Diskurse der Empfindsamkeit. 180 Hardeep Kaur Shergill, Experimental Psychology. “In philosophy, psychology, and cognitive science, perception is the process of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information. The word “perception” comes from the Latin words perceptio, percitipi, which means “receiving, collecting the action of taking possession, apprehension with the mind or senses” (81). 181 Jakob Friedrich Abel, Einleitung in die Seelenlehre of 1786. In D/R 129. 96

While Abel taught philosophy at the Academy, he loved literature and had a unique teaching style. While he often used literary examples to illustrate a philosophical point, he gave preference to Shakespeare.182As Dewhurst and Reeves elaborate, Abel

“quote[ed] Macbeth, Othello and Shylock as examples of a single passion or faculty dominating the whole personality symbolized by Macbeth’s vision of a dagger,

Othello’s obsession with Desdemona’s handkerchief, and Shylock’s ambivalent fears for his ducats and his daughter” (D/R 129). Abel’s influence upon Schiller’s poetic pursuits is most evident in the manner in which he portrays the impact of emotions upon the characters’ thinking and actions in his dramatic works. Schiller read widely but selectively, always in search for material that he could treat poetically (was sich dichterisch fühlen und behandeln läßt, NA 25: 40).

In his contribution “Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit,” Pikulik (2005) proposes to appreciate the literary movement of the Empfindsamkeit as a Sui generis

(of her own kind). He conceives the Empfindsamkeit as an aesthetic and mental revolution in mid-eighteenth century183 and not merely a branch of the Aufklärung.184

On the one hand, as Pikulik argues, research neglected to pay closer attention to

Schiller’s participation in the literary movement of the Empfindsamkeit because

Kant’s influence upon Schiller’s emerging aesthetic theories was misrepresented. On the other hand, Schiller portrayed tender emotions not only in the literary works of his

182 Compare Alt, I. 129-130. 183 Klaus Garber,“Vorwort.” Das Projekt Empfindsamkeit und der Ursprung der Moderne. „Richard Alvern gehörte zu denjenigen Kulturwissenschaftlern, die den eigentlichen kulturellen Umbruch im 18. Jahrhundert, und zwar ziemlich genau in dessen Mitte verankert. […] Sie impliziert für ihn eine ästhetische und eine mentale Revolutionierung weitesten Ausmaȕes, nur vergleichbar mit dem Einbruch des Christentums in die alte Welt“ (7). 184 Pikulik, 2005, 217. 97

youth but also in those he composed during the classical period. Supporting his point,

Pikulik quoates Wilhelm von Humboldt observing that Schiller had a deeply sensitive

[stark empfindsam] disposition (224).

[…] in “Anmuth und Würde“ und den “aesthetischen Briefen“ durchgeführten Ideen ruhen die Keime schon in dem, was er vor der Bekanntschaft mit Kantischer Philosophie schrieb, sie stellen auch nur die innere, ursprüngliche Anlage seines Geistes dar.185

Pikulik’s point is certainly valid. However, we will go beyond it, by paying close attention to the writer’s response to beauty and music in his formation of the poetic idea of the whole human being.

Prior to Pikulik, Blochmann argued similarly when she proposed that to take notice not only of the working of Schiller’s creative intellect, but also of the manner he engages with the legacy of his youth, i.e. the Empfindsamkeit:

Was er aber am geistigen Besitz aus seinen früheren Jahren in eine fernere Zukunft hinüber zu retten versuchte, war nicht nur was seine Phantasie aus den groȕen Ideen der Aufklärungsphilosophie gemacht hatte, es war auch das Erbe der Periode der Empfindsamkeit, das er tief aufgenommen hatte“ (483).

Schiller’s studies on human physiology strongly impacted his ambition of grounding the cultivation of sensation [Empfindungsvermögen] upon his understanding of the interdependence of human body and mind. In Philosophie der

Physiologie, Schiller observes that since Denken and Empfinden are interconnected,

Empfinden ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder

185 Wilhelm von Humboldt, “Über Schiller und den Gang seiner Geistesentwicklung.” Schillers Leben und Werk in Daten und Bildern, 43. 98

Verschlimmerung bewusst ist (NA 20: 28). Upon encountering Kant, Schiller reports enthusiastically to Körner on 3.03.1791 as follows:

Du errätst wohl nicht, was ich jetzt lese und studiere? Nichts schlechteres, als – Kant. Seine Kritik der Urteilskraft, die ich mir selbst angeschafft habe, reißt mich hin und durch ihren neuen lichtvollen geistreichen Inhalt […] Da ich künftig weiter Ästhetik vortragen werde, so gibt mir diese Gelegenheit einige Zeit überhaupt auf Philosophie zuwenden (NA 26: 77-78).

This letter accounts for the intellectually engaging and enlightening content of Kant’s philosophy in Schiller’s estimation. When studying Kant’s philosophical thoughts more closely, however, the writer recognizes their differing standpoints. While

Schiller’s term of beauty reveals “the playful, creative-critical quality of his thinking,

[…his pursuit of] education (Bildung), cultivation, especially aesthetic education clearly transcends the limits of Kant’s philosophical writings” (HT 151). As

Martinson cautions here, “Kant was drawn to a discussion of beauty by reflecting on the nature of theoretical reason, […whereas] Schiller seemed to be preoccupied with the practical value of beauty for the progressive development of humankind” (HT

151-152). From the dramatist’s perspective it mattered to Schiller that our experience of beauty was tied to a delightful sensation.186 I propose that Schiller’s engagement with the Kritik der Urteilskraft shaped his own concept of the beautiful. On 23

February 1793, almost two years after encountering Kant, Schiller wrote another letter to Körner considering the playful quality of the beautiful:

186 See Schiller’s letter to Körner on 23 February 1793. “[…] da nur Erfahurng lehren kann, ob wir bei einer Vorstellung etwas fühlen sollen und was wir dabei fühlen sollen. […] man ist also hierin durchaus auf empirische Beweise eingeschränkt, und was nur immer durch diese geleistet werden kann, hoffe ich zu leisten: […], dass aus dem zusammegesetzten Begriff der Freiheit und der Erscheinung, der mit der Vernunft harmonierenden Sinnlichkeit ein Gefühl der Lust fliessen müsse, welches dem Wohlgefallen gleich ist, das die Vorstellung der Schönheit begleiten pflegt“ (NA 26: 200). 99

Freiheit in der Erscheinung ist eins mit der Schönheit. […Freiheit ist] bloß eine Idee der Vernunft, der keine Anschauung adäquat sein kann. Wenn aber die Dinge, insofern sie in der Erscheinung vorkommen, Freiheit weder besitzen, noch zeigen, wie kann man einen objektiven Grund in den Erscheinungen suchen? Dieser objektive Grund müsste eine solche Beschaffenheit derselben seyn, deren Vorstellung uns schlechterdings nötigt, die Idee der Freiheit in uns hervorzubringen, und auf das Objekt zu beziehen. […]. Etwas muss an dem Gegenstande sein, was ihn aus der unendlichen Reihe des Nichtssagenden und leeren heraushebt, und unsern Erkenntnistrieb reizt. […] Frei sein und durch sich selbst bestimmt sein, von innen heraus bestimmt sein ist eins (NA 26: 200-201).

By engaging critically Kant’s theories of beauty, from a practical point of view,

Schiller recognizes that it is possible to imprint the sublime freedom into the human heart by the way of the experience of beauty. As it is evident, challenged by the intellectually engaging and enlightening content of Kant’s philosophy, Schiller arrives at his own definition of the beautiful form: 6FK|QKHLWKHLȕWHLQH)RUPGLHVLFKVHOEVW erklärt (beauty designates a form that declares herself on her own terms, NA 26: 193).

While Schiller’s concept of beauty has been hard to define, it is a sensation of freedom that we experience via reflecting over her distinct quality.187 “The appreciation of beauty requires an element of non-conceptual feeling: we sense the perfection behind beauty but cannot define it.”188 Here I propose to also appreciate that in Schiller’s view the sensation of freedom is available to us via reflecting over the distinct quality of beauty. Tied to this delightful sensation,189 the sentiment that

187 See Kallias, oder über die Schönheit. „Der Grund der Schönheit ist überall Freiheit in der Erscheinung“ (FA 8: 322). 188 See: HT 152; D/R 121. 189 See Schiller’s letter to Körner on 23 February 1793. “[…] da nur Erfahurng lehren kann, ob wir bei einer Vorstellung etwas fühlen sollen und was wir dabei fühlen sollen. […], dass aus dem zusammegesetzten Begriff der Freiheit und der Erscheinung, der mit der Vernunft harmonierenden Sinnlichkeit ein Gefühl der Lust fliessen müsse, welches dem Wohlgefallen gleich ist, das die Vorstellung der Schönheit begleiten pflegt“ (NA 26: 200). 100

our experience of beauty is capable of tuning our heart to the right pitch, with the imprint of freedom, finds poetic expression for the first time in the poem Die Künstler

(1789), as follows:

Nur durch das Morgentor des Schönen Drangst du in der Erkenntnis Land. […] Das Herz, das sie an sanften Banden lenket, Der Freiheit süßes Recht, zurück [empfängt].190

Schiller’s poetic pursuit of capturing the whole human being [der ganze Mensch] through the creation of beautiful form is inevitably tied to the mental activity

[Geistestätigkeit] that his experience of the beautiful encouraged.191 The cultivation of the sensibilities of the heart through the experience of the beautiful remains constant endeavor even after encountering Kant.192 By reconfirming the intrinsic value of inner feelings, Schiller endeavors to give equal precedence to the cultivation of sensibility and the workings of the intellect.

As Lothar Pikulik193 reads Schiller, these entities stand side by side in equilibrium:

Die Kantsche Philosophie inspiriert Schiller, über die Empfindungen nicht nur psychologisch, sondern auch philosophische zu reflektieren, um sie zugleich in ein angemessenes Verhältnis zur Vernunft zu

190 Friedrich Schiller, „Die Künstler.“ Sämtliche Werke Gedichte. 203-214,-- hereafter cited as Schillers Gedichte. 191 Compare “Schönheit heißt eine Form, die sich selbst erklärt“ (NA 26: 169). 192 See Schiller’s letter on 25 January 1793. Upon encountering Immanuel Kant’s Critique of the Power of Judgment [Kritik der Urteilskraft], Schiller’s main concern was to come up with his own term of the beautiful. As he states: “Die Schwierigkeit einen Begriff der Schönheit objektive aufzustellen […] ist fast unübersehbar. […] Es ist interessant zu bemerken, ass meine Theorie eine vierte mögliche Form ist, das Schöne zu erklären. Entwedererklärt es objectiv oder subjectiv, und zwar entweder sinnlich subjectiv (wie Burke u.a.) oder subjective rational (wieKant) oder rational objectiv (we Baumgarten […] oder endlich sinnlich objectiv. […] Der Umstand, dass bei weitem die meisten Schönheiten […] unter dem Begriff eines Zweckes stehen, […] das logische Gute mit dem Schönen verwechselt“ (NA 26: 174-177). 193 Lothar Pikulik, “Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit.“ 215-236, -- hereafter Pikulik. 101

setzen. Und die Angemessenheit ergibt sich für ihn aus dem seiner eigenen Anlage entspringenden Bewusstsein, dass die Empfindungen eigenen Wert besitzen, der es nicht erlaubt, sie gegenüber der Vernunft gering zu schätzen. So plädiert Schiller für die Gleichgewichtung der beiden Seiten (Pikulik 225).

Pikulik is “Consistent with the early mind-body paradigm, [in which] one impulse proves to be indispensable to the other.”194 However, in his later theoretical writings

Schiller treats human faculties in terms of “reciprocal, yet taut interaction.”195 Here I propose, to be sure, the understanding of feelings and their shaping force upon human thought and action is integral to Schiller’s pursuit of the Ausbildung des

Empfindungsvermögens. At the same time, my task is to show that the manner in which Schiller utters genuine feelings in heightened situations, it stands firm that by his unique style he engages the idea of the whole human being as follows: “Der König hat geweint” (Don Carlos IV, 23). In briefing on Schiller’s poetic device, the ancient critic Longinus comes forward explaining: “For emotion is always more telling when it seems not to be premeditated by the speaker but to be born of the moment.”196

In his contribution “Schiller und die Empfindsamkeit,” Pikulik (2005) also observes that the attempts of differentiating emotions presented an intricate and complex problem in 18th century German letters. By convention, the concept of

‘Empfindung’ was used indifferently: regardless whether inner feelings or corporeal sensations were at work, ‘Empfindung’ designated sensation, perception and affect at the same time, with no regard for the senses or the mind and soul (“Empfindung,

194 See Martinson (HT 176). 195 See Martinson (HT 176). 196 Longinus, On the Sublime, Trans. W.H. Fyfe, rev by Donald Russel, 1995, here 233-34. 102

Gefühl und Affekt sowohl das Sinnliche wie das Seelische umfasste”) (224). Pikulik contends, however, that due to employing ‘Empfindung’ in a sense of ‘Gefühl,’

Schiller not only differentiated inner feelings (seelische Empfindungen) from corporeal sensations, but he also contributed to the process of the sophistication of emotions197 that took place in 18th century Germany.198 Pikulik’s contribution offers valuable insights with respect of how various emotional processes were categorized in

18th Century German letters. However, as also Moses Mendelssohn’s fictitious character Euphranor reminds in Briefe über die Empfindungen, “too much conceptual clarification of feelings will destroy emotion.”199

Allzu sorgfältige Zergliederung der Schönheit stört das Vergnügen […] Die Lust verschwindet, wenn wir unsre Empfindung allzu sorgfältig aufzuklären suchen.200

Elizabeth M. Wilkinson suggests that when Schiller uses the word “Eimpfindung”,

“His [Schiller’s] chief concern is the process whereby man passes from a state of non- differentiation […] to a state of intense awareness of the distinctness, yet

197 Michel Cabanac. (2002). "What is emotion?" Behavioural Processes. 60.2 (2002):69-83. Dantzer (1989) defines emotions as follows: “Although emotions have long been categorized as purely cognitive, it is now clear that the mental representation of an emotional experience includes motor and visceral (relating to deep inward feelings rather than to the intellect) components as well as cognitive ones’ (Cabanac 70). 198 Compare Pikulik,“Insofern er die Empfindsamkeit und ihre Funktion in der Sittlichkeit wie in der Ästhetik auf den philosophischen Begriff zu bringen sucht, stellt sich allerdings eine Schwierigkeit der Benennung ein. […] Für ihn umfassten Begriffe wie Empfindung, Gefühl, Affekt nach alter Tradition sowohl das Sinnliche wie das Seelische, und wenn die Gefühlskultur des 18. Jahrhunderts das Seelische vom Sinnlichen genauso emanzipiert wie vom Rationalen, so hinkte die Undifferenziertheit des Begriffs der Differenziertheit der Sache einstweilen nach“ (225). 199 Martinson (HT 152). 200 Moses Mendelssohn, „Briefe über die Empfindungen,“ Schriften zur Philosophie und Ästhetik, Vol. I, 4-119, here 8-9. 103

interrelatedness, of self and the world.”201 At the same time, the experience of beautiful shapes humanity.

With regard to Schiller’s literary modes of expression of feelings, I here ask how, and to what purpose the German poet uses language. For, as Dirk Oschmann suggests, Schiller required the reader to look for meaning behind the constitution of the poetic rendering as a whole.202 This entails, however, that in matters of representation Schiller listened also to his own Empfindung. As the German poet discerns: die Dichtkunst will Anschauungen, die Sprache gibt nur Begriffe (Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, FA 8: 329). What matters to Schiller in his pursuit of commanding the attention of the reader is to inquire how an individual who has the life force displays the self (die Art und Weise sich ein Individuum lebend abdrückt,

NA 28:22). Schiller admits to Fichte that in borderline situations he often lets the body speak for the self instead of words. Schiller’s artistic skills of portraying tender emotions remain central to his poetic pursuit of ennobling character. Norbert Oellers underscores: „Handlung, Sprache und Komposition (Aufbau, Form) sind das unverwechselbare Eigentum des Dichters“ (Oellers, 2006, 113). For us, however,

Schiller illustrates that, without the dramatic practice of creating captivating characters, the theory he worked out with respect to the representation of tender sensations (Empfindungen) would not have been possible. With time, Schiller learns to engage critically with the legacy of his youth, ‘Empfindsamkeit.’ Nevertheless, the

201 Wilkinson, 1967, 307. 202 Dirk Oschmann, Bewegliche Dichtung, (2007). Schiller’s “[…] Darstellungsstrategien, […haben] eher die Sprache als Ganzes im Blick als das einzelne Wort […])“ (109). 104

human heart remains for him the authoritative agency of the inner life, as Blochmann also substantiates: “[…] so bleibt für ihn doch das ‘Herz’ auch jetzt noch die entscheidende Instanz des inneren Lebens” (490). As Schiller contends, while the sensation of the beautiful is tied to the noblest part of our being, beauty is rather felt than available to us by cognition.203

Pikulik is most effective when he merits Schiller’s ability of fine-tuning our emotional faculties for sensing the beautiful. As he claims: “Die Eigenart des feinen oder edlen Empfindens besteht für Schiller besonders in der ästhetischen Fähigkeit, das Schöne wahrzunehmen […]“ (225). In ÄE16, Schiller observes:

Für den Menschen unter dem Zwange entweder der Materie oder der Formen ist also die schmelzende Schönheit Bedürfnis, denn von Größe und Kraft ist er längst gerührt, ehe er für Harmonie und Grazie anfängt empfindlich zu werden (FA 8: 618).

Martinson observes: “[…] the beautiful (das Schöne) has a releasing, (“auflösende”), and a tensing (“anspannende”) effect. […] the releasing effect of beauty is required in order to keep both the material- and the form-impulse within their borders” (HT 178-

179). Lesley Sharpe sees that in spite of the enormous impact of Ästhetische Briefe,

Schiller fails to deliver a satisfactory treatment of the ‘energetic’ or tensing and

‘melting’ or releasing beauty (Companion, 147). Schiller contends that, in the age of specialization, human beings need to experience the releasing effect of beauty. For,

“under the one-sided pressure of either matter or the intellect, we respond easier to power and to the monumental than sensing harmony and grace” (FA 8: 618). Schiller

203 See Schillers letter on F. Ch. v. Augustenburg on 9 February 1793 (FA 26: 183-187). „Wenn ich der Verbindung nachdenke, in der das Gefühl des Schönen und Großen mit dem edelsten Teil unsers Wesens steht, […] dass wir die Schönheit fühlen und nicht erkennen, […] den Ausspruch des Gefühls nur deswegen trauen sollten, weil er mit der Erklärung des Schönen übereinstimmend ist.“ 105

perceives that the sentiments of harmony and grace best apply to the releasing effect of beauty.

In the poem Die Künstler, Schiller comes closest to rendering the worth of beauty. As he suggests, once we sense [or ‘empfinden’] the real value of beauty, beauty will come to meet us since truth projects the possibility of right action.

Was wir als Schönheit hier empfunden, Wird einst als Wahrheit uns entgegen gehn. Die Künstler204

At the heart of Schiller’s pursuit of portraying beauty is the conviction that no passion nor sentiment can enslave the inclination of the human mind for freedom. As he states in the essay, Über das Pathetische (1793), the most fitting subject matter of poetry is the portrayal of freedom that comes to us through the expression of beauty.

Die ästhetische Kraft, womit uns das Erhabene der Gesinnung und Handlung ergreift, beruht also keineswegs auf dem Interesse der Vernunft, dass recht gehandelt werde, sondern auf dem Interesse der Einbildungskraft, dass recht Handeln möglich sei, d.h. dass keine Empfindung, wie mächtig sie auch sei, die Freiheit des Gemüts zu unterdrücken vermöge. […] in jeder Äußerung der Freiheit und Willenskraft, und wo nur irgend der Dichter dies antrifft, da hat er einen zweckmäȕigen Gegenstand gefunden (NA 20: 220).

As Schiller submits, by all means, in aiming for portraying the sublime experience of freedom, the poet’s task consists in imprint on the human heart that it is possible to follow the right course of action (dass recht Handeln möglich sei). The above passage from the essay of the Pathetische, discloses that he is indebted to Kant in underscoring the importance of the power of will [Willenskraft] in the formation of

204 Gedichte 204. 106

character.205 Even so, I contend that Schiller’s idea of freedom was born out of the artist’s inner need as well as was the result of the mind’s reflective activity between the actual and the ideal. In the mid-eighteenth-century, the new field of aesthetics began to shape the discourse of German intellectuals. Schiller, the writer underscored the significance of literature in and for life.

Drawing on several examples from Schiller’s literary works, Blockmann shows that to identify with a great idea ennobles the human heart. “Das Ergreifen der groȕen Sachen mit dem lebendigen Gefühl adelt […] die Menschen” (494). In the treatise Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung, Schiller expresses his joy in inspiring his readers to appreciate the ideal. (Die Darstellung des Ideals den Dichter machen muss [FA 8: 734]). While the poem Die Künstler illustrates that truth is accessible to a heart that is sensitive [zart] and alive [lebendig gebliebenen], heart is considered to be the life force, the genuine center of the improvement of the human being. And the well-tuned heart symbolizes freedom: “[…] dass das recht gestimmte

Herz, ‘der Freiheit süȕes Recht zurück’ empfängt” (Bochmann 495). In pursuit of ennobling the human heart, Schiller purposefully seeks to establish the right relationship between the physical and spiritual-rational faculties. In the light of ÄE 8, the purpose of the training, i.e. the fine-tuning of the human heart to sense the improvement or the deterioration of our state of being, remains central to Schiller’s project of “die Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens.” In his pursuit of cultivating human character, Schiller cautions against serving self-interest, or, seeking to remedy

205 Blochmann aslo observes: “Was Kant ihm an dieser Stelle geschenkt hat, ist die von Schiller aufgegriffene Kategorie des Willens, […] ein erhabener Charakter zu werden” (497). 107

situation only through the cold region of the intellect or erudition. Rather, one can encounter the human heart through poesy because it flows from the heart.

Die Poesie soll ihren Weg nicht durch die kalte Region des Gedächtnisses nehmen, soll nie die Gelehrsamkeit zu ihrer Auslegerin, nie den Eigennutz zu ihrem Führsprecher machen. Sie soll das Herz treffen weil sie aus dem Herzen floss […] auf den Menschen (Über das Pathetische, FA 8: 449).

But why is it so significant that the expression of noble feelings relies upon our aesthetic competence of sensing the value of the beautiful? In an effort to answer that question, we must first interrogate various discourses that contributed to shaping

Schiller’s use of ‘empfinden.’

2.4 THE CONCEPT OF “EMPFINDEN”206 IN ARTISTIC AND INTELLECTUAL CONTEXT

Swabian pietism

In young Schiller’s homeland of Württemberg, Swabian pietism brought with it the need of communicating feelings. One of the most significant markers of this pious movement is that it affirms the correspondence between the physical and spiritual world.207 As the word the “Praxis pietatis” suggests, in the most practical sense affect was a central feature of piety.208 According to Phillip Jakob Spener, emotional

206 Following Mendelssohn, the term “Empfinden” means sensation, more closely expressing the function of fine-tuning our aesthetic sensibilities to sense pleasure in perfection. Sense is closest to “Empfinden.” Wilkinson defines Schiller’s use of “Empfinden” as follows: “Sensation (ÄE 20.3” and Gefühl often seems interchangeable (ÄE 23, 2 and 3). His chief concern is with the process whereby man passes from a state of non-differentiation […] to a state of intense awareness of the distinctness, yet interrelatedness, of self and the world. […] Empfindung is therefore defined by him (ÄE 20.3), as a state of merely occupied time’, and ‘the sole medium through which physical existence makes itself known’ (307). 207 Pietism was an influential movement within Lutheranism that combined 17th-century Lutheran principles with reformed emphasis on individual piety and inwardness of feelings. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pietism 208 Wichtig für die Entstehung der neuen Frömmigkeitsbewegung am Ende des 16. Jahrhunderts wurde auch die durch die Renaissance vermittelte Neuentdeckung der griechischen Affektenlehre.“ (besagt, 108

experience was an integral part of pious life. In alluding to Luther, he asserts that the experience of deep-felt emotions were brought about by the effect of words penetrating the heart. “Das Wort ‘muss ins Herz dringen’” (8).209 Ilse Becker also underscores the significance of emotional experience. In examining the style of

Luther’s 1522 Bible translation, she claims that emotional experience played an essential part in the formation of Luther’s language: “Das Erleben formt 1522 seine

Sprache, nicht nur der Verstand; […] und das Gefühl, das[s] hier alles wichtig ist

[…].”210 Pious experience encouraged the expression of generous, heart-felt emotions, thus contributing to the development of the whole human being.

Poetic role models

In paying close attention to the sources that fed Schiller’s imagination, I investigate Schiller’s responses to his poetic role models, Albrecht von Haller and

Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock. Posterity admires Haller for having combined medicine and poetry.211 Haller inspired Schiller not only as physiologist but also as a poet at the

Academy.212 The arts and sciences together has disclosed that a ‘mutually cooperative relationship’ provide greater knowledge.213 Klopstock’s poetic image conveys a different message. By virtue of being the greatest representative of the German

Empfindsamkeit as well as “ein strahlender Stern am literarischen Himmel”214 in dass sich Affekte wie Freude, Trauer oder Schmerz musikalisch ausdrücken lassen und die Musik solche Gemütsbewegungen beim Hörer hervorrufen kann. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affektenlehre 209 Oskar Söhngen, „Überlegungen zu den theologie- und geistesgeschichtlichen Voraussetzungen des lutherischen Pietismus.“ Pietismus--Herrnhutertum—Erweckungsbewegung. 3-21. 210 Ilse Becker, Luthers Evangelienübersetzung von 1522 und 1546. 211 For further reference see D/R 32, 43. 212 Compare D/R 43-44; 115-116. 213As Martionson states: “[…] while art is primarily concerned with intuitive comprehensions (Anschauungen), science strives to generate ever clearer and more reliable concepts (Begriffe)” (HT 9). 214 Klaus Hurlebusch, Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock (9). —hereafter Hurlebusch. 109

eighteenth-century Germany, Klopstock’s poetic figure also fashioned young

Schiller’s poetic imagination. Klopstock’s earnest desire was to write a national epos that equaled the achievements of John Milton and Homer. While the Messiah established Klopstock’s fame, the work is hardly read today.215 In fusing thought

[Denken] and feeling [Empfinden], posterity remembers Klopstock today as a language innovator [Spracherneuer].216 By expanding the poetic modes of expression in Germany, Klopstock influenced Schiller’s work.

According to Isaac Bacon, Klopstock’s lofty verses often secularize pious values. His sublime topics concern not only God but also nature, friendship and love

(55).217 Schiller loved Klopstock’s poetry and responded sensitively to his elevated style. Following an early account in 1776, young Schiller considered the poet

Kloptstock to be his dear companion for a lifetime. However, his friends did not share in his exaltation of Klopstock. Whereupon a dispute erupted among the members of the literary circle at the Academy. In a letter to his school friend Georg Friedrich

Scharffenstein Schiller defends Klopstock enthusiastically: “I am greatly indebted to this poet. His poetry is a source of genuine emotions, a mighty and magnificent friend that fills and blesses my heart.”218

215 See Hurlebusch, “Ein Stern erster Ordnung, der nicht mehr strahlt. ‚Wer kennt ihn heute?‘“ Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock 11-16. 216 Gerhard Kaiser 250. 217 Isaac Bacon,“Pietische und Rationalistische Elemente in Klopstocks Sprache.“ The Journal of English and Germanic Philology, pp. 49-59, -- hereafter cited as Bacon. 218 „Ich habe ihm viel zu danken. Sieh ich hab eine Quelle gefunden die mein Herze vollmacht, und segnet, einen großen, großen herrlichen Freund […]“ (NA 23: 6). 110

Klopstock’s outlook, emotions, pictures and ideas219 shaped Schiller’s development as a poet: nevertheless, as his letter to Scharffenstein suggests, what he most desired was that his heart identified with feelings that were true, honest and sincere. As Schiller writes: […] es hat sich tief in meine Seele gesenkt und ist zu einem nahen Gefühl, Eigentum worden, was wahr ist, was mich trösten kann im Tode!

(NA 23: 5). Schiller accounts here for the mental and emotional experience that

Klopstock’s verse evoked in him, stirring his soul to identify with feelings that were true, honest and sincere.

In his article “Pietische und rationalistische Elemente in Klopstocks Sprache,”

Isaac Bacon contends that Klopstock was a child of his age. He proposes that the writer of the epic poem could feel [fühlen] and think [denken] at the same time.220

Klopstock was convinced that feelings were sovereign and could build their own world of thought.

Das Gefühl und nicht das Denken, wie bei den Aufklärern, spielt eben die souveräne Rolle und ist daher zur Bildung einer eignen Gedankenwelt fähig (Bacon, 56).

Nevertheless, as Bacon elaborates, in spite of assigning to feelings the quality of thinking [“Indem er dem Fühlen (Pietismus) die Qualität des Denkens (Aufklärung) zuschreibt”], Klopstock retained the enlightened position that thinking is technique.

“Das Denken ist wohl eine Technik” (Bacon, 56). Gerhard Kaiser observed that while scholarship repeatedly suggests that in Klopstock’s poetry ‘Fühlen’ and ‘Denken’ are

219 In dem Epos Der Messias redet eine sinn- und gefühlsschwere, erhabene, lyrisch-musikalische, subjektive Sprache: Heller als ihr, da ihr aus der Hand des Schöpfers herabkamt? / Nun steh ich da in meiner Verfinstrung, verworfen, eine Abscheu / Dieser herrlichen Welt! (XI, 780-783). 220 Friedrich Schiller Philosophie der Physiologie. Compare: „Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen“ (NA 20: 28, para. 11). 111

almost identical, it is hardly noted that he employs the concept of ‘Denken’ in its archaic sense, denoting that thinking and ‘Empfinden’ are not yet separated (Kaiser,

328). Bacon demonstrates that, for Klopstock, it is not enough to think [Denken] about the existence of God. The soul also needs to feel [Fühlen] his presence. In his poetic treatment, Klopstock’s thoughts are felt [Gedanken empfunden werden] and his feelings suggest thoughts. “Im Himmel wird die Seele ‘höher denken’, ‘seliger […] empfinden.’”221

By advocating the primacy of feelings, Klopstock favored a holistic viewof the human faculties [ganzheitliche Anschauung der seelischen Kräfte]: “Die ‘ganze

Seele’ ist bei der besten Art von Gott zu denken ergriffen” (Kaiser, 331). When

Klopstock discerns thoughts through his senses, he also senses their meaning. During the eighteenth century, the concept of ‘Empfinden’ surpasses from the physical state of sensation to include the spiritual realm of emotions. By employing the concept of

‘Empfinden’ in terms of ‘Denken’ and ‘Fühlen,’ Klopstock began to understand these terms interchangeably. He thereby broadened the possibilities of the poetic mode of expression of the German language with respect to feelings.222

In summary, Klopstock’s concept of ‘Empfinden’ cultivates an upward movement from corporeal sensation to the spiritual-intellectual network of the body.

Klopstock’s poetic invention is concerned with engaging the mind with emotions that were both felt and thought about. Aiming at expressing genuinely felt emotions,

221 Gottlieb Klopstock, Oden. Franz Muncker und Jaro Pawel, eds. I, 127, 127f. In Gerhard Kaiser (1961), ‘Denken’ und ‘Empfinden’ (325). 222 Karl Ludwig Schneider, Klopstock und die Erneuerung der deutschen Dichtersprache im 18. Jahrhundert (101). 112

Klopstock employs ‘empfinden’ with a spiritual-intellectual quality to excite the imagination of the reader during the course of identifying with the feelings that were articulated in the literary fiction, as Kaiser suggests.

In the pursuit of refining human beings’ capacity of feelings, Schiller capitalized on the genuinely felt, true and honest emotions which Klopstock’s poetry inspired in him. As he observes: […] wo der Gegenstand seines Herzens ist, hat er nicht selten eine groȕe Natur, eine reizende Naivität bewiesen (NSD, FA 8:756).

According to Schiller, Klopstock’s poetic figures were abstractions that lacked the consciousness of form. His figures are concepts, not spirited and lively characters

(keine lebende Gestalten, NSD, FA 8: 757). What Klopstock needs yet that his poetry assumes such a spirited form that the reader could behold it (für die Anschauung bestimmte Formen, NSD, FA 8: 757).

The differentiation of feelings was an intricate and complex problem in eighteenth-century German discourse. According to Sauder, most theorists agreed that

‘Empfindung’ meant a certain change in the psyche [Seele]:

Empfindung eine ‘gewisse Veränderung der Seele sei, die wegen der Heftigkeit und Lebhaftigkeit nicht ‘Gedanke‘ oder ‘Vorstellung‘ genannt werde, heißt es 1778 in einer anonymen Aufsatz.223

Along with evaluating several theories, Sauder notes that on the account of the vehement and lively nature of these mental dispositions, ‘Empfindung’ was not, from the theoretical perspective, understood either as thought [Gedanke] or as idea

223 Sauder records the title of the anonym essay: „Gedanken über die Gefahr empfindsamer und romanenmäßiger Bekanntschaften“ (127). 113

[Vorstellung]. Johann Georg Sulzer’s contribution appears to be most instructive to my inquiry into the understanding of the concept of ‘Empfindung, as it concerns

Schiller. As opposed to Klopstock, Sulzer was interested in the relationship between ideas [Vorstellungen] and emotions. To Sulzer ‘Empfinden’ suggests an in-between state between thought [Denken] and action [Handeln]. He proposes that ‘Empfinden’ is an enabling power of imagination, capable of gathering all parts into the conception of a whole. In this respect, Sulzer appears to describe the process of “sensation in terms of collection of data from the environment by the means of senses” (Shergill

81). While Sulzer understands ‘Empfinden’ as an imaginative power that aids the interpretation of the collected data, he appears also to be in pursuit of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information that philosophy, cognitive science and psychology calls today perception.224 Along with recalling Abel’s sense perception in correlation with Sulzer’s understanding of ‘Empfinden,’ Sulzer’s and

Klopstock’s treatments of ‘Empfinden’ expand from the physical state of sensation to the spiritual realm of emotions.

In summary, on the one hand, Sulzer proposes that the term ‘Empfinden’ suggests a certain lively and fervent change in the psyche (soul), a kind of transitory state between feelings and thoughts enabling imagination. On the other hand, under

Klopstock ‘Empfinden’ becomes a complex term. In fusing thought and emotions,

Klopstock uses the concept of ‘Empfinden’ as novelty and expands the poetic mode of expression. In considering the term ‘Empfinden’ as an enabling power of

224 For further reference see, Sauder 127; Shergill 81. 114

imagination as well as a poetic tool of intuition, both Sulzer and Klopstock further our understandings of the debates surrounding the term of “Empfinden” in the eighteenth century German letters.

2.5 THE PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATION OF SCHILLER’S POETIC PURSUITS

Wir sind bestimmt, in diesem Leben nicht nur die Kräfte des Verstandes und des Willens zu verbessern, sondern auch das Gefühl durch sinnliche Erkenntnis und die dunklen Triebe der Seele durch das sinnliche Vergnügen zu einer höheren Vollkommenheit zu erziehen (Moses Mendelssohn).225

Schiller’s main material was the human being. His studies on human physiology, I argue, greatly informed his poetic impulse. At the heart of his pursuit of das

Dichterische is, on the one hand, to render poetically “die Menschheit zu behaupten, welche jene [die Hand der Natur] in ihm [im Menschen] anlegte und eröffnete.”226 On the other hand, in his pursuit of capturing human beings‘ best possible expression, his poetic imagination was inspired by the ideal: Der Mensch, wenn er vereinigt wirkt, ist immer ein JURȕHV:HVHQ(NA 25:146).

Schiller’s development as an artist as well as a poet is indebted to a great extent to Mendelssohn’s Briefe über die Empfindungen.227 Mendelssohn was a representative thinker of the German Aufklärung, who was a close friend of G. E.

Lessing. Martinson has observed that “[the] collaboration between the Jewish German philosopher and the German Christian intellectual and writer, reflects not only the spirit of enlightened humanity but also its practical actualization” (PE 145). This

225 Moses Mendelssohn, “Rhapsodie.” Gesammelte Schriften, Jubiläumsausgabe. vol.1, 393. 226 ÄE 19, FA 8: 631. 227 Moses Mendelssohn, „Briefe über die Empfindungen,“ Schriften zur Philosophie und Ästhetik, 41- 123,—hereafter cited as BE. 115

alliance portrays “the heart of the German Aufklärung (PE 145-46). In fact,

Mendelsohn’s Briefe über die Empfindungen was one of the most influential forces behind Schiller’s pursuit of the highest possible accomplishment as an author, contributing to the formation of the main tenet of the aesthetic education, “the greatest degree of cooperative interaction between mind and body” (HT 15). Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische based on Mendelssohn’s philosophical ideas about the necessity of maintaining harmonious tone as the precondition of highest possible performance.

The Jewish German philosopher believed that the experience of harmony appealed to human beings in a magnificent manner: Die Zauberkraft der Harmonie [wirkt] mit so mächtigem Reiz auf die Menschen (11. Brief, 86). Furthermore, Mendelssohn contends that the basic impetus for action is pleasure in perfection [Die Lust an

Vollkommenheit].228 In the tenth letter of his Briefe über die Empfindungen, the

Jewish-German thinker notes that the source of pleasure is a collaborative experience of a peculiar kind between the ‘sensuous system of the body and the intellectual- spiritual network of the mind.’ He understood this collaborative experience in terms of den verwirrenden Knoten (10. Brief, 81, the tangled knot).229 The phenomenon of the peripheral nervous system, in which the nerve cells and fibers are delicately intertwined with each other, alerted Mendelssohn to the fact that everything is connected in the body. In maintaining that sensation spread in the human body before the thinking component set in motion, Mendelssohn attributed the pleasure of sensation to a ‘marvelous mechanical drive,’ in which the nerve impulses were

228 PE 104. 229 See HT 36, with respect to Schiller’s interactionist theory. 116

“distributed by a degree of tension harmoniously from nerve to nerve” (HT 21; BE,

10. Brief, 82).

In claiming that musical experts call the phenomenon of harmonious tension

“tone,” Mendelssohn calls to attention the relationship that exists between sensation and the experience of tone. Roger Scruton notes: “When we hear music, we hear a particular kind of sound that is ‘apart from’ the physical world, and recognized as tone. Hence, when we hear tone, we do not hear sound only; we hear something in the sound, something which moves with a force of its own” (18).230 Mendelssohn found it puzzling, however, that the phenomena of sensuous delights often exert greater influence on both the body and the soul than do rational delights, henceforth posing the question: Was haben Seele und Körper gemein, dass beide Ursachen des

Vergnügens sein können? (BE, 10. Brief, 82). Fascinated by the manner in which sensuous delights spread all throughout the body, Mendelssohn noted the beneficial effect of heilsame Spannung (wholesome, healing tension). In Mendelssohn’s view, sensation spreads in the body from nerve to nerve via a healthy tension, adjusting the body to such conditions that insure its highest possible function.

Alle Gefäße ordnen sich in die heilsame Spannung, in den harmonischen Ton, der die Tätigkeit des menschlichen Körpers befördert, und seiner Fortdauer zuträglich ist. (BE, 10 Brief, 82).

By underscoring that the healthy tension of vessels supports the activities of the body,

Mendelssohn concluded that maintaining harmonious tone is a necessary precondition of high achievement. As he explains, the soul will sense the improvement but does not

230 Roger Scruton, Aesthetic of Music. 117

clearly understand how the change took place. The soul will, however, sense a transition toward perfection: Sie wird eine dunkle Vorstellung von der

Vollkommenheit ihres Körpers erlangen (10. Brief, 83). In proposing that the experience of sensuous delights relates to the idea of perfection, the question arises: does Mendelssohn license lewdness? Not at all, he answers. Nur darin kommen alle sinnlichen Vergnügen überein, dass verbesserte Leibesbeschaffenheit verknüpft ist.

(The sole purpose of pleasurable sensation is to condition the body to be able to better perform, BE, 10. Brief, 83).

In reference to the impact of the tangled know on both the body and the soul,

Mendelssohn’s solution is the intellect. In acknowledging that sensuous delights also have negative effects that can curb the light of the mind, Mendelsohn urges that we guard ourselves with the armor of the intellect against the seductive powers of the sensuous delights that allure the senses. Even so, Schiller chooses to take an indirect route to the intellect. By using the weapons of the imagination, he recommends considering the benefits of an authenticable aesthetic experience. He visualizes the essence of the poetic pursuit encapsulated in the following:

Die ästhetische Kraft, womit uns das Erhabene der Gesinnung und Handlung ergreift, beruht also keineswegs auf dem Interesse der Vernunft, dass recht gehandelt werde, sondern auf dem Interesse der Einbildungskraft, dass recht Handeln möglich sei (Über das Pathetische, NA 20: 220).

Aesthetic experience designates a moment so sublime that our actions and dispositions are consistent to determine the right manner.

In summary, even though the basic impetus for action is Die Lust a

Vollkommenheit (pleasure in perfection), a closer acquaintance with Mendelssohn’s 118

tenets grants that maintaining harmonious tone is a necessary precondition of a highest possible performance. Alles Vergnügen gründet sich auf die Vorstellung einer

Vollkommenheit (12. Brief, 81). With respect to the development of the poetic idea, the peculiar quality of beauty relies upon an unspecified sensation of perfection.231

Beauty takes us by surprise, charming us with an unclear sensation that assumes perfection. Our happiness then depends upon the surprising effect of beauty appealing to our senses in an unspecified, yet irresistible manner. Unsere Glückseligkeit hängt von dem Genuss (Lust) ab, und der Genuss von der überraschenden Empfindung, mit der jede Schönheit unsre Sinne dahin reiȕt (1. Brief, 46).

But why does harmony exert such powerful force upon the human being’s mental disposition? In his third medical dissertation Schiller argues that the perfection of human beings consists in exercising one’s faculties in a mutually cooperative fashion in the highest degree:

Vollkommenheit des Menschen liegt in der Übung seiner Kräfte durch Betrachtung des Weltplans: und da zwischen dem Maase der Kraft, und dem Zweck, auf den wirket, die genauste Harmonie sein muss, so wird Vollkommenheit in der höchstmöglichsten Tätigkeit seiner Kräfte, und in ihrer wechselseitigen Unterordnung bestehen (NA 20: 41).

Schiller linked the idea of perfection to the design of the universe: “Man’s perfection consists in the exercise of his powers through observing the design of the world. […] perfection must consist in the greatest possible activity of these powers and their mutual subordination one to another” (D/R, 258; NA 20: 41). The point implies “a

231 Compare „Die Schönheit beruht in der undeutlichen Vorstellung einer Vollkommenheit“ (Mendelssohn, 2. Brief, 48). 119

process of reciprocal delimitation and dependence” between body and mind (HT 37).

I submit that what stands out about Schiller’s pleasure over the magnificent design of the universe is the manner in which the phenomenon of harmony emerges as the driving force of his literary creations.

Soviel wird, denke ich, einmal fest genug erwiesen sei, dass das Universum das Werk eines unendlichen Verstandes sei und entworfen nach einem trefflichen Plane […wo] alle Kräfte wirken, ineinander wirken, gleich Saiten eines Instruments tausendstimmig zusammenlautend in eine Melodie. […] Der Mensch ist da, daß er nachringe der *U|ȕe des Schöpfers […] (NA 20: 10).

Drawing upon Mendelsohn, Schiller reconfirms that the inclination to harmony has great appeal upon human action: Die Zauberkraft der Harmonie wirket mit mächtigem Reiz auf die Menschen” (11. Brief 85-86).

2.6 HARMONY

Schiller used the term, harmony in both his literary and theoretical works.232 Along with providing interesting data, Martinson underscores Schiller’s schooling in the works of the philosophical doctors on harmony at the Academy (HT 22, 26). Kein einziges Produkt der Seele kann ohne Mitwirkung aller übrigen Kräfte gezeugt werden (Rede, 19). Schiller’s professor J.F. Abel championed that the idea of the interactive but mutually supportive relationship between the faculties (wechselweise

Unterstützung) and concluded that harmony should be the distinguishing mark of the genius.

Ich fordere also zum Wesen des Genies Harmonie, […] ein solches Verhältnis der Kräfte untereinander, dass sie sich

232 Jacob Grimm und Wilhelm Grimm, „Harmonie.“ Deutsches Wörterbuch, 484-485,--hereafter Grimm 120

wechselweise unterstützen und also ein groȕes Produkt hervorzubringen fähig sind (Rede 21).

Moses Mendelsohn had approached the concept of harmony in a different fashion. In the fifth letter of the Briefe über die Empfindungen, he underscores that the experience of harmony relies on the pleasurable sensation of the consonance in the manifold [Übereinstimmung des Mannigfaltigen].233 He adds that our seeking agreement among diverse ideas attests to the benevolence and inner strength of our character. By recognizing our purpose, we strive for such ideas that intertwine and mutually support our final goal (verknüpfte und in einander gegründete

Vorstellungen).234

Leaving the perspectives of the philosophical doctors with respect to harmony, here I propose that Schiller’s preference of using the term of harmony as

Wohlklang235 (melodious alliance of the individual parts of an entity) determined to a great degree its currency in German usage.236

In the eighteenth century, at first harmony was used as a technical term of music that designated the zusammenstimmen (agreement) or the übereinstimmen

233 Moses Mendelssohn, „Fünfter Brief.“ Briefe über die Empfindungen. “Das Gefallen an der Übereinstimmung des Mannigfaltigen, gründet sich auf eine positive Kraft der Seele. […] so ist es auch vernünftigen Wesen eigentümlich, nach solchen Vorstellungen zu streben, die in einander gegründet sind. […] Die kleinsten Teile der Schöpfung hören nicht auf, in gegenseitiger Übereinstimmung, so viel zu allgemeinen Endzwecke beizutragen, als sie vermögen.“ In: Schriften zur Philosophie und Ästhetik (60). 234 Moses Mendelssohn, „Fünfter Brief.“ Briefe über die Empfindungen, 60. 235 Johann Georg Sulzer, „Harmonie.“ Allgemeine Theorie der schönen Künste. Vol. 2., 470-474. „Bisweilen drückt man das Wohlkingen, […] das Zusammenfliessen mehrerer Töne in einen, durch das Wort Harmonie aus. […] die vollkommene Harmonie ist die, welche mehrere gleich hohe Töne, im Unisonus oder Einklang, geben, weil sie völlig ineinander fliessen, dass man keinen davon besonders unterscheidet“ (471). 236 Grimm’s Deutsches Wörterbuch, 484-485. 121

(attunement) of two or more sounds. Harmony was adopted in a sense of wohlklingen des Ganzen237 of a kind of musical piece that sounded as a melodious whole.238

Even though in earlier accounts the term harmony was not in currency, in

German literary culture, the experience of harmony was not foreign.239 Roger Scruton notes that the ancient theory of music valued the experience of harmony. According to

Scruton, our knowledge “we owe to Pythagoreans, which is endorsed by Plato in the

Timaeus and by Plotinus, St Augustine, and Boethius in their treatises on music, and which survives in Al-Farabi, in Aquinas, and even in such Renaissance theorists as

Zarlino.”240 Having observed, as Scruton argues, that the elementary chords had to do with the proportional lengths of the strings, these authors understood music in terms of numbers pertaining to the order of the universe.241Scruton underscores that in our experience of harmony, we hear not simply two or more sounds occurring together, but we also hear the relations between them.242 In regards to our realization of harmony, Scruton explains: “To hear harmony is to hear a unity of tones; but this unity may be more or less consonant, more or less tense or explosive” (65). When we hear tones “resting together, belonging, as though, something in each satisfied by the

237 Grimm, 484-486 238 See Sulzer, 471 239 Gottfried von Straßburg Tristan 240 Roger Scruton, The Aesthetics of Music, 63 241 See Roger Scruton, The Aesthetics of Music, 63-64 242 For reference see, Gottfried von Straßenburg, Tristan. In drawing on the Bothius’ treatise on music De institutione musica, the poet develops the theme of the harmonious love relationship between Tristan and Isolde based on number two: “ein Mann, eine Frau, eine Frau, ein Mann, Tristan, Isolde, Isolde, Tristan” (Prolog, 125-131). Bothius subdivides music into musica mundane, humana und instrumentalis. In drawing on Bothius, Gottfried portrays the meaning of a harmonious love relationship as a cooperative interaction between the body, mind and soul of the two lovers. 122

others,” we experience consonance, implying that the unanimous relationship of the tones is sensitive to context (Scruton 64-65).

Proposing that our hearing the unity of tones should be also sensitive to the context, I will read Schiller’s words in this section musically: paying attention to the poet’s utterances as if they were singing both melodically and harmonically. In

Philosophie der Physiologie, Schiller uses the concept of harmony in a sense of zusammenlautend (sound jointly), ineinander wirken (operating together). Proposing that the infinite intelligence of the universe is the greatest artist, Schiller portrays nature’s powers as sounding jointly in a single beautiful melody, similarly to a melodiously sounding string instrument. […] alle Kräfte wirken, ineinander wirken, gleich Saiten eines Instruments tausendstimmig zusammenlautend in eine Melodie

(NA 20: 10). In his first speech, Rede über die Frage: Gehört allzu viel Güte,

Leutseeligkeit und groȕe Freigebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend?-- young

Schiller advocated that the Grand Design of the universe reflects infinitive intelligence (Tugend) whose character can be best understood in terms of a harmonious alliance between love and wisdom. Das Wesen der Tugend ist das harmonische Band von Liebe und Weiȕheit (NA 20: 4).243 Finally, in paying attention to the relationship through which the material idea sparks the faculty of imagination,

Schiller depicts the sensation of consonance between the physical and rational spiritual substance. Es sollen also gewisse Saiten in den sinnlichen Organen zittern

243 Friedrich Schiller, Rede über die Frage: Gehört allzu viel Güte, Leutseeligkeit und groȕe Freigebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend? (NA 20: 3-9). Schiller delivered his speech on 10. January 1779. 123

[…] die Seele empfindet es; das ist die sinnliche Idee (24). By observing the marvelous design of the universe in which all powers operate jointly and sound together to create a beautiful melody, the poet’s first impetus for writing his literary works is the magnificent force of harmony. As Scruton reconfirms: “To hear harmony is to hear a unity of tones” (65). Upon perceiving that the pleasures of the senses delight in the melodious perfection of the universe, the light of mind resounds: Der

0HQVFKLVWGDGDVVHUQDFKULQJHGHU*U|ȕHGHV6FK|SIHUV (NA 20:10). In short, the task of the human being is to be inspired by the sublime nature of the Creator.

Schiller’s experience of harmony within and without implies that he is sensitive to the context, in which the powers of the universe sound as if zusammenlautend in eine Melodie. Attuned by the melodiously sounding string instrument of the universe, Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische alludes to the conceptual process of “poetry as something sui generis” (Witte 61). As if the elements of poetry were “sounding together belonging, as though, something in each satisfied by the other” (Scruton 64-65) in an effort to convey meaning by means of the unity of form (die Einheit der Form, NA 25: 211).

In her biography of Schiller, Caroline von Wolzogen portrayed her belated brother-in-law as one who continuously schooled the self by listening to the sound of his nature “so stand Schiller allein in der Welt […] seinem inneren horchend“).244

Madame de Staël believed that Schiller was a Dichter-Denker. I add that, by continuously schooling the self, Schiller’s poetic pursuits were in harmonious alliance

244 Caroline von Wolzogen. Schillers Leben, 381. 124

with the melodious powers within himself as well as that of the universe. As the concluding lines of the poem Die Künstler highlight:

Die Dichtung heilige Magie Dient einem weisen Weltenplane, Still lenke sie zum Ozeane Der großen Harmonie!

2.7 THE POWER OF MUSIC AND THE ART OF POETRY

I presented Schiller’s pleasures in the harmonious design of the universe as if we were sharing with him the music of the spheres. Even though we did not hear a single sound, we could sense, nonetheless, the force by which the idea of harmony impassioned the musically inclined expressions of the German poet. Several sources document that Schiller’s love of music sparked his creative activities. At one of these occasions, while pondering about the manner in which he conceived the poetic idea, Schiller confesses to Goethe that music inspired his creative energies.

Bei mir ist die Empfindung anfangs ohne bestimmten und klaren Gegenstand; dieser bildet sich später. Eine gewisse musikalische Gemütsstimmung geht vorher, und auf diese folgt bei mir erst die poetische Idee (18. 03. 1796, NA 28: 201-202). 245

Often, as the poet attests, when he set down to write a drama, he had no clear conception of the main idea. Instead, a certain musical disposition set the tone, giving rise to the poetic idea.

245 Nach Schiller bezieht sich der Begriff „musikalisch […] auf diejenigen Effekte, die Musik hervorzubringen vermag, ohne die Einbildungskraft durch ein bestimmtes Objekt zu beschränken. In diesem Sinne nennt er Klopstock vorzugsweise einen musikalischen Dichter“ (NSD, FA 8: 756). 125

Throughout the event of his flight from Württemberg, Schiller’s faithful companion was Andreas Streicher, a concert pianist. In noting the impact of music upon Schiller’s creative energies, Streicher accounts for several episodes.246 He writes that while he usually played the piano in the evenings, as early as lunchtime

Schiller would timidly inquire of him whether it was possible to hear him play again in the evening. Then, when dusk set in, while listening to the sounds of Streicher’s piano, Schiller walked up and down for several hours in the moonlit room breaking into enthusiastic sounds that were not always audible (103).247 In an earlier record,

Streicher remarks that Schiller responded sensitively to his playing of happy and sad melodies on the piano (Streicher 102). Recent research substantiates that music is one of the few activities that activates the whole brain.248 Streicher’s observation regarding the ability of music to focus attention during the creative process was a remarkable achievement in Schiller’s age.

In noting the manner in which Schiller accounts for the creative act of composing Laura am Klavier, Benno von Wiese underscores the correlation between the music and the conception of the poem as follows:

Wie sehr er vom Musikalischen aus gedichtet hat, ist von ihm selbst wiederholt bezeugt. Auch in dem Gedicht “Laura am Klavier“ war diese ans Telepathische grenzende Beziehung zur Musik angeklungen.249

246Andreas Streicher, Schillers Flucht von Stuttgart und Aufenthalt in Mannheim von 1782 bis 1785.-- hereafter cited as Streicher. 247 Streicher records: „Wenn nun die Dämmerung eintrat, wurde sein Wunsch erfüllt, während dem er im Zimmer, das oft bloß durch das Mondlicht beleuchtet war, mehrere Stunden auf und ab ging und nicht selten in unvernehmliche, begeisterte Laute ausbrach“ (103). 248Jausovec N., Jausovec K., Gerlic I. “The influence of Mozart's music on brain activity in the process of learning.”Clinical Neurophysiology, CXVII, (Dec 2006): 2703-14. EPUB, Oct 6, 2006. http://www.emedexpert.com/tips/music.shtml#ref46 249 Benno von Wiese, Friedrich Schiller. Von Wiese emphasizes the correlation between the music and the poetic activity. “Wie sehr Schiller vom Musikalischen aus gedichtet hat, ist von ihm selbst 126

We enter the world of the poem Laura am Klavier250 from the perspective of the speaker. While music creates various moods, the poem evokes Gemütsbewegungen in the speaker. Laura’s fingers produce explosive sounds on the piano. The churning of the vibrating strings strikes like thunder. It is as if Laura commended life and death.

Under the impression of this tensing effect, the speaker stands dumbfounded and disembodied, sympathizing with the souls sacrificed to “Philadelphia”.251

Wenn dein Finger durch die Saiten meistert— Laura, itzt zur Statue entgeistert, Itzt entkörpert steh ich da. Du gebietest über Tod und Leben […] Seelenvolle Harmonien wimmeln, Ein wollüstig Ungestüm Aus den Saiten, wie aus ihren Himmeln.

Soon, however, ethereal music rises from Laura’s piano, lifting (“empor tragen”) the speaker’s spirit to join the heavenly harmonies.

Mädchen, sprich! Ich frage, gib mir Kunde: Stehst mit höhern Geistern du im Bunde? Ist’s die Sprache, lüg mir nicht, Die man in Elysen spricht?

Taken by surprise at the magnificent sounds of harmony, the speaker inquires if that is the manner in which the spirits converse in Elysium?

Following Horace, “harmony symbolizes how art charms by the aesthetic effects that arise from its elegant ‘fitting together’ of elements” (Commentary on

wiederholt bezeugt. Auch in dem Gedicht Laura am Klavier: war diese ans Telepathische grenzende Beziehung zur Musik angeklungen“ (133). 250 Gedichte 53-55 251 Gedichte 53. “Mächtig wie von tausend Nervgeweben / Seelen fordert Philadelphia” (5-6). Reference to soldiers Germany sold to America fighting The American War of Independence (1775– 1783). 127

Horace 77).252 Ancient Greek poets are said to have inspired people and animals alike towards good behavior by accompanying their poetic words on the lyre.

Harmony shows the manner in which the art of ‘fitting together’ musical notes and words elicit positive responses from the listener. Even though the myth attributes miracles to Orpheus, such as taming wild animals with his beautiful music and assigning to him the role of the prophet (interpres) of gods, Horace insists that art does not perform overt miracles. Rather, it charms by cultivating aesthetic experience that inspires positive responses from the listeners (Commentary on Horace 77).

Von dem Auge weg der Schleier! Starre Riegel von dem Ohr! Mädchen! Ha! Schon atme ich freier, Läutert mich ätherisch Feuer? Tragen Wirbel mich empor?--

My allusion to the myth of Orpheus is suggestive of the poetic moment that gives birth to the poem Laura am Klavier under the impact of music. While the poem explores music’s impact on the disposition of the speaker, the magnificent force of harmony influences creative activity: “[…] wie die Tonkunst, bloß einen bestimmten

Zustand des Gemüts hervorbringt, […] kann sie musikalisch genannt werden“(FA

8:756). Following the explosive sounds, the music elicits harmonious tones that spark the speaker’s imagination. This grand poetic moment captures the manner in which harmony brings human faculties toward mutual cooperation in the creative act: Denn die poetische Stimmung ist ein selbständiges Ganze, in welchem alle Unterschiede

252 Hardison, Jr. O.B. and Leon Golden, ed. Horace for Students of Literature. The “Ars Poetica” and its Tradition, --hereafter cited as Commentary on Horace. 128

und alle Mängel verschwinden. (The poetic experience is an autonomous whole in which all differences and flaws are demolished; FA 8: 797).

In sum, in the poem Laura am Klavier music serves as an aesthetic impulse in disclosing Schiller’s search for the best possible expression in the poetic idea, that is at once, voll Form und voll Fülle, zugleich philosophierend und bildend, zugleich zart und energisch (ÄE 6. Brief, FA 8: 570). Schiller attempts to define the creative impulse of a pure poetic form.

Der Dichter habe die ganze Objektivität seines Gegenstandes wahr, rein und vollständig in seiner Einbildungskraft aufgefasst – das Objekt stehe schon idealisiert (d.i. in reine Form verwandelt) vor seine Seele, und es komme bloß darauf an, es außer sich darzustellen (an Körner 1.03.1793, NA 26: 227).

We have now examined the manner in which music inspired the rational and emotional powers to conjoin their powers in the creative activity of the poem: namely via the explosive sounds in the first section and the evocation of consonance in the second. The poem Laura am Klavier captures a moment in which the magnificent force of harmony shapes Schiller’s distinctive poetic sensibility and artistic posture 129

CHAPTER THREE: THE POETIC IDEA (DAS DICHTERISCHE)

Die poetische Stimmung ist ein selbständiges Ganze, in welchem alle Unterschiede und alle Mängel verschwinden (Über naive und sentimentalische Dichtung).253 Claudia Stockinger claims that Schiller’s goal was to recreate the lost unity between the rational and physical faculties through the arts. In proposing that the play drive had a great synthetizing potential, Stockinger claims that human totality can be recreated via works of fiction.254 Similarly, Walter Hinderer argues for a synthesis,

„eine Synthese der rationalen und emotionalen Redefunktionen, der Sach-,

Leidenschafts-und Charakterdarstellung.“255 However, the idea of synthetizing potential of the play drive does not capture Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische.

First, in Schiller’s view, the poet is the messenger of harmony (“Götterbote”).256

Second, in his review of Bürger, Schiller states that the art of poesy is the only true form of expression that cultivates the harmonious alliance between the human faculties. The dynamic relationship of human faculties are not on equal footing with the act of fusion and union of the various functions of human faculties, as Hinderer proposes.257 Poesy’s key function is neither fusion nor reconciliation. Its purpose is to cultivate and [re]shape feelings and thoughts, the intellect and the imagination. The

253 FA 8: 796 254 Claudia Stockinger, „Dramaturgie der Zerstreuung. Schiller und das romantische Drama.“ Stockinger claims: “Die anthropologische Voraussetzung für dieses synthetisierende Potential der Kunst ist der ‚Spieltrieb‘ […] ‘Einheit’ lässt sich demnach gerade in der Fiktion herstellen” (202). Compare Schiller’s „Spieltrieb“ (NA 20: 353). 255 Walter Hinderer, Von der Idee des Menschen, 1998, 104. 256 Die Teilung der Erde. “Willst du in meinem Himmel mit mir leben, So oft du kommst, er soll dir offen sein.“ In Dichtungen, 277. 257 Walter Hinderer, 1998, 104.

130

goal is to enact the harmonious alliance between these powers and thereby create the beauty which is the complete (whole) human being.

Die Dichtkunst ist beinahe allein, welche die getrennten Kräfte der Seele wieder in Vereinigung bringt, welche Kopf und Herz, Scharfsinn und Witz, Vernunft und Einbildungskraft in harmonischem Bunde beschäftigt, welch gleichsam den ganzen Menschen in uns wiederherstellt (NA: 22: 245).

Concerning the lyrical poetry, Schiller did not consider pitting himself against

Goethe because his superior ability. Regarding the discipline of the lyrical poetry, he writes to Körner on 25.02.1789.

Das lyrische Fach, das Du mir anweist, sehe ich eher für ein Exilium, als für eine eroberte Provinz an. Es ist das kleinlichste und undankbarste unter allen. Zuweilen ein Gedicht lasse ich mir gefallen; […] Aber mit Goethe messe ich mich nicht, wenn er seine ganze Kraft anwenden will. Er hat weit mehr Genie als ich, und dabei weit mehr Reichtum an Kenntnissen, eine sichere Sinnlichkeit, und zu allem diesem einen durch Kunstkenntnis aller Art geläuterten und verfeinerten Kunstsinn. […] Hätte ich nicht einige andere Talente hätte ich nicht so viel Feinheit gehabt, diese Talente und Fertigkeiten in das Gebiet des Dramas herüberzuziehen, so würde ich in diesem Fache gar nicht neben ihm sichtbar geworden sein (NA 25: 211-212).

In spite of any misgivings and ostensible disinterest in lyrics, Schiller asks us to pay attention to how he comes to terms with the challenge that Goethe’s lyricism presented to him. First and foremost, he had other talents that he was able to master, especially in the area of the drama. Furthermore, by committing the idea of the beautiful wholeness of the human nature to verse, Schiller proposes, that, in extreme situations, 258 he went into lyrical exile in order to give additional dignity and meaning to his characters’ speech, such as Maria Stuart, Thekla in Wallenstein, and

258 Martin Stiebert, „Ach, ich kann diesen Widerspruch nicht reimen!‘ Lyrik in Drama,“ Lesungen zum Schillerjahr –Angebote, http://www.sprechsteller.de/Martin_Stiebert/Schillerjahr.html 131

Joan of Arc. The rhyme and rhythm of the verse complement the dramatist’s efforts to highlight Maria’s beautiful moment in nature before her execution. Her outing in nature takes place right before she meets Elizabeth. This exceptional occasion serves as a poetic impulse of capturing Maria’s best possible expression. Her joy over nature and her hopes for freedom motivate her lively self-expressions.

KENNEDY: Ach, ich kann diesen Widersrpuch nicht reimen! Noch gestern kündigt man den Tod Euch an, Und heute wir Euch plötzlich solche Freiheit. Auch denen, hört ich sagen, wird die Kette Gelöst, auf die die ew’ge Freiheit wartet.

MARIA: Hörst du das Hifthorn? Hörst du’s klingen, Mächtigen Rufes, durch Feld und Hain? Auch, auf das mutige Ross mich zu schwingen, An den fröhlichenzug mich zu reihn! Schiller, Maria Stuart, (3.1, 2128-2137)

In her most extreme situation, Maria is able to rise above the fear of losing her life.

For one, remarkable moment, Maria frees herself from her anxieties. She transcends her human self, becoming a living example of the sublime.

According to a main tenet of Schiller’s first medical dissertation, art’s task is to enable human beings to function freely and morally. While beauty is the foundation of poesy, which is the symbol of inner freedom, nature is the only flame that nourishes the creative energies of the modern poet.259 Schiller’s poetic genius was determined to give humankind’s it fullest expression. Upon experiencing nature’s beauty and freedom, Maria’s body and mind interact harmoniously with each other.

259 See Kallias, oder über die Schönheit. “ Der Ausdruck Natur ist mir darum lieber als Freiheit, weil er zugleich das Feld des Sinnlichen bezeichnet, worauf das Schöne sich einschränkt, und neben dem Begriffe der Freiheit auch sogleich Ihre Sphäre in der Sinnenwelt andeutet” (FA 8: 301). 132

The experience of the natural environment allows her experience of inner freedom. In capturing Maria’s fullest expression, Schiller is interested in the manner in which an art form appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom and is observable.

Upon experiencing nature’s beauty and freedom, Maria enjoys a brief moment of happiness because this poetic moment cultivates harmonious alliance between her feelings and thoughts. “Der Grund der Schönheit ist Freiheit in der Erscheinung.”260

Driving Schiller’s pursuit of beauty is the conviction that no passion or sentiment can enslave the inclination of the human mind toward freedom. Maria’s experience of the beautiful natural environment portrays that her sensation is bound to her thoughts. On this point, Schiller demonstrates the connection between beauty and the power of the sublime. 261

On 24 November 1797, he wrote to Goethe that he had recognized the magnitude of the close alliance between idea and form of expression. “I believe that mastering the skill of versification is indispensable to the task of lifting the imagination above the common experience of life.”262

Man sollte wirklich alles, was sich über das gemeine erheben muss, in Versen wenigstens anfänglich konzipieren, denn das Platte kommt nirgends so ins Licht, als wenn es in gebundener Schreibart ausgesprochen wird.

260 See Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, FA 8: 300. 261 Compare Über das Pathetische (1793). “Die ästhetische Kraft, womit uns das Erhabene der Gesinnung und Handlung ergreift, beruht […] auf dem Interesse der Einbildungskraft, dass recht Handeln möglich sei, d.h. dass keine Empfindung, wie mächtig sie auch sei, die Freiheit des Gemüts zu unterdrücken vermöge“ (NA 20: 220). 262 In Friedrich Schiller Briefe II. 1795-1805 (342). 133

Calling attention to his compositional skills to create a poetisches Empfinden in his dramas, Schiller not only dares to stand beside Goethe but shows that he is not solely dependent on the lyrical genre in his pursuit of refining human beings’ faculty of sensation (Empfindungsvermögen) by the way of poetry.

3.1 DAS DICHTERISCHE IN THE LIGHT OF SCHILLER’S POETIC THEORIES

By engaging critically and selectively with the nature of Schiller’s poetic pursuits in this chapter, I propose to understand das Dichterische as a distinct poetic idea. Das

Dichterische becomes available to us by an intuitively comprehensible imaginative experience that the artist makes perceptible to our mind and soul by the internal connection between sensation and thinking, i.e., the artistic or the philosophical truth that is discernible in the intricate fabric of a given literary work.263

The essay, Über naive und sentimentalische Dichtung offers a theory of poetry. For the author, the poet’s task lies in preserving the distinctive sensibility of the beautiful wholeness of the human character (das schöne Ganze der menschlichen

Natur […] aufbewahren, FA 8: 796). In Schiller’s experience, human beings respond well to naive beauty by virtue of the artistic presentation of which they are moved: durch naïve Schönheit zu rühren; ohne das würden sie überall keine Dichter sein, FA

8: 752). Since, however, such a blissful state of existence is available to us merely as an idea, the task of the sentimental poet is to drive human faculties toward unity (nach

Einheit strebend; FA 8: 732). The pursuit of das Dichterische is a recurring theme in

263 Schiller’s letter to Caroline von Beulwitz on 10 December 1788. “ […] die innere Wahrheit, die ich die philosophische und Kunstwahrheit nennen will, und welche in ihrer ganzen Fülle im Roman oder in einer andern poetischen Darstellung herrschen muss. […] Die innere Übereinstimmung, die Wahrheit wird gefühlt und eingestanden, ohne dass die Begebenheit wirklich vorgefallen sein muss. (NA 25:154). 134

Schiller’s oeuvre. This energy is a poetic impulse that seeks to capture the best possible expression of a complete human being. As we endeavor to show, das

Dichterische is an essential component of Schiller’s personal identity.

I propose that, in Schiller’s oeuvre, the term das Dichterische designates a sensation and poetic mode of expression, a poetisches Empfinden (NA 26: 130). It is a distinctive poetic sensibility which, when appealing to our moral consciousness, is completely human(e) (vollkommen menschlich; FA 8: 778). By merit of his youthful imagination, Schiller attributes to the poet the task of preserving das schöne Ganze menschlicher Natur through poesy (FA 8:798). 264

Der Menschheit Würde ist in eure Hand gegeben, Bewahret sie! Sie sinkt mit euch! Mit euch wird die gesunkene sich heben! (Friedrich Schiller, Die Künstler))265

My task is to inquire into how the cultivation of the idea of the whole human being achieves a poetic value and how the imaginative experience of the whole human being excited by consciousness of form. Paying close attention to the manner in which Greek art portrayed human beings, Schiller incorporated “the playful, creative quality” of beauty into his pursuit of das Dichterische.

Das Gemüt kann keinen Eindruck erleiden, ohne sogleich seinem eigenen Spiel zuzusehen, und was es in sich hat, durch Reflexion sich gegenüber und aus sich herauszustellen. Wir erhalten auf diese Art nie den Gegenstand, nur was der reflektierende Verstand des Dichters aus dem Gegenstand machte […] (NSD, FA 8:753).

264 Compare Schiller’s letter to Weilhelm von Humboldt (Jena, 9. Januar 1796). „Naiver Dichtergeits, Sentimentalsicher Dichtergeist. Welche beide darin übereinkommen, dass sie aus dem Menschen ein Ganzes machen, wenn gleich auf sehr verschiedenen Weise. In: „Friedrich Schiller von Anfängen bis 1795 (616). 265 Gedichte,213. 135

As it is evident, while, Schiller was committed to the formation of the human character and his form, his poetic sensibility for the beautiful lifted his imagination to the ideal: 'HU0HQVFKZHQQHUYHUHLQLJWZLUNWLVWLPPHUHLQJURȕHV:HVHQ(The human being that conjoins his faculties makes a great impression, NA 25: 146.) By bringing into focus how Schiller grapples with the idea of nature, die dem Gesetze der

Übereinstimmung ungehindert folgt (FA 8:714), I argue here that Schiller’s imagination of das schöne Ganze menschlicher Natur (FA 8:798) was sparked by artistic models.

Well aware of the paradox that intertwines his task as a poet, Schiller writes to

Goethe on 14.09.1797: Zweierlei gehört zum Poeten und Künstler: dass er sich über das Wirkliche erhebt und dass er innerhalb des Sinnlichen stehen bleibt.266 Asking to make sense of how Schiller envisions to solve this paradox between imagination and the sensible world, I here examine the relationship between the poet’s creative activity and nature. Via performing close reading, I propose here to focus on two passages of the treatise Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichter: 1) Die sentimentalischen

Dichter (FA 8: 732-733), 2) Beschluss der Abhandlung über naïve und sentimentalische Dichter (FA 8: 776-810). After engaging critically and selectively with these two passages out of the points of view of the naïve and sentimental poetic modes of expression, in conclusion, I will engage in which manner Schiller’s form consciousness and his pursuit of das Dichterische define his artistic posture and professional identity as a poet.

266 “Two things are required from the poet and the artist: to be able to lift his imagination above the actual, and, at the same time, to remain in the sensible world” (NA 29: 131). 136

3.2 DER SENTIMENTALISCHE DICHTER

Upon reading the passage under the subheading Die sentimentalischen Dichter,267 I first propose to investigate the cultural conditions that gave birth to Schiller’s pursuit of Das Dichterische. Schiller’s argument builds on the premise that the modern poet does not even have a chance imitate simple nature to naïvely. „Der Dichter, hieß es in dem vorhergehenden Versuch über das Naive ist entweder Natur, oder er wird sie suchen. Jenes macht den naiven, dieses den sentimentalischen Dichter (FA

8:732).“ Schiller conceptualizes two kinds of poet: the naive and the sentimental i.e. reflexive poet. The naïve poet embodies nature, whereas the sentimental poet seeks it.

(Der Dichter, hieß es […] ist entweder Natur, oder er wird sie suchen, FA 8:732).

While the naïve poet affects us by the manner in which he expresses nature’s simple pleasures and her living presence in his art (jene rühren uns durch Natur, durch sinnliche Wahrheit, durch lebendige Gegenwart, FA 8: 735), the sentimental poet relies upon the power of his own imaginative faculties to conceive ideas that reflect nature (durch Ideen, FA 8: 735). Klaus Berghahn comments on these two poetic renderings of nature in such terms: To the naïve poet, the unbeseelte Natur

[unconsious nature] is self-evident, whereas to the sentimental the view of nature as a harmonizing entity appears to be merely an idea.268

The next section starts with an emphatic statement claiming that the poetic spirit is a captivating inalienable force in human beings that always remains true to his

267 In: Über naive und sentimentalische Dichtung, FA 8: 732-733. 268 Klaus L. Berghahn, Schiller. Ansichten eines Idealisten, (Frankfurt am Main, 1986). “Dem modernen Dichter fehlt der Glaube an eine beseelte Nature, der dem naiven Dichter selbstverständlich war. Für ihn ist das Ganze Natur bloß eine Idee“ (28). 137

own nature. Unfortunately, as Schiller observes, in spite of all the sophistication and schooling in thought,269 modern man departed from the essential qualities of nature.

According to Hans-Georg Pott, Schiller’s critic of culture is founded on his understanding that nature is free by her inner quality.270 However, in claiming that the path is open to nature, Schiller implies that, according to the constitution of the human mind, modern man is endowed with the ability to strive for nature’s sense of harmony.

However, humankind’s cultural conditions frustrate such efforts. Nonetheless, while das Dichterische stands for nature’s truth,271 it is necessary to make the distinction that under modern cultural conditions, the poetic spirit has a different orientation.

Der dichterische Geist ist unsterblich und unverlierbar in der Menschheit; er kann nicht anders als zugleich mit derselben und mit der Anlage zu ihr sich verlieren. Denn, entfernt sich gleich der Mensch durch die Freiheit seiner Phantasie und seines Verstandes von der Einfalt, Wahrheit und Notwendigkeit der Natur, so steht ihm doch nicht nur der Pfad zu derselben immer offen, sondern ein mächtiger und unvertilgbarer Trieb, der moralische treibt ihn auch unaufhörlich zu ihr zurück, und eben mit diesem Triebe steht das Dichtungsvermögen in der engsten Verwandtschaft. Dieses verliert sich nicht zugleich mit der natürlichen Einfalt, sondern wirkt nur nach einer anderen Richtung (FA 8: 732-733).

Nature is the only flame that nourishes the creative energies of the modern poet, as

Schiller claims, and Nature is the source and strength of the poetic spirit. Any other way of acting is foreign to the poetic spirit. As Schiller reiterates, nature is the only

269 See: “ Die mannigfaltigen Anlagen im Menschen zu entwickeln, war kein anderes Mittel, als sie einander entgegen zu setzen. Dieser Antagonism der Kräfte ist das große Instrument der Kultur, aber auch nur das Instrument; […] Wieviel also auch für das Ganze der Welt durch diese getrennte Ausbildung der menschlcihen Kräfte gewonnen werden mag, so ist nich zu leugnen, dass die Individuen welche sie trifft, unter dem Fluch dieses Weltzweckes leiden“ (ÄE 6, FA 8: 576-77). 270 Georg-Hans Pott, 1980, “Das Fundement der Kritik Schillers ist der Begriff einer Natur, die in sich oder von sich aus frei ist” (106). 271 In Schiller’s view „nature“ represents the quality, die dem Gesetze der Übereinstimmung ungehindert folgt (FA 8:714). 138

power through which the poetic spirit is powerful, even under the disturbing conditions of mental disposition of division [entzweit] and separation [Trennung]. By focusing his attention on the problem of the theoretical culture of the enlightenment,

Schiller explains that specialization and the focus on the singular training or exertion of the intellect advanced knowledge. At the same time, it also meant the dismemberment of the nature of the human being. In spite of all this, Schiller assures the poetic spirit draws its strength from nature. Under the artificial cultural conditions, however, it has an entirely different relationship to nature.

Auch jetzt ist die Natur noch die einzige Flamme, an der sich der Dichtergeist nähret, aus ihr allein schöpft er seine ganze Macht, zu ihr allein spricht er auch in dem künstlichen, in der Kultur begriffenen Menschen. Jede andere Art zu wirken, ist dem poetischen Geiste fremd: daher, beiläufig zu sagen, alle sogenannten Werke des Witzes ganz mit Unrecht poetisch heißen, […] Die Natur, sage ich, ist es auch noch jetzt, in dem künstlichen Zustande der Kultur, wodurch der Dichtergeist mächtig ist, nur steht er jetzt in einem ganz anderen Verhältnis zu derselben (FA 8: 733).

As opposed to the artificial modern cultural conditions, the Greek culture gave “equal respect to the mental and physical prowess.”272 Sense and intelligences, receptive and self-acting faculties, acted as harmonizing entities.

In his naïve condition, humankind experienced much less inner antagonism.

Chance didn’t victimize his feelings and his thoughts did not fall prey to senseless games. Schiller was of the conviction that these people were ‘happy’

272 C.M. Bowra, Classical Greece. “The GREEKS gave equal respect to mental and physical prowess because they believed that the ideal life would be the one spent in the pursuit of excellence in all things. The complete man would be equally active as an athlete, philosopher, judge, poet or at any other worthy pursuit” (27). 139

and ‘beautiful’273 because they didn’t allow their nature to be ‘victimized’ by their life style.274

So lange der Mensch noch reine, er versteht sich, nicht rohe Natur ist, wirkt er als ungeteilte sinnliche Einheit, und als ein harmonierendes Ganze. Sinn und Vernunft, empfangendes und selbsttätiges Vermögen, haben sich in ihrem Geschäfte noch nicht getrennt, vielweniger stehen sie im Widerspruch miteinander. Seine Empfindungen sind nicht das formlose Spiel des Zufalls, seine Gedanken nicht das gehaltlose Spiel der Vorstellungskraft (FA 8: 733).

Under the artificial cultural condition of fragmentation, humankind’s mental faculties had begun to separate in both experience and social practice, as Schiller observes, and das schöne Ganze der menschlichen Natur (FA 8: 798) went extinct. In the first condition, nature could remain true to her own moral makeup and follow the law of correspondence between feeling and thought without hindrance (FA 8: 714). In the second artificial cultural condition, the best that we can hope for, as Schiller argues, that humankind expressed striving for (moralische Einheit, d. h. als nach

Einheit strebend, FA 8: 733).

Ist der Mensch in den Stand der Kultur getreten, und hat die Kunst ihre Hand an ihn gelegt, so ist jene sinnliche Harmonie im Menschen aufgehoben. Und er kann nur noch als moralische Einheit, d. h. als nach Einheit strebend, sich äuȕern. Die Übereinstimmung zwischen seinem Empfinden und Denken, die in dem ersten Zustande wirklich stattfand existiert jetzt bloȕ idealisch, […] als ein Gedanke, der erst realisiert werden soll, nicht mehr als Tatsache seines Lebens. (FA 8: 733-34).

273 See: ÄE 6. “Durch gymnastische Übungen bilden sich zwar athletische Körper aus, aber nur durch das freie und gleichförmige Spiel der Glieder die Schönheit. […] und glückliche vollkommene Menschen erzeugen“ (FA 8: 576). 274 6. ÄE, translated by Reginald Snell, p. 37. 140

It is most true, as Schiller submits, that while modern cultural conditions leading to specialization and the focus on the singular training or exertion of the intellect (die Anspannung einzelner Geisteskräfte, FA 8: 577) advanced knowledge.

At the same time, however, it also meant the dismemberment of the nature of the human being (Zerstückelung ihres Wesens, FA 8: 575). As the consequence of the inhuman management of the mental faculties, modern man departed from the essential qualities of nature.275 Due to the fragmentary human experience (die Anspannung einzelner Geisteskräfte, FA 8: 577), the idea of the whole human being (als ein harmonierendes Ganze) needed to be realized first as a thought. As Schiller early in his poetic career ascertains, poesy does not have any other aim than express humankind in its fullest. By tapping into both the intellectual and the emotional faculties of human beings, poesy’s purpose is to inspire the inner formation of humankind.

Under the cultural conditions of fragmentation, 276 the chances of modern poet to imitate nature naïvely are very slim. The issue is here weightier than questioning whether it was necessary to uphold the artistic standards of antiquity or not! As Schiller endeavors, the issue here concern us.

By asking how we ought to change our thinking about the manner in which art

275 See: “Die mannigfaltigen Anlagen im Menschen zu entwickeln, war kein anderes Mittel, als sie einander entgegen zu setzen. Dieser Antagonism der Kräfte ist das große Instrument der Kultur, aber auch nur das Instrument; […] Wieviel also auch für das Ganze der Welt durch diese getrennte Ausbildung der menschlichen Kräfte gewonnen werden mag, so ist nicht zu leugnen, dass die Individuen welche sie trifft, unter dem Fluch dieses Weltzweckes leiden“ (ÄE 6, FA 8: 576-77). 276 See David Pugh, “Schiller and Classical Antiquity.” In Companion. Pugh holds the view that the attitude that can be found in Shaftersbury’s Characteristics had an impact op. n German aesthetic thought. See Notes Nr.1, 62. 141

should be created under modern cultural conditions, it is a matter of representation of form. For only in the simple natural human condition is it possible to create art by the imitation of the actual —as opposed to the second condition, in which the correspondence between feelings and thought (die

Übereinstimmung zwischen seinem Empfinden und Denken) exists merely as an idea, art’s task is to create an imaginative experience of freedom that is observable and lifts our attention from the actual condition to the ideal. That is to say, the poet task is to keep the idea of the beautiful wholeness of the human being alive by the way of creating poetisches Empfinden. At the same time, Schiller proposes to create art by incorporating “the playful, creative quality” of beauty in his poetic pursuit of ennobling human character.

Wendet man nun den Begriff der Poesie, der kein andrer ist als der Menschheit ihren möglichst vollständigen Ausdruck zu geben, auf jene beiden Zustände anwendet, so ergibt sich, dass dort in dem Zustande natürlicher Einfalt, wo der Mensch noch mit allen seinen Kräften zugleich, als harmonische Einheit wirkt, wo mithin das Ganze seiner Natur sich in der Wirklichkeit vollständig ausdrückt, die möglichst vollständige Nachahmung des Wirklichen – dass hingegen hier in dem Zustande der Kultur, wo jenes harmonische Zusammenwirken seiner Natur bloȕ eine Idee ist, die Erhebung der Wirklichkeit zum Ideal oder, […] die Darstellung des Ideals den Dichter machen muss (FA 8: 734).

Again it must be stated that in Schiller’s view it is impossible to create art by naïvely imitating such cultural conditions in which nature and mind [Geist], beauty and truth, the arts and sciences divorced themselves from each other, a premise which Berghahn supports as well:

Der moderne Dichter sieht sich nach Schiller mit einer Wirklichkeit konfrontiert, in der sich Natur und Geist, Schönheit, und Wahrheit, Kunst und Wissenschaft getrennt 142

haben. […] scheint es dem modernen Dichter unmöglich, die ihn umgebende Nature weiterhin naïve nachzuahmen. (Berghahn, 28).

Berghahn also suggests that it was the deplorable conditions of modern man that excited Schiller’s pursuit of correspondence between thought

[Gedanke] and feelings [Empfindung] through the arts. As Schiller contends, even though humankind departed from the essential qualities of nature, from her simplicity and truth, poesy offers herself to be a valuable venue for exciting the idea of the whole human being. It implies that das Dichterische functions to direct aesthetic concerns toward cultivating the highest possible degree of cooperative interactions between body and mind.277 Inevitably, training our capacities to cooperate with each other is not without certain inner and outer struggles, i.e. warfare. In striving to overcome our own deplorable condition, Schiller shows the direction toward which the poetic spirit should lead on. As already the keywords Kämpfer and Überwinder in the quotation beneath indicate, in reaching for the prize towards a higher sense of harmony, we must be combat-ready. What causes the struggle and what prize may we hope for to win?

Der sentimentalische Dichtungstrieb zum Ideale […]. Er führe uns nicht rückwärts in unsre Kindheit, um uns mit der kostbaren Erwerbung des Verstandes eine Ruhe erkaufen zu lassen, die nicht länger dauern kann als der Schlaf unsrer Geisteskräfte; sondern führe uns vorwärts zu unsrer Mündigkeit, um uns die höhere Harmonie zu empfinden zu geben, die den Kämpfer belohnet, die den Überwinder beglückt (FA 8: 775).

277 For additional reference, consulted HT 15. Martinson observes that Schiller’s aesthetic concerns seem to be directed “toward the mutual cooperation of all the human being’s capacities --not the detachment of the rational from the physical-material, but, rather, the greatest degree between mind and body,” as Martinson puts it. 143

In ÄE 13, Schiller “advocates the education of the whole human being, which cannot be achieved otherwise than training reason and sensuousness to interact with each other, while keeping the other within its bounds,”278 or “the tense harmonious interplay of two competing, yet cooperating forces” (HT 175). In the essay Anmut und Würde, Schiller wonders about the role of the intellect in the formation of a beautiful form. Schiller arrives at the insight that beauty cannot be administered

(erteilen), but granted (gestatten),279 for she exists as a free effect of nature (ein freier

Natureffekt).280 Similarly to Kant,281 Schiller wonders what is it that makes us come of age (mündig).282 In order to win the prize of becoming truly enlightened human beings, by granting the recipients the experience of wholeness by the means of poetry, the sentimental poetic spirit should lead us forward toward a higher sense of harmony.

278 Friedrich Schiller, ÄE 13, Beide, der Sachtrieb und der Formtrieb haben als Einschränkung, und insofern sie als Energien gedacht werden, Abspannung nötig; […] Jene Abspannung des Sachtriebs darf aber keineswegs die Wirkung eines physischen Unvermögens und einer Stumpfheit der Empfindungen sein. […] Der Charakter muss dem Temperament seine Grenzen bestimmen, denn nur an den Geist darf der Sinn verlieren. Jene Abspannung des Formtriebes darf eben so wenig die Wirkung eines geistigen Unvermögens und eine Schlaffheit der Denk-oder Willenskräfte sein, welche die Menschheit erniedrigen würde. Fülle der Empfindungen muss ihre rühmliche Quelle sein; die Sinnlichkeit selbst muss mit siegender Kraft ihr Gebiet behaupten und der Gewalt wiederstreben, die ihr der Geist durch seine vorgreifende Tätigkeit gerne zufügen möchte“ (FA 8: 605-607) 279 See: „Diese große Idee der Selbstbestimmung strahlt uns aus gewissen Erscheinungen der Natur zurück, und diese nennen wir Schönheit“ (NA 26: 191). 280 See: FA 8: 338. 281 “Unmündigkeit ist das Unvermögen, sich seines Verstandes ohne Leitung eines anderen zu bedienen. Selbstverschuldet ist diese Unmündigkeit, wenn die Ursache derselben nicht am Manger des Verstandes, sondern der Entschließung und des Mutes liegt, sich seiner ohne Leitung eines anderen zu bedienen. Sapere aude! Habe Mut dich deines Verstandes zu bedienen!“ Immanuel Kant, Kants gesammelte Schriften. Band 8, S. 35. 282 See Schiller’s letter to Körner on 18 and 19 February 1793. „Es ist gewiss von keinem sterblichen Menschen kein größeres Wort noch gesprochen worden, als dieses Kantische, was zugleich der Inhalt seiner ganzen Philosophie ist: Bestimme dich aus dich selbst“ (NA 26: 191). 144

As I showed in Chapter One, Schiller was convinced that the poet was supposed to be the messenger of harmony (“Götterbote”).283 As such, he needed to ensure that his heart followed the right model. Occasionally, the poet’s need for peace and tranquility may afford him to retreat to the genre of the idyll, the purpose of which is to depict humankind in a state of harmony within and without. Der Zweck selbst ist […] den Menschen in einem Zustand der Harmonie und des Friedens mit sich selbst und von außen darzustellen (FA 8: 770). Nevertheless, a permanent retreat into the pastoral repose would allow our mental powers to succumb to lethargy.

Rather than toying with the heart and disregarding the working of the intelligence, the sentimental poetic spirit should drive human faculties towards mutual cooperation, towards a higher sense of harmony that expresses itself as “moralische Einheit, d. h. als nach Einheit strebend” (FA 8: 375). The purpose of schooling ‘Empfinden’ and

‘Denken’ to cooperate with each other is to attain insight and act accordingly.284

In the concluding passage of the first explication, Schiller underscores that the naïve and sentimental poetic modes of expression are the only two manners by which the poetic spirit addresses human emotions. According to

Pott,285 Schiller maintains unity in difference by highlighting the distinct qualities between the naïve and the sentimental. The issue here, however,

283 Friedrich Schiller, Die Teilung der Erde. “Willst du in meinem Himmel mit mir leben, So oft du kommst, er soll dir offen sein.“ 284 Compare High, As early as in 1784, Schiller formulated that the purpose of education through the arts is: „Erkenntnisse zu erwerben, und aus Erkenntnissen zu handeln“ (High 15). 285 Engaging Schiller’s naïve and sentimental modes of representation, Pott, proposes that Schiller “hält […] an einer Einheit fest, die Einheit der Differenz” (20). I disagree. In evaluating the differences between the naïve and sentimental, both poetic modes of representation belong to the human world of emotions. Nevertheless, due to cultural conditions, the modern man cannot persistently live by naïve mode of sentimentality. As Schiller observed, even Goethe could not be always a naïve poet (NA 29: 127). 145

concerns human beings. In spite of the difference in worldview, both the naïve and the sentimental represent the human world of emotions. By virtue of the artistic presentation naïve beauty moves us: durch naïve Schönheit zu rühren; ohne das würden sie überall keine Dichter sein, FA 8: 752). In capturing best expression of human beings through the formation of the beautiful, the sentimental poet drives human faculties toward harmonious alliance. Through employing both of the naïve and sentimental poetic modes of rendering in his dramatic art, Schiller is committed to the formation of human character. After all, it is the poet who possesses the artistic skills to refine human beings’ capacity of feelings through portraying and evoking emotions of the naïve and the sentimental modes of poetic sensibilities. In Schiller’s view the naïve and the sentimental poetic modes of expression conjoined represent the summit of human experience.286

Dies sind die zwei einzig möglichen Arten, wie sich überhaupt der poetische Geist äuȕern kann. Sie sind, wie man sehen kann, äußerst voneinander verschieden, aber es gibt einen höheren Begriff, der sie beide unter sich fasst, dieser Begriff mit der Idee der Menschheit in eins zusammentrifft (FA 8: 734).

Schiller reiterates that the poet’s task is to preserve nature. If cultural conditions won’t allow him to render nature by the naïve poetic mode, poets will either step forward as avengers of nature, or, they will seek it by longing for it.287

286 See “das menschliche ist immer der Anfang des poetischen, das nur der Gipfel davon ist” (NA 29: 127). 287 “Die Dichter sind überall, schon ihrem Begriffe nach, die Bewahrer der Natur. Wo sie diese nicht ganz mehr sein können […] da werden Sie als Zeugen und als die Rächer der Natur auftreten, […] oder sie werden die verlorene suchen” (FA 8: 728). 146

In sum, the naïve poet recovers nature’s gift by sensing her presence, whereas the sentimental poet feels challenged by the absolute necessity of having to remain in the sensible world in order to recover the gift of nature

(NA 26: 130). Hence, while the naïve poet embodies nature, the sentimental poet seeks it. In Schiller’s view neither the naïve nor the sentimental poet can be complete on his own terms, for both have their weaknesses and their strengths alike. Ultimately, as Schiller suggests, in their pursuit of allowing human beings to feel complete by the means of poetry, the naïve and the sentimental poetic spirit should work conjointly toward the goal of ennobling human beings.

3.3 THE NAÏVE AND SENTIMENTAL POETIC MODES OF EXPRESSION

I propose here to examine in which sense the naïve differs from the sentimental feeling, i.e. Empfindungsart via perfoming close reading of the passage of Beschluss der Abhandlung über naïve und sentimentalische Dichter

(FA 8: 776-810).

In the concluding passage of the Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichter under the heading Beschluss der Abhandlung (FA 8: 776-810), Schiller arrives at one of the clearest explanations of the term dichterisch in his discussion of the naïve poetic mode of representation.

Ich habe die naïve Dichtung eine Gunst der Natur genannt, um zu erinnern, dass die Reflexion keinen Anteil daran habe. […] In der Empfindung ist das ganze Werk des naiven Genies absolviert; hier liegt seine Stärke und seine Grenze. Hat es also nicht gleich dichterisch d.h. nicht gleich vollkommen menschlich empfunden, so kann dieser Mangel durch keine Kunst mehr nachgeholt werden (FA 8:778). 147

According to Schiller, the source of the poetic creativity is nature. In viewing the naïve poetic mode of expression as nature’s patronage, Schiller holds that the intrinsic value of naïve poetry is the experience of an undivided completeness. Schiller challenges to note that the whole basis of naïve poetry is Empfindung, i.e. such a sensation that feels vollkommen menschlich (completely humane). Should it be, however, that the naïve poet did not quite feel dichterisch d. h. vollkommen menschlich (completely humane, FA 8: 778), then, no art can make up for this depravity. In proposing that he poet’s task is to mold a singular instance to the likeness of a whole human being (das menschliche Ganze), Schiller shows that the creativity of the naïve poet is dependent on his experience of nature, of the ‘fullness’ of her energetic form. Whereas the sentimental poet needs the inspirational power of a certain poetic mood (poetische Stimmung) to generate ideas (Ideenvermögen) to treat his material poetically.288 If the naïve poet succeeds, his work does not need any improvement, but if it fails, nothing can improve it, as Schiller observes above.

Therefore, the naïve poet needs the assistance of his surroundings, a poetic world that is inhabited by naïve humanity and rich forms:

Das naive Dichtergenie bedarf also eines Beistandes von außen. […] es muss formreiche Natur, eine dichterische Welt, eine naïve Menschheit um sich zu erblicken, da es schon in der Sinnenempfindung sein Werk zu vollenden hat (FA 8: 780).

288 See Schiller’s letter to Goethe on 7 September 1797. Das Gemüth ist es welches hier die Grenze steckt. Das Gemeine und das Geistreiche kann ich hier wie überall nur in der Behandlug und nicht in der Wahl des Stoffes finden (NA 29: 127). 148

Hence, while the naïve poet relies to a great deal on the sense impression of the outer world, the subject matter of the naïve poet is supposed to be true and genuine human nature (wahre menschliche Natur). In reality, however, as Schiller observes, the naïve poet often encounters crude and brutal nature. Under such conditions, the naïve poet either, steps out of his own mode of poetry and becomes sentimental, or, if he retains the quality of his naïve sentimentality, he will rely on crude nature for his expression. As Schiller admits, no poet can entirely protect himself from the misfortune of degrading his poetic sensibility to the level of crude, mindless nature.289 So oft aber dies der Fall ist, wird aus einem dichterischen Gefühl ein Gemeines (As often as this happens, the poetic spirit cannot rise above his crude actual circumstances. FA 8: 781). This is the case in the German dramaturge’s debut play. Schiller plays with two modalities of naïve nature. In naïve anticipation of his father’s absolution, Karl ignores his brutal environment. “Im Schatten meiner väterlichen Haine, in den Armen meiner Amalia lockt mich ein edles Vergnügen.”

Spiegelberg’s talk represents crude nature: ‘Rabbits, cripples, lame dogs, if you do not have the heart to dare the great act!’(1.2). However, after receiving his brother’s letter, Karl’s attitude and language changes. While his mind is occupied with cruel coward hearts, bred by lions, leopards and crocodiles, Karl degrades himself to the level of his robbers. Perhaps because of having to lower his poetic sensibility to crude

289 Compare Marquis Posa degrades his poetic sensibility to the level of crude mindless environment of the crown. As a confidant of Philipp, he fabricates intrigues in order to distract the king’s attention from his jealousy to matters that equally interests him. “Ich habe / Gewisse Nachricht, dass des Prinzen Wunsch, / Nach Flandern abzureisen, in dem Kopfe /Der Königin entsprang“ (4.12, 3871-74). 149

and mindless nature that Schiller distanced himself from his first drama in the later years.290

Under modern cultural conditions, as Schiller cautions, it is difficult to know how to differentiate wahre Natur (genuine and true nature) from the wirkliche Natur

(actual and real nature). Due to our experience of actual nature, we constantly live under the threat of regressing to barbarism and moral degeneracy, as Schiller contends. In alluding to the aftermath of the French Revolution, Schiller observes: on the one hand, we see nothing else than ungoverned raw, crude, lawless animal instincts (rohe gesetzlose Triebe) that the masses display. On the other hand, by the relaxation of their mental powers, the civilized classes show much more adversity

(den noch widrigeren Anblick der Erschlaffung, der Geistesschwäche).291 As evidence shows, in the state of cultural degeneration, nothing can stop the fragmented human being from sinking to the level of animals. Wenn die Kultur ausartet, kann der sinnliche Mann zum Tier herabstürzen. (NA 26: 263).

Not surprisingly, as Schiller substantiates, our experience of genuine human nature (wahre menschliche) is rare. For such experience calls us to rely upon an inner self-reliant human ability that Schiller calls dignity (Würde). Therefore, wahre Natur can be only noble (edel).

Wirkliche Natur ist jeder, noch so gemeine Ausbruch der Leidenschaft, er mag auch wahre Natur sein, aber eine wahre menschliche ist er nicht: denn diese erfordert einen Anteil des selbständigen Vermögens an der Äußerung, dessen Ausdruck jedesmal Würde ist. Wirkliche menschliche Natur ist jede moralische Niederträchtigkeit, aber wahre

290 See Harald Gerlach, “Man liebt was einen in Freyheit setzt.“ Die Lebensgeschichte Schillers, 49. 291 For context, see letter on Friedrich Christian von Augustenburg, on 13.07.1793. (NA 26: 257). 150

menschliche Natur ist sie hoffentlich nicht; denn diese kann nie anders als edel sein (FA 8: 780).

Due to driving our faculties towards mutual cooperation (der Ausdruck Natur bezeichnet zugleich das Feld der Sinnlichen, FA 8: 301), genuine nature can be best understood as a poetic sensibility that expresses herself via striving towards unity

(moralische Einheit, d. h. als nach Einheit strebend, FA 8: 733). In comparison, the naïve poet faces the danger of approximating crude nature as true nature, whereas the sentimental poet needs to be mindful of not to overstep the necessary limits of human frame. Realistically, the sentimental poet aims at enabling human beings to perform at their highest potential. Nevertheless, as Schiller cautions, in his idealizing tendencies, the sentimental poet should not push higher than reaching the absolute within the given perimeters of human frame. Hence, it is self-evident that the sentimental poet runs the risk of overpowering human faculties.

Das sentimentalische Genie hingegen ist der Gefahr ausgesetzt, über dem Bestreben, alle Schranken von ihr zu entfernen, die menschliche Natur ganz und gar aufzuheben, und sich nicht bloß, was es darf und soll, über jede bestimmte und begrenzte Wirklichkeit hinweg zu der absoluten Möglichkeit zu erheben oder zu idealisieren (FA 8: 786).

Finally, as Schiller contends, at the heart of the sentimental poetic mode of representation is a mindset that searches the depth of the appearance for the idea of the dignified human being, ein ganzes der Menschheit zu suchen. However, the sentimental poet will feel never completely satisfied with the poetic treatment of his material. It is a sentimental effect.

Immer ist das sentimentalische ein Effekt des poetischen Strebens, welsches sei es aus Gründen, die im Gegenstand, oder solchen, die in dem Gemüth liegen, nicht ganz erfüllt wird (FA 8: 127). 151

As Schiller contends, the sentimental poetic spirit can never arrive at the fullest portrayal of the dignified human being. At its best, the sentimental poet endeavors in his unique conception of an artistic form, that, by driving human faculties towards cooperation, represents the poetic value of the whole human being.

In sum, the naïve poet is in tune with nature’s gift by living fully in her presence. The whole bases of naïve poetry is the Empfinden (sensation) of such state that suggests undivided completeness, for nature is her source. The sentimental poet’s strength is contemplation. On the one hand, he finds himself among the conflicting imperatives of endless possibilities (von dem Gefühl eines unendlichen Vermögens begleitet, FA 8:776). On the other hand, by the dictates of his artistic identity, the sentimental poet remains in the sensible world, and, thereby, limits the self via poetry.

Schiller observes, it is the poet’s state of mind (das Gemüt) that determines how he goes about treating his subject matter poetically.

Das Gemüt ist es, welches hier die Grenze steckt, und das Gemeine oder Geistreiche kann ich auch hier wie überall nur in der Behandlung und nicht in der Wahl des Stoffes finden (NA 29: 127).

What stands out in Schiller’s vindication of his own poetic treatment is the emphasis that the intrinsic value of the sentimental poetic sensibility is höchst bildungsfähig

(supremely able to cultivate) as well as enables human dignity (Würde).

In conclusion, Schiller’s distinctive poetic sensibility discloses that the naïve and sentimental poet can relate to each other through the poetisches Empfinden […] aus der innigen Verbindung beider (through finding inner correlation between the two, FA 8: 796). In spite of their different approaches to the world, in their pursuit of das Dichterische both can account for the sensation of that which feels vollkommen 152

menschlich (completely humane, FA 8: 778). As Schiller endeavors, die poetische

Stimmung ist ein selbständiges Ganze, in welchem alle Unterschiede und alle Mängel verschwinden (the poetic disposition iss elf-reliant sensation of completness, in which all differences disappear, FA 8: 797). This implies that both the naive and the sentimental poetic sensibilities agree with each other in their pursuit of des

Poetischen. According to Schiller, Der Begriff des poetischen ist, in welchem beide

Empfindungsarten zusammentreffen (FA 8: 797). Schiller’s aesthetic concerns respond, first and foremost, to the engagement of his time with the body-mind problematic, the mismanagement of reason, by which he was so repulsed. On the grounds that a barbaric state constitution never can live up to the task of ennobling human character—as the French Revolution proved --Schiller charges the arts with carrying out the task of the inner formation of humankind and his own task of writing.

[…] aber wie kann sich unter den Einflüssen einer barbarischen Staatsverfassung der Charakter veredeln? Man müsste sich also zu diesem Zwecke ein Werkzeug aufsuchen, welches der Staat nicht hergibt, und Quellen dazu eröffnen, die sich bei aller politischen Verderbnis rein und lauter erhalten (FA 8: 583).

Schiller contends that under the cultural condition of depravity and corruption, such as his own oeuvre, one needed to believe that a better existence was possible.

The artist’s goal should be to treat his subject matter in a manner that drives faculties towards the highest possible cooperation, and by this, making the possibility of progress perceptible to our minds, i.e. dass recht handeln möglich sei (NA 20: 220).

For it is not the existence of a historical person that accounts for the poetic truth.

According to the poetic disposition, the purpose of das Dichterische is to enable the thought that it is possible to ennoble human character. 153

Die poetische Wahrheit besteht […] in der inneren Möglichkeit der Sache. Die ästhetische Kraft muss in der vorgestellten Möglichkeit der Sache liegen. Selbst an wirklichen Begebenheiten historischer Personen ist nicht die Existenz sondern das durch die Existenz kund gewordene Vermögen das poetische (FA 8: 448).

By portraying and evoking emotions that are necessary to refine human being’s capacity of feelings, both the naïve and sentimental poetic modes of expression are able to portray the poetisches Empfinden as completely humane (NA

26: 130). However, in his concern to preserve human dignity (Würde), Schiller’s poetic sensibility places the emphasis on the distinct quality of cultivation, that is, das

Dichterische ist höchst bildungsfähig. (It enables the highest possible cooperation between the physical and rational and spiritual faculties).

3.4 DAS DICHTERISCHE: IDEA AND FORM

Die Dichter sind überall, schon ihrem Begriffe nach, die Bewahrer der Natur.292

In this last section of my explication, I will examine how Schiller schooled himself by developing sensitivity how other artists treated form and idea. By paying attention how Schiller treated the sources of his creative activity, my purpose is here to show that forms of his artistic imagination were inspired by art. I contend that first, and foremost, Schiller creative activity reconfirms the central thesis of the

Philosophie der Physiologie in Chapter I: the attention that the immaterial soul exhibits to a particular idea in the material world is still central to the creative process.

Second, Abel’s proposition that “the genius is the work of nature and education as well” (Rede, 7). Apart from the significance that Abel adapted “Horace’s view that a

292 FA 8:728.

154

poet is made as well as born,”293 these two points of interest are significant for several reasons. As we have already seen, Schiller’s engagement with ancient authors does not imply that he hoped to restore the simplicity of nature in human being in a sense in which Alexander Pope’s classicism intended to do.294 Rather, Schiller looked for artistic inspiration behind the Greek art as well as that of great works of other cultures, ancient and modern. By looking at great works of art, Schiller discovered the manner in which art communicated through aesthetic effects. By noting how a beautiful form communicated, Schiller proves his originality of imagination in his conception of art forms that birthed also his artistic theories. Most significantly, by portraying the forms of his imagination in the outer medium of the drama for his beholders, he became a popular dramatist of the ages. While Schiller’s creative pursuit of rendering poetically the idea of human wholeness was guided by his ability of listening to nature both within and withouth, he consciously reflected also about his own response to Kant’s idea of the “pure representation, or form.”295

In ÄE 8, Schiller poses the rhetorical question: Should we put up forever with such endeavors as the conflict of blind and wild forces in the political world? Der

Konflikt blinder Kräfte soll in der politischen Welt ewig dauern? (FA 8: 580). Then in

ÄE 9, he advances the idea that if we hope for improvement in the political world, our aim should be to form the entire human character. For this purpose, we need to call on

293 T.W. Baldwin, William Shakespere’s Small latine & Lesse Greeke. Vol. I. (32). 294 See: David Pugh, Schiller and Classical Antiquity (47). 295 David Simpson, “Introduction,” The origins of modern critical thought: German aesthetic and literary criticism from Lessing to Hegel, (Cambridge, 1988), 10. 155

an instrument that is independent and autonomous. This instrument should be the fine arts.

Dieses Werkzeug ist die schöne Kunst, diese Quellen öffnen sich in den unsterblichen Mustern. Kunst erfreut absoluter Immunität von der Willkür (caprice, despotism) der Menschen! Das politische kann ihr Gebiet sperren, aber darin herrschen kann er nicht und die Kunst kann er nicht verfälschen (ÄE 9, FA 8: 583).

In championing that the task of ennobling human character belongs to the fine arts,

Schiller contends that the Roman statues stood upright long after human dignity was forgotten and the magnificent buildings were humbled by Nero’s hideous acts. 296 The immortal patterns of fine arts are treasures of wellsprings,297 they were created for intellectual and aesthetic purposes. Although political despotism might be able to ban the territory of arts; nevertheless, as Schiller argues, despotism cannot falsify the real nature of beauty. The distinctive quality of beauty is freedom in appearance. Based on the autonomous distinctive quality of beauty, human acts of caprice cannot falsify the arts.

Beauty as Wellspring of Poetry

By paying very close attention to the manner in which the immortal patterns articulated the timeless quality of beauty, Schiller’s artistic sensibility developed. In

ÄE 9, he advances the idea that greatest works of art were the sources of his artistic creativity. Dieses Werkzeug ist die schöne Kunst, diese Quellen öffnen sich in ihren

296 Compare: “Art charms by the aesthetic effects, which arise from its elegant ‘fitting together’ of elements” (Commentary on Horace 77). 297 Compare “Die Römer des ersten Jahrhunderts hatte längst schon die Knie vor seinen Kaisern gebeugt, als die Bildsäulen noch aufrecht standen, als die Götter längst zum Gelächter dienten, und die Schandtaten eines Nero und Kommodus beschämten der edle Stil des Gebäudes, das seine Hülle dazu gab“ (ÄE 9, FA 8: 584). 156

unsterblichen Mustern (FA 8:583). David Pugh contends that in ÄE 9 Schiller

“directs the writer to take his inspiration from antiquity.”298 Certainly, the inspirational power of the Ancients mattered to Schiller. Nevertheless, the ninth letter centers our attention on the manner in which the immortal patterns of the great works sensitize the poet to follow the right pattern in his effort to portray the image of “die herrliche Menschheit.”299 As Schiller admits, although the poet is born into a certain age, however, in his treatment of his material, he should guard himself from becoming the pupil of his age, or worse, as its favorite:

Der Künstler ist zwar der Sohn seiner Zeit, aber schlimm für ihn, wenn er zugleich ihr Zögling oder gar noch ihr Günstling ist (FA 8: 584).

In the ÄE 9, Schiller challenges the artist to choose the patterns of his forms from nobler times even if having to draw his materials from the present age.

According to Pugh, “Schiller justifies the turn to antiquity by saying that it enables the artists to learn the secret of form in general” in the ninth letter (Schiller and Classical

Antiquity, 48). I propose, however, that Schiller placed the emphasis on the impact of beauty upon human beings (NA 21: 239). By noting the distinctive quality of beauty,

Schiller intuitively comprehended that it was the essence of a thing that most mattered to him in establishing the right model to follow. As Georg Mein proposes, at the heart of Schiller’s poetic pursuit is the central idea that beauty discloses itself on its terms:

Es geht eben nicht um die ‘natürliche’ Struktur der Gegenstände, sondern um das,

298 See David Pugh, “Schiller and Classical Antiquity.” In Companion, 46. 299 Friedrich Schiller, ÄE 6. “Die Griechen beschämen uns [...], sie sind oft [...] uns Muster [...] und bildend, [...] die Jugend der Phantasie [...] in der herrlichen Menschheit“ (NA 20: 321). 157

was der Gegenstand nur im Schönen preisgibt: sein Wesen (191).300 Alt underscores that beauty as potential force of schooling human faculties mattered to Schiller greatly

( die Bildungskraft des Schönen und die Erfahrung der Kunst, Alt I, 125). Witte confirms this view: “Art, the creation and appreciation of beauty, was for him

(Schiller) one of the most important of human pursuits” (62).

According to Schiller, while the Greeks embarrass modernity with their patterns (Mustern), it takes a youthful imagination (die Jugend der Phantasie) to cultivate (bildend) the distinctive sensibility of wholeness (ÄE 6, FA 8: 570). Schiller believed that Greek art made an impact in the world. In Schiller’s view, the artists of all ages should borrow the artistic patterns from nobler times, whose essence draws from the wellspring of beauty. Schiller’s understanding of beauty crystalized, however, only after he encountered Kant: The essence of beauty is such form that declares itself on its own terms. Schönheit heLȕWHLQH)RUPGLHVLFKVHOEVWHUNOlUW (NA

26:193). As Schiller concludes, if beauty is immutable and beyond the perimeters of times, then those immortal patterns attests to the imprints of the original beautiful human form. We need to regard, as Schiller enthusiastically declares, that when the

Roman’s scandalous actions degraded his own kind, and he was already bowing his knees before his emperors, the ornamented columns still stood erect. The truth of human dignity lived on in the noble style of his magnificent buildings. Such is the manner in which Schiller excites the idea that art is independent and sovereign,

300 Georg Mein, „Zwischen Schönheit und Erhabenheit“ Konzeption des Schönen, (Bielefeld, 2000), 165-210, here 191. 158

provided the premise of its artistic expression beauty, upright conduct and dignity, characteristics that feature the dignified human being.

Der Römer des ersten Jahrhunderts hatte längst schon die Knie vor seinen Kaisern gebeugt, als die Bildsäulen noch aufrecht standen […] und die Schandtaten eines Nero und Kommodus beschämte der edle Stil des Gebäudes, das seine Hülle dazu gab (FA 8: 584).

Though humankind’s dignity was lost in historical reality, as Schiller submits, the arts commemorate the imprints of his noble form in those important stones. As the arts portray, beauty and morality intimately are related, as Schiller insists: das Gefühl des Schönen und Großen mit dem edelsten Teil unsers Wesens steht (NA 20:233).

While it is obvious that the truth of noble human form carries on in the arts, Schiller’s agenda is to advance the poet by inspiring him to recreate the idea of beautiful form as prototype.

In refocusing on Schiller’s creative intellect with respect to der dichterische

Geist, let us turn our attention to the notion of model i.e. prototype in 18th century

German context. Schiller’s contemporary Heinrich Christoph Koch wrote a three- volume treatise Versuch einer Anleitung zur Composition (1782-1793) about the theoretical foundation of music (2).301 While Koch proposed that the primary aim of music is to express feelings, he pursued pedagogical goals. Nany Kovaleff Baker has shown that “Koch was the first to present a complete system which explained the cooperative nature of the relationship between harmony and melody” (17). While

Koch treated harmony and melody as of equal importance, in his view the foundation of a musical composition was “key” or “mode” (Baker, 7). Koch’s significant

301 In Nancy Kovaleff Baker, From Teil to Tonstück. Hereafter—Baker. 159

achievement was that he identified the basic form of “simple harmony” (einfache

Harmonie) as the “primary matter of music” (Urstoff der Musik).

In his work Critical Reception of Shakespeare in Germany, Roger Paulin observes that Johann Christoph Gottsched (1700-66) and his Swiss counterparts

Johann Jacob Bodmer (1698-1783) and Johann Jacob Breitinger (1701-76) also searched for literary models at the beginning of the eighteenth century. In devoting their ‘intellectual curiosity’ to Pope and Voltaire, they recommended ‘neoclassical elegance and wit’ as models to the German republic of letters (33). Finally, Johann

Peter Eckermann relays that the aged Goethe revisited the idea of the exemplary models of the Greeks late in his life. He noted that in our need for models, we should continue to consult ancient Greek models to observe how they portray the beautiful human being in their works. Otherwise, as Goethe presumes, “we Germans” fall back easily to our pedantic manners, rather than pay attention to how a great poet treats the basic material:

Die Poesie ist das Gemeingut der Menschheit […] im Bedürfnis von etwas Musterhaftem müssen wir immer zu den alten Griechen zurückgehen, in deren Werken stets der schöne Mensch dargestellt ist. […] Und wozu wären denn die Poeten, wenn sie bloß die Geschichte eines Historikers wiederholen wollten! […] waren nun wieder die Griechen so groß, dass sie weniger auf die Treue eines historischen Faktums gingen, als darauf, wie es der Dichter behandelte. Aber freilich ein einfaches Sujet durch eine meisterhafte Behandlung zu etwas zu machen, erfordert Geist und großes Talent, und daran fehlt es.302

302 Johann Peter Eckermann, “Gespräche mit Goethe“ Mittwoch, den 31. Januar 1827. http://gutenberg.spiegel.de/buch/-1912/80 160

To some extent, the models differ from each other in their basic material.

What is striking, however, is that, while looking for an exemplary model, each writer seeks to establish the grounds of the artistic composition on his or her own terms. The volume Zur Sytematik des Beispiels, discloses that examples come handy in cases where knowledge is either too complex or is entirely absent. If we considered the above three examples as prototypes, Schiller concludes that every writer looks for a model in order to be able to establish the principles of the artistic composition.

With respect to how models functioned in the context of eighteenth-century

German letters, Schiller’s originality lies in his ability to solicit beauty as the foundation of poesy. By illustrating how the greatest works of art excite the form of artistic imagination in the medium of language, Schiller proposes that modelling beauty after beauty retroactively allows the poet to be the first recipient of beauty.

Die Menschheit hat ihre Würde verloren, aber die Kunst hat sie gerettet und aufbewahrt in bedeutenden Steinen; die Wahrheit lebt in der Täuschung fort, und aus dem Nachbilde wird das Urbild wieder hergestellt. So wie die edle Kunst die edle Natur überlebte, so schreitet sie derselben auch in der Begeisterung, bildend und erweckend, voran. Ehe noch die Wahrheit ihr seigendes Licht in die Tiefen der Herzen sendet, fängt die Dichtungskraft ihre Strahlen auf, und die Gipfel der Menschheit werden glänzen, wenn noch feuchte Nacht in den Tälern liegt (FA 8: 584).

Schiller here delivers a very inspiring case in favor of the timeless quality of beautiful form. Though under modern cultural condition, human being lost his dignity, the image of the dignified upright human being continues to live in the immortal patterns of the fine arts. As Schiller proposes, provided the poet permits the original imprints to cultivate his artistic sensibility and enliven his art, the promise is 161

assuring that humankind will experience the pinnacle of his existence, as Schiller advances the value of the beautiful form enthusiastically:

It is not unusual for poets to make their own art—or Art in general--the subject of their poetry. This theme had a special attraction for Schiller’s reflective mind: poems on art occupy a key position in his work. […] Art the creation and appreciation of beauty, for Schiller the most important of human pursuit (Witte 62).

There is a temptation to dismiss the German poet’s exegesis, for no reasonable explanation appears to make sense. In the ninth letter, however, Schiller suggests that the immortal patterns of the fine arts should serve as the source of poetic imagination.

Agreeably, the poet cannot help that he was born into a certain age. Schiller challenges, however, our critical acumen when he suggests that the poet should take his forms from such nobler times that are beyond all ages: jenseits aller Zeit, von der absoluten unwandelbaren Einheit seines Wesens (FA 8: 584). Since knowledge of such ages is not available, we can be reassured, as Witte offers, that Schiller’s imagination in the ninth letter assumes his “noblest flight.” Even so, as Schiller contends, while beauty is timeless and eternal, her beautiful form serves as the prototype of poetic imagination. As implied here, Schiller underscores repeatedly that the task of the aesthetic education is to create beauty from beauty: Aus Schönheit,

Schönheit zu machen, ist die Aufgabe der ästhetischen (FA 8: 617). According to

Mendelssohn, the peculiar quality of beauty relies upon an unspecified sensation of perfection. Martinson holds that “The appreciation of beauty requires an element of non-conceptual feeling: we sense the perfection behind beauty but cannot define it”

(HT, 152; D/R 121). In building on these premises, Schiller’s originality manifests itself in recognizing the Bildungskraft des Schönen. In the wake of the immortal 162

patterns of the fine arts, Schiller solicits beauty as an ennobling force of the poetic idea, i.e. das Dichterische. For, as Schiller endeavors, das Gefühl des Schönen und

Großen mit dem edelsten Teil unsers Wesens steht [und] muss wie die Wahrheit und das Recht auf ewigen Fundamenten ruhen (NA 21: 233).

3.5 FORM: EXPRESSION OF CHARACTER [DER DICHTUNG]303

In further development of Schiller’s poetic posture, the poetic sensibility for the beautiful, I propose here to investigate Schiller’s consciousness of form. In the treatise

Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung Schiller claims that form manifests itself not only through the poet’s way of thinking (Denkart) but also through the expression of words and movements: Aus der Naiven Denkart fließt notwendigerweise auch ein naiver Ausdruck sowohl in Worten als Bewegungen (NSD, FA 8: 720). In the letters

Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, Schiller understands form in terms of representation,

(Darstellung). As he says: Bei der Schönheit der Form wird bloȕ darauf gesehen, wie er (der Künstler) darstellt (FA 8: 322) oder das Ideal […] auf poetische Weise gebraucht (FA 8:751).304 Finally, in Schiller‘s letter to Goethe on 7 September 1792, form of the representation of an object emerges as a matter of treatment

(Behandlung).305 Thus, my task is first to examine in which manner Schiller

303 Friedrich Schiller, Naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung, FA 8:752. 304 Compare with Schiller’s Über die notwendigen Grenzen. Es ist niemals der Inhalt, der durch die Schönheit der Form gewinnt, und niemals der Verstand, der dem Geschmack beim Erkennen hilft. Der Inhalt muss sich dem Verstand unmittelbar durch sich selbst empfehlen, indem die schöne Form zu der Einbildungskraft spricht, und ihr mit einem Scheine von Freiheit schmeichelt (FA 8: 679). 305 NA 29: 127. 163

showcases (darstellt) form by the means of poetic rendering (i.e. portrayal, characterization) and by the means of using language in order to aid intuitive comprehension. Second, my task is to examine how Schiller endeavors to portray and characterize with the double purpose in mind: um das Herz zu erquicken und den

Geist zu beschäftigen (NSD, FA 8: 761).

Schiller’s Reading of Miltons herrliche Darstellung des ersten Menschenpaares Our first example examines Schiller’s portrayal of Milton’s herrliche Darstellung des ersten Menschenpaares und des Standes der Unschuld im Paradiese (FA 8: 774).

Schiller responds with wonder and awe to Milton’s glorious portrayal of the excellent form and happy paradisiac state of the first and exemplary couple. Since, most likely, he read Milton’s epic in translation and not in original, as his responses indicate, his focus is not so much on the expression in language, as it is on the imaginative structuring of form. Milton’s famous idyll represents human form as noble, spirited

(geistreich) and impressive. While all these features affirm the excellent human condition of Adam and Eve, Schiller appraises Milton’s account as the highest substance of the human clothed in a most graceful form. […] der höchste Gehalt der

Menschheit ist in die anmutigste Form eingekleidet, NSD, FA 8: 774). It appears to be paradoxical, however, that Schiller relegates John Milton’s famous idyll to the sentimental poetic mode of rendering nature. Upon closer examination, Schiller was attracted to Milton’s portrayal of the ideal human form that emphasized wealth, balance and the peaceful relationship between powers. Following Schiller’s theory of idyll, we can conclude that the manner in which the German poet read Milton was not looking backward to the beginning of times. Rather, in reading Milton, Schiller 164

demonstrates a forward vision that anticipates and idyllic repose of consummation as a model of life fulfillment in the future (eine Ruhe, die aus dem Gleichgewicht […], aus der Fülle […], und von dem Gefühl eines unendlichen Vermögens begleitet wird.

NSD, FA 8:776). Ultimately, Schiller’s assessment of Milton implies that the peaceful portrayal of the human condition offers very little poetic appeal. Since it does not generate movement, it does not allow the poet the play with form, […und] erlaubt ihm nicht, sich bis zum poetischen Spiel zu erheben (NSD, FA 8: 751).

Aber eben darum, weil aller Widerstand hinwegfällt, so wird e hier ungleich schwieriger, als in den zwei vorigen Dichtungsarten, die Bewegung hervorzubringen, ohne welche doch überall keine poetische Wirkung sich denken läȕt (FA 8: 776).

Schiller’s reading of Milton shows how much it mattered to him that the poet uses his words –like a spirit-stirring trumpet—to move human beings to action.

However, Schiller overlooked the section in which Milton generates movement

(Bewegung) in Paradise Lost, Book IV. At the first sight of Adam and Eve, Satan is taken by surprise at their excellent form and happy state. Nevertheless, Satan resolves to orchestrate their fall.306

The Greeks and Nature

In contradiction to Milton, the Greeks were completely in tune with naïve nature.

In the light of ÄE 6, however, in our deplorable modern conditions, the Greek’s simplicity of nature seems strange. Schiller is, however, more concerned about drawing draw our attention to the aesthetic effect of Greek models. For, they represent entire forms and entire abundance, they are at once philosophical and cultivating

306 John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book IV. In: Riverside Milton, 441. 165

(bildend), delicate (zart) and vigorous (energisch, ÄE 6, FA 8: 570). The portrayal of a glorious human being of the Greeks represents to Schiller that their youthful imagination goes hand in hand with the maturity of their intelligence (ÄE 6, FA

8:577). The Greeks succeeded in guarding their sensibility of nature: Sentiments

(Empfindungen), not the power struggles of an artificial age, guided the Greeks: Der

Grieche hat die Natur in der Menschheit nicht verloren (NSD, FA 8: 726). The rich and abundant human life of the Greeks was zealous to invigorate every lifeless thing that surrounded them. The naïve mindset of the Greeks gave birth to joyous fables, and their gods model the idea of the aesthetic mindset (FA 8: 726) i.e. die ästhetische

Freiheit, welche der Dichter seinem Stoff gegenüber behaupten, seinem Leser mitteilen muss (NSD, FA 8: 751).

After nature disappeared from human life, it became the task of literature to preserve the distinctive sensibility of the beautiful wholeness of the human character by means of poetry (das schöne Ganze der menschlichen Natur […] aufbewahren, FA

8:796). As Schiller alerts, just as simple nature gradually disappeared from human life as experience, the notion of the harmonious, active and sensitive subject reemerged in the poetic world as idea. Hence, the naïve mode of thinking dates back to a time when culture began to deteriorate.

So wie nach und nach die Natur anfing, aus dem menschlichen Leben als Erfahrung und als das (handelnde und empfindende) Subjekt zu verschwinden, so sehen wir sie in der Dichterwelt als Idee und als Gegenstand aufgehen (727).

Schiller proposes that Horace was the true founder of the sentimental poetic mode of representation. In his representation of the artificial civilized age, Horace praised the 166

happy state of his Tibur. In praising peace and tranquility of nature, Properz and

Virgil sought to preserve the idea of simple naïve mentality, in spite of the fact that their poetry conveys mixed feelings.

Horaz, der Dichter einer kultivierten und verdorbenen Weltalters, preist die ruhige Glückseligkeit in seinem Tibur und ihn könnte man den wahren Stifter dieser sentimentalischen Dichtungsart nennen (FA 8: 727).

Schiller lingers at this thought only to reconfirm that the mission of poets everywhere is to preserve nature. Die Dichter sind überall, schon ihrem Begriffe nach, die

Bewahrer der Natur (FA 8: 728).

Schiller’s Assessment of Shakespeare’s Art

At this great moment, however, it is proper to pause. For, Schiller encounters

Shakespeare! Upon this encounter, Shakespeare overturns Schiller’s understanding of nature. Under the influence of the great English dramaturge, Schiller submits: poets who are subjected to the destructive influence of the artificial capricious forms will have to step up as witnesses and even avengers of nature (als Zeugen und als Rächer der Natur, FA 8:728). As Schiller contends, Shakespeare was a naïve poet in an artificial civilized age. The German poet appraises the English dramaturge in such terms:

Der Dichter einer naiven und geistreichen Jugendwelt, […] in den Zeitaltern künstlicher Kultur […] ist kalt, gelichgültig, verschlossen, ohne alle Vertraulichkeit. Streng und spröde, wie die jungfräuliche Diana in ihren Wäldern, entflieht er dem Herzen, das ihn sucht, dem Verlangen, das ihn umfassen will. Nichts erwidert er, nichts kann ihn schmerzen, oder den strengen Gürtel seiner Nüchternheit lösen (FA 8: 728). 167

Schiller’s assessment of Shakespeare’s art is mind boggling. As he claims, just as the chaste maiden Diana, he escapes from any heart that wishes to embrace him affectionately. It is in vain to try, for he does not respond to you, and nothing can cause him pain or unfasten the belt of his sobriety. Schiller’s appraisal of

Shakespeare’s art reminds me of Benjamin Johnson’s assessment of the English dramaturge:

Nature herself was proud of his designs, And joy’d to weare the dressing of his lines! […] For a good Poet’s is made, as well as borne. And such were thou. 307

Shakespeare had great talent, but he also knew how to make art that appealed to the consciousness of his age. “Nature must not receive all the credit; Shakespeare’s Art must also receive part of it” (T.W. Baldwin 4).

Paulin proposes that in eighteenth-century German letters Shakespeare was one of “the great exemplifiers of a post-Renaissance flowering of poetry among

Tasso, Cervantes, Corneille, Spenser and Milton.”308 In spite of all the attention that the great English dramaturge enjoyed in German letters, Schiller was not interested in the myth-making pursuits of his contemporaries (Paulin 5, 65). Rather, Schiller decided to read Shakespeare’s dramas and form his own opinion about the English dramaturge.

Schiller’s assessment of Shakespeare’s art is remarkable. It is sensitive to the

Shakespeare’s effect on the reader, on the beholder, as Pauline notes (233).

307 T.W. Baldwin, 4-5. 308 For further reference for Shakespeare’s presence for Germany, see Roger Paulin, p. 62. 168

Shakespeare’s sober-minded portrayal of nature had a great impact on Schiller’s development as a dramaturge. Upon reading Hamlet, King Lear and Macbeth,

Shakespeare’s bawdy manner upset, however, Schiller. For, at times of great distress and heartache, Shakespeare seemed to portray insensitivity. The English dramaturge did not refrain from cracking jokes or allowing a fool to disturb such grave events

(FA 8: 729). Schiller read many of Shakespeare’s works in translation. As we know, today, there is very little information available about Shakespeare’s life. Nevertheless, by paying close attention to the manner in which the English dramaturge’s words achieved effects, with time Schiller learned to appreciate Shakespeare’s skills of characterization. Schiller’s evaluation of Shakespeare’s art is akin to poetic effect of portrayal (form) that the English playwright achieves by agitating both the mind and the heart. In ÄE 22, Schiller appreciates the value of form over content. By agitating both the mind and the heart, Shakespeare’s form of representation drives human faculties toward cooperation. It is by form that the artist establishes inner concord between the physical and spiritual-rational matter: Denn durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des Menschen, durch den Inhalt hingegen nur auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt (FA 8:641).

DAS PATHETISCHE, or LAOCOON’S STATURE309

Your language will be appropriate if it expresses emotion and character […]. The aptness of language is one thing that makes people believe in the truth of your story […]. For, an emotional speaker always makes his audience feel with him.310

309 See In NSD Schiller calls to attention to the term „poetisch“, which is “für die Anschauung bestimmte Formen” (FA 8: 757). 310Aristotle Rhetoric (3.7). In: Brian Vickers, Classical Rhetoric in English Poetry, (London, 1970), p. 94. 169

In further illustration of how Schiller was attracted to artistic ideas that inspired the form of his imagination, our last example concerns Schiller’s portrayal of

Laocoon’s greatness of the soul GHU$XVGUXFNHLQHUJURȕHQ6HHOH/DRNRRQV 311 In one of his important writings on drama theory Über das Pathetische (1793),312

Schiller searches for solution of how to portray die übersinnliche selbstständige Kraft im Menschen. It is a distinct moral principle that differentiates human beings from the animalistic state of existence, controlled by instincts. Schiller learned about Laocoon in Johann Joachim Winckelmann’s art history (NA 20: 205-206),313 as well as through Lessing’s reflection on the same topic in his “Laocoon or On the Limits of

Painting and Poetry.” on the same topic, an excellent discussion about the limits between poetry and paintings (NA 20: 207). Alt observes that while he appreciated

Winckelmann’s oeuvre, Schiller seldom ventured into the terrain of the fine arts (Alt

I, 131). By paying close attention to the visual elements in the writings of his contemporaries on the topic of Laocoon, Schiller’s imagination was sparked by the manner in which the ancient statues excited the idea of the human self-reliance.

Schiller was well aware of the tension that developed between the task of the dramaturge and the aesthetic principles that he considered as the guiding star of his art: Zweierlei gehört zum Poeten und Künstler: dass er sich über das Wirkliche erhebt und dass er innerhalb des Sinnlichen stehen bleibt (NA 29: 131). How was it possible to lift the imagination above the actual and, at the same time, remain in the sensible

311 Johann Joachim Winckelmann Gedanken über die Nachahmung der griechischen Werke in der Malerei und Bildhauerkunst, 20. 312 NA 20: 198-221. 313 Compare Alt, II. Schiller’s models of Laocoon were Winckelmanns Geschichte der Kunst des Alterthums (1764-66) and a reproduction that he saw in Mannheim in May 1784 (93). 170

world? What is at the heart of the issue when a concept is “far beyond which beautiful nature can bare? Winckelmann alludes to the paradox between the beautiful and the sublime as such: Der Ausdruck einer so groȕen gehet weit über die Bildung der schönen Natur (Winckelmann 20).

By paying very close attention to the portrayal of the aesthetic stature of

Laocoon’s, Schiller selected a section314 that elaborates the manner in which the various body parts make the sentiment perceptible to our mind’s eye. Schiller highlights dramatic effects that aroused from Laocoon’s inner strength and moral courage, i.e, der mit Stärke bewaffnete Geist, appeared on his forehead,315 while his chest looked tight, as a sign of restraining himself from the full expression of his pain

(NA 20:206). In focusing on the representation of the inner strength of the hero,

Schiller emphasizes the manner in which Laocoon’s intelligence and resilience combats the physical and emotional-spiritual pain the hero suffered on account of his tragedy. Although groaning in pain, Laocoon appears to care more foer the fate of his children. Schiller captures Laocoon that moment, when his children were turning their eyes towards their father crying for help and das väterliche Herz offenbart sich in den wehmütigen Augen (NA 20: 206). It is their anguish that speaks to us.316

With respect to Virgil’s Aeneis, Schiller advanced the idea that the epic poet was not concerned with Laocoon’s mental disposition. Virgil’s poetic effect proceeds

314 Winckelmman’s excerpt in: NA 20: 205-06. 315 Forehead symbolized great intelligence in Renaissance England. 316 Friedrich Schiller, Über Anmut und Würde. „Sprechend (im weitesten Sinne) nenne ich jede Erscheinung am Körper, die einen Gemütszustand begleitet, […] Sprechend im engeren Sinn ist nur die menschliche Bildung und diese auch nur in denjenigen ihrer Erscheinungen, die seinen moralischen Empfindungszustand begleiten“ (FA 8: 353). 171

from the physical circumstances of the hero. Virgil hielt sich daher lieber an

Darstellung der Ursache des Leidens […] als über die Empfindungen desselben zu verbreiten (NA 20:207). In paying close attention to the difference between these two poetic treatments of Laocoon, Schiller developed his own sublime concept of das

Pathetische.

Sprechend (im weitesten Sinne) nenne ich jede Erscheinung am Körper, die einen Gemütszustand begleitet, […] Sprechend im engern Sinn ist nur die menschliche Bildung und diese auch nur in denjenigen ihrer Erscheinungen, die seinen moralischen Empfindungszustand begleiten (FA 8: 353).

Schiller‘s critical analysis of Laocoon’s Empfindungen highlights the visual and communicative traits of his Gemütsbewegung. By directing our attention to the hero’s excellent spiritual and sensuous-intellectual qualities, art communicates via visual effects that Laocoon had a great soul. Agonizing about the fate of his children, the hero stirs our hearts to compassion (Mitleid). Had he had a brute character, he would had escaped the scene, as his Trojan companions did. His fatherly heart that restrained him from fleeing: Aber er hat ein Herz in seinem Busen, und die Gefahr seiner Kinder hält ihn zu seinem eigenen Verderben zurück (NA 20: 210). Would it be that

Laocoon’s only distinction were his affectionate fatherly heart, this one trait would ignite our compassion, Schiller submits. Laocoon meets his end exactly at the moment when the dramatic effects heighten his dignity as a father. Hence, the hero’s stature not only earns our respect but also stirs our soul so that we identify with his agonizing inner struggle. Evocating in us feelings that are most intimately connected with our noblest inner self, das Pathetische cultivates human dignity and the sublimity of the soul. 172

In focusing on Laocoon’s character, Schiller discloses that the hero’s form, i.e. composition is governed by such artistic principle that agrees both with inner necessity and self-determined action. On the example of Laocoon, Schiller sees that one’s inner constitution is the foundation of his form: die innre Notwendigkeit der

Form (FA 8: 306). When this is the case, then the form is beautiful, as Schiller argues

Beauty as Form of Human Potential in his letters, Kallias, oder über die Schönheit.317

3.6 BEAUTY AS FORM OF HUMAN POTENTIAL Es ist also nicht bloß poetisch erlaubt, sondern auch philosophisch richtig, wenn man die Schönheit unsre zweite Schöpferin nennt. […] so hat sie das mit unsrer ursprünglichen Schöpferin, der Natur, gemein, die uns gleichfalls nicht weiter, als das Vermögen zur Menschheit erteilte, den Gebrauch desselben aber auf unsere eigene Willensbestimmung ankommen lässt. (ÄE 21. Brief, FA 8:637).

Clearly, Schiller was well informed about the different aesthetic theories of his time, which he engaged creatively and critically. To a great extent, the idea of the beautiful grew out of his own empirical observation. Schiller’s engagement with the beautiful was also responsive to the historical and intellectual currents of his age, such as the aftermath of the French Revolution and Kant’s Kritik der Urteilskraft. According to

Walter Grossman, Schiller’s pursuit of the aesthetic education of human beings rightly combines philosophy with practical observation. “Philosophy always seems ridiculous whenever it wants to enlarge knowledge by itself and to give laws to the world without acknowledging its dependency on experience.”318 Unlike Grossman, I

317 Friedrich Schiller, Kallias, oder über die Schönheit. „Was wäre also Natur in dieser Bedeutung? Das innere Prinzip der Existenz an einem Dinge, zugleich als der Grund seiner Form betrachtet: die innere Notwendigkeit der Form. Sie ist die reine Zusammenstimmung des inneren Wesens mit der Form, eine Regel, die von dem Dinge selbst zugleich befolgt und gegeben ist (FA 8: 306). 318 Walter Grossmann, “Schiller’s Aesthetic Education“, Journal of Aesthetics, 2 (1968): 31-41. 173

propose that Schiller combines theory and practice by capturing human beings’ best possible expressions in his dramas.

It is clear from the referred essays that Schiller’s concept of beauty satisfies both poetic and philosophical pursuits. I propose here that Schiller understands beauty as a distinct virtue with a symbolic as well as functional quality. While beauty symbolizes the harmonious alliance between Geist und Sinn, it also further develops mental faculties. Schiller understands beauty to be sensuous and objective.319 He enlightens that beauty keeps us in the sensuous world. Beauty also refines human beings’ capacity of feelings by cultivating the imaginative experience of wholeness

(Die Ganzheit der Menschheit ausgedrückt, FA 8: 764).

Die Schönheit ist das Produkt der Zusammenstimmung zwischen dem Geist und den Sinnen, es spricht zu allen Vermögen des Menschen zugleich, und dann daher nur unter der Voraussetzung eines vollständigen und freien Gebrauchs aller seiner Kräfte empfunden und gewürdigt werden (FA 8: 792).

For Schiller, we register beauty through its mediating function320 between sense and reason and not through the Vereinzelung (isolation) and Trennung

(separation) of mental faculties. By tapping into both the intellectual and the

319 Werner Strube, „Einleitung,“ in Edmund Burke, Philosophische Untersuchung über den Ursprung unserer Ideen vom Erhabenen und Schönen, 9-32. Strube quotes Schiller on different theories of the beautiful: „Entweder erklärt man die möglichen Formen des Schönen objektiv oder subjektiv; und zwar entweder sinnlich-subektiv (wie Burke u.a.), oder subjektiv-rational (wie Kant), oder rational-objektiv (Wie Baumgarten, Mendelssohn und die ganze Schar der (Vollkommenheitsmänner), oder endlich sinnlich-objektiv“ (p. 22, FA 8:279). 320 As Sandra Richter educates, “Johann Georg Sulzer’s Allgemeine Theorie der schönen Künste is often seen as the founding father of a systematical popular aesthetics and poetics. This reputation also goes back to his 1763 reflections on the opposing nature of sentiment and reason, which might be envisioned as the ‘discovery’ of the ‘Other of reason’. Yet this dichotomous thought is dismissed in Sulzer’s Allgemeine Theories, in which he opts for a complementary function of both faculties.” In: A History of Poetics: German Scholarly Aesthetics and Poetics in International Context, 1770-1960. p. 43. 174

emotional faculties of human beings simultaneously, beauty enables human potential.

By virtue, beauty radiates the idea of freedom. Although freedom can be the only foundation of beauty, it is an abstract idea of practical reason that is difficult to represent in the sensuous world. 321 However, as Schiller contends, if freedom embodies such a form that appears self-sufficient, it becomes perceptible to our mind’s eye. As eine Idee, die mit einer Anschauung so verbunden wird, dass beide eine Erkenntnisregel miteinandar teilen (NA 26: 192).322 An object appears to be free if there is agreement between the mode of the artistic treatment (inner necessity of the object) and the idea that it excites. Hence, Schiller can claim that beauty is freedom in appearance. Freiheit in der Erscheinung ist eins mit der Schönheit (FA 8: 298).323 In an effort to prove that the sensation of beauty is similar to that of the appearance of freedom in the sensuous world, Schiller determines that an objective ground was needed with a distinctive quality, one that agrees with the purpose of the thing and the idea of freedom (die Idee der Freiheit in uns hervorzubringen und auf das Objekt zu beziehen).324

According to Kant’s Kritik der Urteilskraft, our faculty of understanding governs our relations in the empirical world. In aesthetic judgment, we are able to enjoy pure ‘representation, or form’ because it engages our cognitive powers

321 „Freiheit ist bloß eine Idee der Vernunft, der keine Anschauung adäquat sein kann“ (NA 26: 192). 322 See Schiller’s letter to Körner on February 23, 1793 (NA 26: 190-199). The writer actively grappled with Kant’s ideas regarding the beautiful at the time when he was writing his letters, Kallias, oder die Schönheit. 323 See: Friedrich Schiller Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, (FA 8: 276-321),--hereafter Kallias Briefe. 324 Friedrich Schiller, Kallias, 23. Februar 1793, Dieser objektiver Grund müȕte eine solche Beschaffenheit derselben sein, deren Vorstellung uns schlechterdings nötigt, die Idee der Freiheit in uns hervorzubringen und auf das Objekt zu beziehen (FA 8: 298). 175

(understanding and reason) in free play.325 Somewhat at variance from Kant, Schiller is interested in the manner in which an art form appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom and is observable: Freiheit in der Erscheinung ist als nichts anders, als die Selbstbestimmung an einem Dinge, insofern sie sich in der

Anschauung offenbart (FA 8: 288-289). Schiller proposes that the form of a beautiful object has a distinctive quality that sets our imaginative faculties into free play and, at the same time, provides an occasion for contemplation. For the intellect is only able to contemplate form.

Der Verstand muss veranlasst werden über die Form zu reflektieren: über die Form, denn der Verstand hat nur mit der Form zu tun […]insofern also eine solche Form ein Bedürfnis erweckt nach einem Grund der Bestimmung zu fragen […].326

Our thesis here is that Schiller advances his cause as a poet-dramaturge by highlighting the distinctive qualities of beautiful forms, and that he does so in the light of the practice of life. Hence, he can champion the idea that a beautiful object appears to be free, i.e. durch sich selbst bestimmt (FA 8: 297) because it is determined by its own distinctive inner quality. Our experience of freedom gives occasion for reflection. As Schiller observes in his first medical dissertation, Philosophie der Physiologie, freedom is the key to the working of the creative intellect. It sets the power of imagination (Einbildungskraft) into motion (NA 20: 25, para. 9).327

325 See David Simpson, Ed, “Introduction. “ The origins of modern critical thought: German aesthetic and literary criticism from Lessing to Hegel“(Cambridge, 1988), 1-22. 326 See: Friedrich Schiller Kallias Briefe, (An Körner, 23. 02. 1793, 299, FA 8: 276-321). 327 Compare: Friedrich Schiller. Philosophie der Physiologie. „Hier ist noch das unbegreifliche, wie ein Eindruck in Bewegung kommt, dass er der Seele eine Vorstellung macht“ (NA 20: 25, para. 9). 176

Etwas muss an dem Gegenstand sein […] was unseren Erkenntnistrieb reizt. Er muss sich als ein bestimmtes darstellen, denn er soll uns auf das bestimmende führen. […] und [zu der Erkenntnis] des Voninnenbestimmtseins oder der Freiheit (Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, FA 8: 299-300).

A beautiful form complies both with the inner necessity of the object (self- determining) and at the same time selbsbestimmt (self-legislative). By setting the powers of imagination free, the beautiful form governs the beholder’s attention to contemplate the subject matter (Inhalt) and, regardless how seductive the material

(Stoff) might be.328

Der Inhalt muss sich dem Verstand unmittelbar durch sich selbst empfehlen, indem die schöne Form zu der Einbildungskraft spricht, und ihr mit einem Scheine von Freiheit schmeichelt (FA 8: 679).

As an additional point of view, in the letters Kallias, oder über die Schönheit,

Schiller wonders how the medium of the third operation as mode of artistic expression might interfere in the poet’s pursuit of representing the object in such manner that it appears in our mind’s eye as purely self-determining and self-legislative (FA 8: 323).

As Schiller argues, there is always a possibility that either the material (Stoff) or the personality of the artist consort with the mode of artistic expression. Provided that the nature of the medium has an effect upon the poetic mode of utterance, artistic representation is not free, and beauty suffers as a consequence (FA 8: 325). While words determine the poet’s medium, the task of the poet is to use his medium in such

328 See: Schillers ÄE 22, “Darin also besteht das Kunstgeheimnis des Meisters, dass er den Stoff durch die Form vertilgt; und je imposanter, anmaßender, verführerischer der Stoff an sich selbst ist, […] desto triumphierender ist die Kunst. […] Das Gemüt des Zuschauers und Zuhörers muss völlig frei und unverletzt bleiben […] (FA 8: 641). 177

a manner that it excites the observer’s imagination of freedom.329 Schiller proposes here that a work of art should have such a form that allows the idea to shine with the appearance of freedom.

Bei einem Kunstwerk also muss sich der Stoff (die Nature des Nachahmenden) in der Form (des Nachgeahmten), der Körper in der Idee, die Wirklichkeit in der Erscheinung verlieren. […das wäre] reine Objektivität der Darstellung, das Wesen des guten Stils: der höchste Grundsatz der Künste (FA 8: 324-325).

According to Schiller, beauty is the symbol of perfection. By the merit of the highest artistic principle, it is the beautiful appearance of an art form and not the common experience of its material, the idea of the artist and not the technical aspects of the construction that commend our attention. Once we realize that even the best technique may impose limitation on an object to determine the self, we appreciate beauty as the only symbol of perfection in the material world. As Schiller concludes, a beautiful form is governed by artistic principles that comply with the inner necessity of the object to determine the self freely. While the beautiful form is self-determined, it governed by its own rules,330 as well as appears free on its own (Kallias, Oder über die Schönheit, FA 8:290). On the account of following her own essence as well as listening to her own self, a beautiful form performs according to her own rules, as well as “keine Erklärung fordert” (Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, FA 8: 290).

329See: Schiller’s Kallias oder über die Schönheit. Das Medium des Dichters sind Worte [und daraus resultiert eine Schwierigkeit. Die Natur des Mediums tendiert zum Allgemeinen.] Die Sprache stellt alles vor dem Verstand aber der Dichter soll alles vor die Einbildungskraft bringen (darstellen). Die Dichtkunst will Anschauungen, Die Sprache gibt nur Begriffe” (FA 8: 431). 330 Friedrich Schiller, Kallias, oder über die Schönheit. „In der Sinnenwelt ist nur das Schöne ein Symbol des in sich vollendeten oder des vollkommenen, weil es […] sich selbst zugleich gebietet und gehorcht, und sein eigenes Gesetz vollbringt“ (FA 8: 307). 178

Asking how to make sense of Schiller’s concept of beauty, Martinson enlightens: “The writer had a comprehensive approach to reality” (HT 151). In the treatise Über die notwendigen Grenzen beim Gebrauch schöner Formen, Schiller examines how beauty functions in the world. He observes that we can only sense beauty, but never know it. Empfinden […] (keine Handlung des Geistes) ist bloß auf unsern Zustand gerichtet (FA 8: 678). The sensation of beauty activates our mental and imaginative powers. By tapping into both the intellectual and the emotional faculties of human beings simultaneously, beauty enables human potential.

We are reminded here of Schiller’s first medical dissertation: Empfinden ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder

Verschlimmerung bewusst ist (NA 20: 28). Ultimately, the beautiful form appeals to us by the sensation of freedom and not by the persuasive power of reasoning (FA 8:

300).

Schön, kann man also sagen, ist eine Form, die keine Erklärung fordert, oder auch eine solche, die sich ohne Begriff erklärt (Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, FA 8: 290).

On final note with respect to the distinct quality of beauty, Martinson declares:

“It takes more than the powers of knowledge (Kant’s Erkenntniskräfte) to fully comprehend this quality [of beauty]” (HT 152). Jeffrey Barnouw elaborates, the “term

‘aesthetic’ refers primarily and essentially to feeling and to integration of mental activity which feeling sustains” (607).331 I underscore that the decisive point in

Schiller’s understanding of beauty is that its distinct quality enables the connection

331 Jeffrey Barnouw,“’Aesthetic’ for Schiller and Peirce: A Neglected Origin of Pragmatism,” Journal of the History of Ideas. 49.4 (1988): 607-632. 179

between the inner principle of its form and the idea of freedom, and by this it permits truth.

Schön aber nennen wir es, wenn wir diese Idee nicht zu Hilfe nehmen müssen, um die Form einzusehen, wenn sie freiwillig und absichtslos aus sich selbst hervorzuspringen, und alle Teile sich durch sich selbst zu beschränken scheinen (Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, FA 8: 311).

In the Briefe über die Empfindungen, Moses Mendelssohn observed that while it is necessary that we maintain harmonious tone as a precondition of the highest possible performance of the body, the peculiar quality of beauty relies upon an unspecified sensation of perfection.332 Accordingly, beauty takes us by surprise, charming us with an unclear sensation that symbolizes perfection in an unspecified manner. Martinson submits: “Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of beauty is that, though it cannot be compressed into a single concept, its existence is undeniable. Both sense and reason combine forces to create knowledge of beauty” (HT 152).

In summary, inquiring into the distinct quality of beauty, Schiller’s major point of departure was practical reason. He assessed the distinctive qualities of beauty both in terms of a form of an object, as well as a mental state of existence: while a beautiful form excites the idea of freedom, we recognize the sensation of beauty by the manner it activates both our intellectual and emotional faculties. In sum, beauty is both form and life i.e. state of existence and action. For, as Martinson underscores, in

Schiller’s view beauty is the “sensuous-rational” (sinnlich-vernünftig) in nature (HT

152).

332 Moses Mendelssohn, Briefe über die Empfindungen. “Die Schönheit beruht in der undeutlichen Vorstellung einer Vollkommenheit.“ (2. Brief, 48). 180

Die Schönheit ist also zwar Gegenstand für uns, weil die Reflexion die Bedingung ist, unter der wir eine Empfindung von ihr haben; zugleich aber ist sie ein Zustand unsers Subjekts, weil das Gefühl die Bedingung ist unter der wir eine Vorstellung von ihr haben. Sie ist also zwar Form, weil wir sie betrachten, zugleich aber ist sie Leben, weil wir sie fühlen. Mit einem Wort: sie ist zugleich unser Zustand und unsre Tat (ÄE 25, FA 8: 658).

3.7 BEAUTIFUL FORM AS ENNOBLING HUMAN CHARACTER Denn durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des Menschen, durch den Inhalt hingegen nur auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt. Der Inhalt, wie erhaben und weitumfassend er auch sei, wirkt also jederzeit einschränkend auf den Geist, und nur von der Form ist wahre ästhetische Freiheit zu erwarten.333

From the point of view of the dramatist, Schiller is interested in the manner in which an art form appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom and is observable.

By setting the power of imagination into motion, freedom is the key to the working of the creative intellect. Through the formation of the beautiful, Schiller noted that it was possible to draw the mental faculties to cooperation through the conception of form. As Schiller’s employment of his favorite figure demonstrates, by the visible representation of chiasmus, beauty and play are inseparable. By pairing sense of play and the idea of beauty with each other, Schiller highlights the extraordinary vitality and aesthetic effect of this combination of sense and reason.

Der Mensch soll mit der Schönheit nur spielen, und er soll nur mit der Schönheit spielen.334

As Schiller’s artistic treatment of Laocoon instructs, Form erweckt das Bedürfnis nach einem Grund der Bestimmung zu fragen (FA 8: 300). Laocoon’s artistic form appeals to us because the hero’s distinctive inner qualities are observable by the mode

333 Schiller, ÄE 22, FA 8:641. 334 ÄE 15, FA 8: 614 181

of artistic treatment. If a Kunstwerk (art form) is governed by such artistic principle that complies both with the inner necessity of the thing and at the same time is self- determined, then such form is beautiful (FA 8: 300). Schiller contends that the purpose of the beautiful form is the appeal of freedom and not persuasion by reasoning (FA 8: 678).

Form is a complex term. Since humankind’s faculties are not equally trained, in Schiller’s aesthetic system, form implies a battle between two forces, the form impulse (Formtrieb) and the impulse of matter (Stofftrieb). A third impulse, the play drive (Spieltrieb) mediates between two forces. Human beings are free, i.e. complete when they are playing. During play, human beings develop both of their faculties equally at the same time.

Wir wissen, dass unter allen Zuständen des Menschen gerade das Spiel ist es, was ihn vollständig macht, und seine doppelte Natur auf einmal entfaltet (ÄE 15. Brief, FA 8: 612).

On the one hand, through mediating between sense-and form-drives, the play drive develops both human faculties equally, and gives rise to the idea of freedom in appearance (Freiheit in der Erscheinung). Thus, the experience of beauty is an in- between state of condition that directs the Empfindungsvermögen toward equilibrium and permits human potentials. Furthermore, by encompassing both the form impulse and the impulse of matter, Schiller suggest that play is a creative activity. The artist should play only with beauty. For, only form can perform the Bildung of the whole human being.335

335 See Oschmann, 2017, “Die Formelhaftigkeit von Chiasmus, bestimmt die Performanz der Darstellung” (188) 182

Der Mensch soll mit der Schönheit nur spielen, und er soll nur mit der Schönheit spielen.336

Why is it so? For, only the beautiful form could render the best expression of the whole human being, as also Mein submits: [Wenn] sich das Wesen, die Person des

Dings nicht entfalten [kann…] ist Schönheit nicht möglich (191). By symbolizing the harmonious alliance between Geist und Sinn, beauty further develops mental faculties.

There are, however, difficulties associated with the term of Form, as Schiller cautions:”Sobald der Mensch nur Form ist, so hat er keine Form.”337 As a consequence of the one-sided human development, we live under the threat that either rational or the sensual takes an overhand and influences our thinking and behavior in a subtle manner (HT 175; NA 20: 349-50). According to the tenet of ÄE 8, sluggish mental powers are responsible for the barbaric degeneracy of human actions: Es muss also, […] in den Gemütern der Menschen etwas vorhanden sein, was der Aufnahme der Wahrheit.338 In ÄE 13, Schiller analyses the barbaric conditions. In his diagnosis, he identifies the cause of the problem in the lethargic condition of the sense impulse that was too sluggish to defend her own territory and combat the cowardice of the heart. The writer contends: the task of the human being is to set boundaries between these two impulses. Beide, der Sachtrieb und der Formtrieb haben also

Einschränkung, und insofern sie als Energien gedacht werden, Abspannung nötig (ÄE

13, FA 8: 605; HT 176). As Martinson reads Schiller, on the one hand, the sense

336 ÄE 15, FA 8: 614 337 Schillers Werke. Nationalausgabe. „Philosophische Schriften, Erster Teil.“ Weimar: Hermann Böhlaus Nachfolger, 1962. Bd. 20, 351. 338 Wage es, weise zu sein! Meist wird es in der Interpretation Immanuel Kants zitiert, der es 1784 zum Leitspruch der Aufklärung erklärte: „Habe Mut, dich deines eigenen Verstandes zu bedienen!“ https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapere_aude#cite_note-1 183

impulse needs to assume vigor and strength against “the usurping tactics of the mind” and remain triumphant “mistress of her own domain” (HT 176).

Die Sinnlichkeit selbst muss mit siegender Kraft ihr Gebiet behaupten, und der Gewalt widerstreben, die ihr der Geist Durch seine vorgreifende Tätigkeit gerne zufügen möchte (ÄE 13, FA 8: 606).

On the other hand, reason must be mindful of feelings, for feelings allow us insights into our own state of affairs. Nevertheless, as Schiller cautions, by relaxing his powers, reason should not fall into intellectual impotency. Such condition would mean degeneracy. Form impulse “must, if it to be at all praiseworthy, spring from abundance of feeling and sensation” (HT 176).

Jene Abspannung des Formtriebs darf eben so wenig die Wirkung eines geistigen Unvermögens […] sein, welche die Menschheit erniedrigen würde. Fülle der Empfindungen muss ihre rühmliche Quelle sein (ÄE 13, FA 8: 606).

For, only our heart can unlock the powers of our mind and soul and assert the validity of truth. Should, however, it be that sense loses her powers, it should happen to nothing else but to the free principle of her being i.e. Geist, as Schiller insists.339

Therefore, by counterbalancing the one-sided operation of reason in such manner, the urgent need is to refine the capacity of feelings through strengthening the heart and combating the indolence of our body and training the faculty of sensation i.e.

Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens.

[...] weil der Weg zu dem Kopf durch das Herz muȕ geöffnet werden. Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens ist also das dringendere Bedürfnis der Zeit [...] (ÄE 8, FA 8: 580-581)

339 ÄE 13. Brief, “Der Charakter muss seine Grenzen bestimmen, den nur an den Geist darf der Sinn verlieren“ (FA 8:6050. 184

As Schiller inspires, we must realize that to a certain degree the characteristic of the human mind and soul allows insights into our state affairs. In ÄE 20, 340

Schiller comes to the point that it is unfortunate that the thinking component (der selbsttätige Gedanke) of the human being comes into play only after the sensuous impulse (Empfindungen) sets in. In this battle between two forces, the form impulse

(Formtrieb) and the impulse of matter (Stofftrieb), the task of the arts is to address in a playful manner the possibility of a cooperative interaction (harmonisches

Zusammenwirken) between these faculties. A middle position is necessary, in which the play impulse (Spieltrieb) mediates between sense and form impulse. On the one hand, the play impulse gives rise to the concept of beauty that Schiller defines in terms of freedom in appearance i.e. Freiheit in der Erscheinung (FA 8: 300). On the other hand, play drive functions as a Lebendige Gestalt, as an in-between force, that in a playful manner directs feelings (Empfindungen) through the means of a harmonious interplay towards to possibility of identifying themselves with thought

(Gedanke).

Das Gemüt geht also von der Empfindung zum Gedanken durch eine mittlere Stimmung über, in welcher Sinnlichkeit und Vernunft zugleich tätig sind, eben deswegen aber ihre bestimmende Gewalt gegenseitig aufheben und durch eine Entgegensetzung eine Negation bewirken. (ÄE 20, FA 8: 633)

340 Moses Mendelssohn, “Zehnter Brief,” Briefe über die Empfindungen, In attributing to the pleasurable sensation that he called a healthy tension i.e. a heilsame Spannung that the sensuous pleasures are brought into play before the thinking component of the human being can take place, Mendelssohn influenced Schiller. In ÄE 20, Schiller claims: Der sinnliche Trieb kommt also früher als der vernünftige zur Wirkung, weil die Empfindung dem Bewusstsein vorhergeht, und in dieser Priorität finden wir den Aufschluss zu der ganzen Geschichte der menschlichen Freiheit (FA 8: 632). 185

Schiller proposes that in this middle position (Spieltrieb) i.e. aesthetic state, the human being is null. His quality in terms of value, worth and dignity is not defined yet. By the manner of playfully exercising the powers of his mental faculties, the human being is set free from all his constraints to achieve his potentials.

Von Natur wegen möglich gemacht ist, aus sich zu machen, was er will –dass ihm die Freiheit, zu sein, was er soll, vollkommen zurückgegeben ist. (FA 8: 636).

By noting the placement of the modal verbs, Schiller uses the word will (want) in a sense of bestimmen. That is to say, an aesthetic experience grants the individual the potential to define himself. The second time, the emphasis is placed on freedom. In championing that beauty is followed by freedom, Schiller contends that the aesthetic experience grants the most precious of all the gifts in the world. It grants freedom to the individual to fulfill his calling (zu sein, was er soll). From both poetic and philosophical standpoints, Schiller esteems beauty as an ennobling force. While beauty develops mental faculties, a beautiful form represents human potential, i.e.

Vermögen zur Menschheit. By driving human faculties toward cooperation, beauty also refines human beings’ capacity of feelings and cultivates the imaginative experience of wholeness. A beautiful object appears to be free, i.e. durch sich selbst bestimmt (FA 8: 297) because it is determined by its own distinctive inner quality.

By cultivating the imaginative experience of wholeness, beauty is a creative force. By this, as Schiller submits, beauty is not merely a poetic impulse but also a philosophical perspective. Es ist nicht bloȕ poetisch erlaubt, sondern auch philosophisch richtig, wenn man die Schönheit unsre zweite Schöpferin nennt (ÄE 21,

FA 8: 636-37). 186

In conclusion, by paying attention to how art communicates through aesthetic effects and, than through form, two things mattered to Schiller as a poet-dramaturge: artistic imagination and the conception of form. In his search for his own conception of beauty, Schiller’s major point of departure was practical reason. While Schiller was interested in how an art form appeals to us as freedom, a beautiful form sets the imagination free and enables human potential.

Beauty represents human potential as well as a mental state of existence. A beautiful form excites the idea of freedom and refines the capacity of our feelings.

While Schiller was committed to the inner building of the human character, his poetic sensibility for the beautiful lifted his imagination to the ideal, he Der Mensch, wenn er

YHUHLQLJWZLUNWLVWLPPHUHLQJURȕHV:HVHQ Schiller’s originality manifests itself through the recognizing that the beautiful has a potential to ennoble human character

(Bildungskraft des Schönen). In his poetic pursuit of capturing human beings’ best possible expression through the formation of the beautiful, das Dichterische enables the highest possible cooperation between the physical and rational and spiritual faculties, as well as is the guardian of human dignity (Würde). 37). 187

PART II: THE TRAGEDIAN SCHILLER

Die dramatische Kunst hat ihre Würde darin, dass sie alle Kräfte der Seele, des Geistes und des Herzens beschäftigt (NA 20:89).341

The first section of the present study explored how, by incorporating beauty as symbol of nature into his poetic pursuits, Schiller schooled himself in the manner he ought to create art allowing men and women to experience themselves as whole human beings. In Part II, I will analyze Schiller’s images of humankind

[Menchenbilder] in order to show how, by incorporating the pursuit of das

Dichterische into his tragedies, his dramatic works inspire the interior formation of human character.342 I contend that, by addressing the possibility of a reciprocal interaction between the faculties of mind and body, on the one hand, Schiller’s tragedies uphold that beauty as a symbol of alliance between Geist and Sinn enables human potentials and enhances the possibility of moral self-determination.343 On the other hand, I will address how, by offering an honest insight into the realities of human struggles, Schiller shows the obstacles of progress. On the other hand, though challenged by the complexities of his undertaking, Schiller advances the view that the privilege of humankind is to determine the self. Frei sein und durch sich selbst bestimmt sein […] Diese Art von Besinnung geschieht nicht von auȕen, [sondern] von

341Friedrich Schiller, “Was kann eine gute stehende Schaubühne eigentlich wirken?“ (1784, NA 20: 87- 100),—hereafter cited as Schaubühne-Rede. 342 Friedrich Schiller, Vom Erhabenen. „Nur als Sinnenwesen sind wir abhängig, als Vernunftwesen sind wir frei“ (FA 8:395). 343 Vergl. Norbert Oellers, Schiller. Elend der Geschichte, Glanz der Kunst, (Stuttgart, 2005),-- hereafter cited as Elend der Geschichte. “Drei Jahre nach Lessings Tod hat ihm Kant in seiner Abhandlung Beantwortung der Frage: Was ist Aufklärung? Ein Denkmal gesetzt, ohne ihn zu nennen. Denn kein bedeutender Vertreter der deutschen Aufklärung hat sich ein Vierteljahrhunder hindurch so intensiv darum bemüht, den “Ausgang des Menschen aus seiner selbst verschuldeten Unmündigkeit“ (so Kants Definition des Begriffs „Aufklärung“) zu 188

innen (FA 8:298). The determination of freedom occurs from within,344 which is the result of the greatest cooperative interaction between the physical and spiritual- rational. Schiller proposes that the realization of such high-yielding disposition impresses the mind with a sense of grandeur and power. Erhaben ist alles, was dieses

Vermögen in uns zum Bewuȕtsein bringt (Vom Erhabenen, FA 8: 421). Since, however, such ennobled beauteous character would be the highest yielding of a most mature humanity, in reality, such disposition exists merely as an idea that we yearn for (Anmut und Würde, FA 8:373).

Ideally, a sensible human being does not allow himself to be controlled by the blind forces of human instincts, […] das Ideal der vollkommenen Menschheit keinen

Widerstreit, sondern Zusammenstimmung zwischen dem Sittlichen und Sinnlichen fordert (FA 8:382).345 In the pursuit of legitimizing the self as independent moral agent, however, humankind encounters both inner and outer conflicts. Therefore,

Schiller champions the idea that the tragedies must show strength and character as well as touch the heart and lift the spirit, but never dismantle it.

Unsere Tragödie, wenn wir eine solche hätten, hat mit der Ohnmacht, der Schlaffheit, der Charakterlosigkeit des Zeitgeistes und mit einer gemeinen Denkart zu ringen, sie muss also Kraft und Charakter zeigen, sie muss das Gemüt zu erschüttern, zu erheben, aber nicht aufzulösen suchen (Friedrich Schiller an Johann Wilhelm Süvern, 26. Juli 1800, NA 30:177).

344 See 2.3 The Poetic Idea, (FA 8:780). The inner self-reliant human ability is das wahre Menschliche 345 See Friedrich Schiller, Über Anmut und Würde. (FA 8: 330-398). 189

While the idea of freedom is central to Schiller’s tragedies, it finds its expression in many forms in his oeuvre. In alluding to the complementary function between sense and reason, beauty is freedom in appearance.

In the context of our study, beauty and freedom are complementary terms that encourage us to take a stand against the blind impulses of our own nature. “Freiheit ist

Selbstbestimmung durch die Kraft der Vernunft, die sich der blinden Natur entgegenstemmt.“346 We rise above our physical nature through ideas.347 Following

Walter Muschg, Schiller’s creative consciousness is guided by a double pursuit: on the one hand, it concerns sketching characters that would allow progress, on the other hand, however, it has to do with figuring how to permit the Empfindung, ein Mensch zu sein (NA 20: 100).

[…] der Sinn seines [Schiller’s] Schaffens […] heißt Ringen um die Form immer auch Ringen mit der Idee, und es liegt nur an uns, wenn wir bald nur das eine, bald nur das andere wahrzunehmen vermögen (Muschg 225).

Schiller was one of the greatest tragedians of the German language whose tragedies creatively engage the development of human character. Admittedly, theorizing alone about the writer’s achievement as a dramaturge could never do justice to his great literary accomplishments. As Mattias Luserke-Jaqui reminds us, only by engaging Schiller’s literary works can we appreciate the timelessness of his

346 Walter Muschg, 1961,„Schiller die Tragödie der Freiheit“, 227,--hereafter cited as Muschg. 347 Schiller Vom Erhabenen, “Erhaben nennen wir ein Objekt, bei dessen Vorstellung unsre sinnliche Natur ihre Schranken, unsre vernünftige Natur aber ihre Überlegenheit, ihre Freiheit von Schranken fühlt; gegen das wir also physisch den Kürzeren ziehen, über welches wir aber moralisch, d.i. durch Ideen erheben (FA 8: 395). 190

poetic pursuits on behalf of humankind. Luserke-Jaqui quotes Schiller in affirming that the human being is the center of the German poet’s literary interest.

Welche Bedeutung der Mensch für die Literatur und welchen Nutzen die Literatur für den Menschen hat-- in Schillers Worten: Es ist der Mensch von welchem die Rede ist (FA 7:563).348

Karl S. Guthke comments on Schiller’s concept of Bildung of the human being rather than the play itself.

In all his historical plays, Schiller focuses not so much on the course of history and its ulterior meaning as on the prominent man or woman caught up in it.349

Lastly, Lesley Sharpe perceives that Schiller did not see the possibility of progress ‘in the practice of reason alone’, as has Kant, but in the cultivation (Bildung) of the whole human being. “Where the Enlightenment had failed was not in the education of the mind and in the increase of knowledge but in the cultivation of the heart, of sensibility, Schiller argued.”350 For, the way to the head must take place through the heart.

In 1784, Schiller promotes the idea that the stage is an effective instrument of schooling the whole human being. By asking -- Was kann eine Schaubühne wirken?-- he boldly claims: The only secret that would protect humankind against his own folly is that he learns to bolster his heart against the indolent tendencies of his nature. Ich kenne nur ein Geheimnis, den Menschen vor Verschlimmerung zu bewahren, und

348 Martthias Luserke-Jaqui, 2005, „Vorwort.“ Friedrich Schiller, ix. 349 Guthke, Karl S. „Die Jungfrau von Orleans.“ In Companion, 227. 350 Lesley Sharpe, „Concerning Aesthetic Education“, in Companion, 151. See also: High. High zeigt, „dass es nicht die Idee der Rebellion und seine Beweggründe an sich waren, was Schiller fürchtete […], sondern vielmehr die ‚barbarische Wildheit‘“ (36). 191

dieses ist – sein Herz gegen Schwächen zu schützen.351 Sharpe argues that an unschooled heart has “an inability or unwillingness to act in accordance with

[reason]” (Concerning 152). To subjoin, I contend that Schiller’s tragedies aim for schooling human sensibility, i.e. Empfindungsvermögen (für den eigenen Zustand und für die Leiden von anderen) in favor of enabling discernment Einsicht. […] weil der

Weg zu dem Kopf durch das Herz muss geöffnet werden, […] selbst darum, weil sie zu

Verbesserung der Einsicht erweckt (ÄE 8, FA 8:582). To what end?

As we observed in Part I, Schiller considered die Bildungskraft des Schönen to be central to his poetic pursuit of ennobling human character. […], weil es die

Schönheit ist durch welche man zu der Freiheit wandert.352 Kurscheidt explains,

”Schönheit bedeutet die Erfahrbarkeit des Ideals von der Einheit des Menschen selbst“ (177).353 Nevertheless, Schiller himself was puzzled by the phenomenon that human beings responded easier to grandeur and power than to grace and dignity. As he argues in ÄE 16:

Für den Menschen unter dem Zwange entweder der Materie oder der Formen ist also die schmelzende Schönheit Bedürfnis, denn von Größe und Kraft ist er längst gerührt, ehe er für Harmonie und Grazie anfängt empfindlich zu werden (ÄE 16, FA 8:618).

In ÄE 2, Schiller provocatively claims that, durch Schönheit ist, durch welche man zu der Frieheit wandert (“only through beauty that man makes his way to freedom”, FA

8:560). In pursuit of counterbalancing the negative effect of the Enlightenment, “the poet must stand apart from his age, giving not what it wants but what it needs”

351 Friedrich Schiller, Schaubühne-Rede (NA 20: 135). 352 ÄE 2, FA 8: 560. 353 Kurt Kurscheidt, “13. Dezember 1791 – Hilfe aus Dänemark,“ in: Schiller Bilder und Texte zu seinem Leben, (Köln-Weimar-Wien, 1999), 37-45,--hereafter, Hilfe aus Dänemark, 169-177. 192

(Concerning, 154). Schiller endeavors that human beings need “schmelzende

Schönheit” (melting beauty). On the account of harmonizing “content and form, melting beauty is capable of mediating the ideal to us intuitively.”354

In observing that human beings are easily disposed of grace and dignity, the

Greek literary critic Longinus355 proclaimed that since nature did not intend for us to have inferior qualities, it should be of no surprise why everything that is great and magnificent attracts human beings. “Vor allem die Erkenntnis, dass uns die Natur nicht als niedrige, unedle Geschöpfe ansah, [und…] Liebe zu allem einpflanzte (17),

[…] das wahrhaft groß ist“ (77). Longinus offers an explanation that does not quiet set Schiller at ease. Unfortunately, as Schiller reminds, humankind lost his dignity.

Nevertheless, “the greatest works of nature,” the arts, managed to salvage the distinct qualities of happy people.

Die Menschheit hat ihre Würde verloren, aber die Kunst hat sie gerettet, […]; die Wahrheit lebt in der Täuschung fort. […] die Dichtungskraft fängt ihre Strahlen auf.356

In his poem Die Künstler, Schiller encourages his fellow poets to ennoble humankind.

Guard human dignity by preserving das wahre Menschliche, i.e. the inner self-reliant ability! Der Menschheit Würde ist in eure Hand gegeben, Bewahret sie!357 As Schiller reminds in his essay Anmut und Würde, „The task is given to mankind that he should establish inner concord between his physical and spiritual-rational faculties, and always be a harmonizing entity, acting like a full-sounding anthem. Since such

354 See Sharpe “schmelzende Schönheit”, in Concerning, 154-157). 355 Longinus, On the Sublime (Vom Erhabenen). I retain Longinus, although I am aware that Alt disputes this name claiming that the author of the treatise was Peri Huspous. In Alt, II, 88. 356 Schiller, ÄE16, FA 8: 584. 357 Schiller, Die Künstler, in Gedichte, 201-214. 193

ennobled beauteous character would be the highest yielding of a most mature humanity, in reality such disposition exists merely as an idea that we yearn for“(FA 8:

373).

Der Grund, warum er es nicht kann, ist die unveränderliche Einrichtung seiner Natur; es sind die physischen Bedingungen seines Daseins selbst, die ihn daran verhindern (FA 8:373).

Hence, the realization of a perfectly harmonious disposition remains merely an idea that excites our imagination, but never fully attained. First, because our human constitution is influenced by the sensation of pain and pleasure. Second, the limitations of our physical existence would also thwart such aspiration.

In responding to the disparate approaches between Longinus

“Naturästhetik”358 and Schiller’s poetic pursuits of ennobling human character, Kurt

Kurscheidt calls to engage with the idea of greatnesss critically. He argues that, though theatrical performance may blur the distinction between virtue and crime, i.e. ethical and immoral attitudes, we need to be on guard not to allow our critical faculties to be swayed to accept a criminal behavior as a deed of a powerful man. In pursuit of ennobling human beings, Schiller brings his whole artistic personality into play: Due to the powerful effect of greatness upon the audience, Schiller was well aware that it was a risky undertaking to present Bösewichter (villains) on the stage whose horrible deeds threaten to overwhelm the audience with wonder.

Die Bewunderung von ‚Kraft‘ und ‚Größe‘, ließ den Unterschied zwischen Moral und Unmoral, zwischen Tugend und Laster unbedeutend erscheinen. […] Natürlich wusste Schiller um die Publikumswirksamkeit von ‚Bösewichtern‘ und ‚Missetätern. ‘ […]

358 Alt II, 88. 194

Schiller spürte, dass die Faszination, die von einem ‚majestätischen Ungeheuer‘ ausging, zugleich etwas Bedrohliches hatte […].359

Nevertheless, in Schiller’s views, the tragedian should strive for schooling his audience in the true meaning of greatness, which expands das wahre Menschliche,

(inner self-reliant ability to sense the greatest cooperative interaction between our physical and spiritual-rational faculties) with a distinctive poetic sensibility that not only refines the capacity of our feelings but has also an ethical and intellectual component.360 By letting his observers walk into the nächtliche Labyrinthe von

Mißetätern, Schiller sought to use human admiration of Kraft und Größe as an effective instrument of Bildung of the character. For, as Kurscheidt champions, no

German poet did posterity award such ‘moralische Kompetenz’ as to Schiller (45).

Ultimately, by fine-tuning our heart to sense the improvement, -- or deterioration of our state of being by the effect of poetry, Schiller hoped that his observers would desire the excellent character traits of the beautiful souls that he was to design in his later tragedies. So wie die Anmut der Ausdruck einer schönen Seele ist, so ist Würde der Ausdruck einer erhabenen Gesinnung.361 While “Aristotle called character, along with thought, that aspect of plot from which the action arises,”362 he points out that

“[…] among human pleasures that of learning is the keenest. “363 In schooling the

359 Kurt Kurscheidt, „11. Februar 1781 – Tringelage bei Aué,“ in: Schiller Bilder und Texte zu seinem Leben, (Köln Weimar Wie, 1999), 37-45,--hereafter Kurscheidt. 360 CH3. Schiller’s concept of Das Pathetische expands Lessing’s Mitleid. Alt expounds that Schiller’s “Mitleidsempfindung neben der sinnlichen eine Moralisch-vernünftige Komponente enthalte (Alt II, 90). Through training i.e. Ausbildung des Emfpindungsvermögens, das Pathetische not only refines the capacity of our feelings, but it has also an ethical and intellectual component. 361 Schiller, Über Anmut und Würde, (FA 8:373). 362 Jonnie Patricia Mobley, NTC’s Dictionary of Theatre and Drama Terms, (Chicago, 1999), 23. 363 Aristotle, On the Art of Poetry, (New York, 1913), Cha 4, 10 195

Empfindungsvermögen, Schiller responded to “the problem as how to open up a way to the heart among those whose reason has been overdeveloped but in limited directions,” as Sharpe proposes, “[by this, it is fair to state that] the proper cultivation of feelings becomes the task”364 of the tragedy [my emphasis].

The question is then not “whether”, but “how” the tragedian Schiller responded to the need of refining human beings’ capacity of feeling through training i.e. the Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens (FA 8:582).365 My task is here then to respond to the research questions that I posed at the onset of this study: where in

Schiller’s poetic and dramatic works do we find evidence of his efforts of schooling, i.e., Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens? How does Schiller’s artistry contribute to the fine-tuning of the human heart to be able to sense the improvement or the deterioration of her own state of being? How does Schiller school his viewers to be sympathetic with other human beings’ sufferings?

In his Schaubühne-Rede (1784) Schiller observes: if we followed the fine clues in the whole fabric of human actions, through the pleasure of discovering the coherence between the particulars of the plot, we would learn that the downfall of a hero is often the result of a seemingly insignificant human failure.

Das Glück der Gesellschaft wird ebenso sehr durch Torheit als durch Verbrechen und Laster gestört. Erfahrung lehrt es, dass im Gewebe menschlicher Dinge oft die größten Gewichte an den kleinsten und zärtesten Fädern hängen (Was kann eine Schaubühne wirken? NA 20:94).

364 Sharpe, „Concerning”, 152. 365 High demonstrates that Schiller was not against democratic ideas, but he rather he feared the fateful consequences of unruly emotions, ‘Barbarische Wildheit’, ‘Wütender Parteigeist.’ In: Schillers Rebellionskonzept und die Französische Revolution,36. 196

On one hand, we will follow the delicate threads in Schiller’s dramas, which call to attention with telling originality the need of humankind to learn to understand the causes of the misdeeds that threaten the happiness of the individual, as well as that of society. On the other hand, as noted above, in response to the Charakterlosigkeit des Zeitgeistes, we will examine how the dramaturge’s manner of attributing character and strength to his tragedies. The task of poesy is to school our mental faculties i.e. den Geist mit Stärke ausrüsten (FA 8:449). In an effort to displace the powerless and impotent attitudes that permeated human modes of thinking of his age, Schiller responded with a clear and honest vision to the struggles that humankind face in this world. In pursuit of properly cultivating das Empfindungsvermögen, Schiller appears to claim that his reason behind writing tragedy is to show character and strength in such a manner that agitates the heart and lifts the spirit, but never dismantles these faculties.

Die Schönheit ist für ein glückliches Geschlecht, aber ein unglückliches muss man erhaben zu rühren suchen (Friedrich Schiller an Johann Wilhelm Süvern, 26 July 1800, NA 30:177).

If so, we must ask, how does the tragedian Schiller bring about such poetic effect in his tragedies? That is to say, how are we to grasp the tragedian’s appeal of erhaben zu rühren? For, as Schiller insists, the tragedy has a poetic purpose. The individual events of the tragedy should mutually work together for the final purpose of lifting our spirit and touching our heart, but never disintegrate the human spirit to the extent that he succumbs to barbaric instincts.366

366„Erhaben ist alles, was dieses Vermögen in uns zum Bewuȕtsein bringt“ (Vom Erhabenen, FA 8: 421). 197

Aber die Tragödie hat einen poetischen Zweck, d.i. sie stellt eine Handlung dar, um zu rühren, und durch rühren zu ergötzen (NA 20:166).

As we know, in the Philosophie der Physiologie, Schiller championed that we enjoy the things that bring us closer to our own purposes. Was den Menschen jener

Bestimmung näher bringt, […] das wird ihn ergötzen (NA 20:11). I contend that this central position remains constant also in Schiller‘s tragedies: Vollkommenheit an

Vergnügen, Missvergnügen an Unvollkommenheit gebunden ist (NA 20:11). As I suggested in Part I, through addressing the possibility of a mutual cooperative interaction between the faculties of mind and body, Schiller sought to ennoble human character by portraying a coherence between the proper understanding of freedom and human purpose. That is the idea of congruence between the laws of nature and the inclination of our heart.367

Sharpe observes, however, that since Schiller was “postulating the possibility of inspiring moral actions in concert with nature or inclination, a problem in Kant,

[…there is] a tension in his thinking” (Concerning 156). To be sure, Schiller’s thought is not without tension. Steven D. Martinson and David V. Pugh have elaborated expansively on this problem, albeit from very different points of view.368 As I am suggesting here, Schiller also addresses the problem of tension from the point of view of the tragedian. Schiller appeals to our senses through poetic means, aiming to

367 Vergl. Philosophie der Physiologie, „Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; Sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen. […] Empfindung ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder Verschlimmerung bewusst ist“ (NA 20: 28). 368 For important discussions of the nature of tension in Schiller’s thought, see Martinson, Harmonious Tensions (Newark, 1966), and Pugh, Dialectic of Love: Platonism in Schiller’s Aesthetics (Montreal, 1977). 198

convulse our heart and lift our spirits, but never with the purpose of dismantling our mental faculties. By insisting that it is possible to sense the improvement or the deterioration of our mind and soul,369 Schiller emphasis is on the congruence between the laws of nature and the inclination of our heart.

In underscoring the significance of the poetic truth370 over the accurate cataloging of historical facts, Schiller’s drama theories expand Aristotle’s notion of catharsis, as demonstrated below. The tragedy’s purpose is to portray human beings amidst afflicting circumstances.

Die dichterische Nachahmung einer zusammenhängenden Reihe von Begebenheiten (einer vollständigen Handlung), welche uns Menschen in einem Zustand des Leidens zeigt, und zur Absicht hat, unser Mitleid zu erregen (NA 20:164).

As Schiller repeatedly emphasizes, through the artistic ordering of particular incidents, the purpose of tragedy is to highlight the conflict at hand and stir our soul to compassion with the misfortune of the tragic hero. By expanding the Aristotelian catharsis with the Mitleid-concept, in Sharpe’s view, Schiller “secures a place for tragedy—essentially an archaic art form—in a modern moral environment”

(Concerning 157). Berghahn comments that the supremacy of the dramatic genres in late eighteenth century Germany owes to Schiller’s drama theories, as well as his tragedies.

Die Vorherrschaft der dramatischen Gattung hat Schiller durch seine Theorie und seine Dramen begründet. Wie kaum ein anderer deutscher

369 Compare Schiller’s Philosophie der Physiologie. „Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; Sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen. […] Empfindung ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder Verschlimmerung bewusst ist” (NA 20: 28). 370Friedrich Schiller „Über das Pathetische.“ (FA 8: 423-451). „Die poetische Wahrheit besteht aber […] in der inneren Möglichkeit der Sache. Die ästhetische Kraft muss also in der vorgestellten Wirklichkeit liegen“ (448). 199

Dichter war er nach Geistesart wie dichterischem Selbstverständnis dem Dramatischen zugeneigt.371

Concerning Schiller’s innovative tendencies, Peter-André Alt explains that, in the 18th century, the concept of the sublime [des Erhabenen] became a complementary term of the beautiful [des Schönen]. 372 In his treatise Über das

Erhabene (1793-96), Schiller reflects about the insights he made as a poet- dramaturge. With respect to the poetic treatment of the aesthetic education of the whole human being, it was necessary to expand die Empfindungsfähigkeit des menschlichen Herzens nach dem ganzen Umfang unsrer Bestimmung (i.e. to cultivate the consciousness of the sublime in the human heart in addition to the beautiful, FA 8:

838).373 Alt comments on this subject matter as following:

Erst am Schluss […] betont [der Essay Über das Erhabene]: […] das Erhabene müsse im Programm der ästhetischen Erziehung des Menschen als dem Schönen komplementäres Element seinen festen Platz erhalten. […] Die entscheidende Differenz beider Bereiche kommt, wie die Schrift ausführt, anhand der Verhältnisse zwischen Sinnlichkeit und Vernunft zutage, dass beim Schönen harmonisch ausfällt, beim Erhabenen jedoch durch eine deutliche Gegensatzspannung geprägt scheint, unter deren Einfluss Erfahrung und moralische Freiheit auseinandertreten (Alt, II, 96).

371 Klaus l. Berghahn, “’Das Pathetischerhaben’ –Schillers Dramentheorie,” in: Schiller Ansichten eines Idealisten, (Frankfurt am Main, 1986), p 27-56--herearter Schillers Dramentheorie. 372 Vergl. Alt, II. „Der Terminus des Erhabenen gerät im 18. Jahrhundert Zug um Zug zum Komplementärbegriff des Schönen. Er bezeichnet jene Erscheinungen der Nature, die im Gemüt des Menschen wechselvolle Erscheinungen freisetzen“ (88). 373 Alt, II. Schillers letzte größere Abhandlung zur Tragödietheorie, die den Titel Über das Erhabene trägt, entstand vermutlich zwischen 1793 und 1796, wurde jedoch erst 1801 im dritten Band der Kleineren prosaischen Schriften publiziert. Die entscheidende Differenz beider Bereiche (das Schöne und das Erhabene) kommt wie die Schrift ausführt, anhand der Verhältnisse zwischen Sinnlichkeit und Vernunft zutage, dass beim Schönen harmonisch ausfällt, beim Erhabenen jedoch durch eine deutliche Gegensatzspannung geprägt scheint, unter deren Einfluss, Erfahrung und moralische Freiheit auseinandertreten. Erst am Schluss sucht der Essay die Möglichkeit einer Vermittlung beider Bereiche, wenn es betonnt, auch das Erhabene müsse im Programm der ästhetischen Erziehung des Menschen als dem Schönen komplementäres Element seinen festen Platz erhalten (96). See Über das Erhabene, FA 8: 838) 200

More importantly, the tragedy presents but does not narrate an action, as both

Aristotle and Schiller maintained.374 In learning from the ambiguous impact of emotions upon human actions, Schiller organized his material around a main point of conflict that requires from the character to choose between two conflicting imperatives, the desires of the heart and the dictates of the mind. Schiller called this significant conflict Punctum saliens [crucial point]. Berghahn elaborates:

Vor allem Schillers Szenarien und Skizzenblätter veranschaulichen, wie er sich bei der Organisation des Stoffes bemühte, eine einfache Handlung zu entwerfen, die den dramatischen Konflikt eindeutig und mit großer Klarheit heraushebt. Die zentrale Konfliktsituation, die vom Helden eine Entscheidung verlangt, bildet den Kristallisationspunkt seiner Dramen, und von diesem dramatischen Höhepunkt aus organisiert er die Handlung. Dieses dramatische und ideelle Zentrum bezeichnet Schiller als Punctum saliens“(42).375

In showing how emotions exert influence upon the protagonist’s course of action, I advance the view that strong emotions are active ingredients of literature, most significantly that of grandeur and sublimity. “Leidenschaften sind der Bestandteil des ganzen literarischen Schaffens, besonders jedoch der Erhabenheit zu bilden“

(Longinus 111). In focusing on the crucial point leading to the pinnacle of the central conflict situation, that is the point of conflict between mind and body, I will illuminate that the significance of the battle that the protagonists face between two forces, the form impulse (Formtrieb), and the impulse of matter (Stofftrieb). While the protagonists are compelled to choose between the desires of the heart and the dictates

374 For the definition of Tragedy, see Cooper, “A tragedy, the, is an artistic imitation of an action that is serious, complete in itself, and of an adequate magnitude.[…] As for the manner, the imitation is itself in the form of an action directly presented, not narrated” (17). Schiller’s definition in Über die tragische Kunst (NA 164-167). 375 Klaus L. Berghahn. Schiller. Ansichten eines Idealisten. Frankfurt am Main: Athenäum, 1986. 201

of the mind, the punctum saliens in Schiller’s unique treatment offers a fresh insight into how his dramas can contribute to the Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens.

Michael Billington makes the powerful statement: “The German Shakespeare.

Schiller used to be box-office poison.” In answering Billington’s question—“Why are his plays suddenly back in favour?”376— I propose that one of the many reasons might be that Schiller’s plays demand attention that the German dramaturge took the tragic flaw of his protagonists seriously. By vividly portraying on the stage the crucial point of conflict that occupied the minds and the hearts of his protagonists, Schiller’s power of the dramaturge comes alive.

376 Michael Billington. https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2005/jan/29/theatre.classics

202

CHAPTER FOUR: SCHILLER’S DEBUT PLAY: „MENSCH... SEIN"377: DIE RÄUBER

Die dramatische Kunst hat ihre Würde darin, dass sie alle Kräfte der Seele, des Geistes und des Herzens beschäftigt (NA 20: 89).

In order to counteract the impotent tendencies of his age, Schiller wrote tragedies that would disclose true character and strength through the aesthetic education of the audience. Already well in advance of his well-known theoretical essays of the 1790s,

Schiller sought to bolster character in the recipients of his poetic-dramatic works by presenting sublime moments that moved his audience (die Seele zur Größe erziehen).

Poesy’s key function was to create that harmonious alliance between thought and feelings that sparked and further educated the complete human being within us (den ganzen Menschen in uns; NA 20: 245) at particular moments in the course of the dramatic action. As we have witnessed in the case of das Dichterische, by cultivating the reciprocal interaction between the mind and body, the poet’s task was to invoke the quality of discernment in his beholders while also satisfying what the poet felt to be the fundamental human „need for beauty.“378 In the light of this poetic pursuit, we are compelled to pose one of the most important questions for a deeper understanding of Schiller’s art. How does Schiller explore the various entanglements of his

377 In his Mannheim Schaubühne-Rede, “Die Schaubühne al seine moralische Anstalt betrachtet,” Schiller argues that the theatre as an aesthetic institution permits us to feel as complete human beings. “Die Schaubühne ist die Stiftung, wo sich Vergnügen mit Unterricht, […] wo Kurzweil mit Bildung gattet. Wir werden uns selbst wieder gegeben, [… unsere] Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20: 100). In his review of Bürger, Schiller determines that poesy’s key function is to actualize the harmonious alliance between thought and feelings that produces “den ganzen Menschen in uns” (NA 20: 245). 378 James R. Kreuzer: “Poetry...makes many kinds of appeals; of primary importance is its appeal to man’s aesthetic sense, his awareness of and pleasure in beauty” (2). 203

characters and what kind of solution does he offer in and through dramatic tension which is not reserved only for the theatrical stage but for life itself?

4.1 Analysis: Die Räuber 379

A. Literary Contexts

Already before writing his first medical dissertation Philosophie der Physiologie,

Schiller had been working on his first drama, Die Räuber. In fact, the first drafts of the play date back to the mid-1770s.380 The drive to be a poet and to follow his heart shaped Schiller’s work in other areas of endeavor as well. Reconsidering the nature of his medical writings in the light of the author’s poetic impulse, the Philosophie der

Physiologie, may be read as a philosophical treatise that suggests the central importance of attention (Aufmerksamkeit) in both the creative process and the reception of visual images (mind) and psycho-physical stimuli (body) that the soul senses through the vibration of its “strings” (Saiten). By reflecting upon the operations of the mind, body, and soul, young Schiller initiated the idea of congruence between the laws of nature and the inclinations of the human heart.

Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; Sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen. […] Empfindung ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder Verschlimmerung bewusst ist (NA 20:28).

Indeed, while the Philosophie der Physiologie instructs that our feelings reveal the concert or disconcertion of our state of mind, Schiller’s debut drama lays bare the fact that humankind also lacks the productive interaction between “Stoff” and “Form”

379 Schiller, Gedichte. Dramen I. 4., 150. 380 Concerning the genesis of the Räuber, see Alt, I: 276-285. 204

to construct one’s sense of identity. Unilineal theoretical pursuits during the German

Aufklärung could not generate the ennobling influence upon human character that

Schiller envisioned. For, as Schiller writes, the Enlightenment

[…] zeigt, im Ganzen genommen, so wenig einen veredelnden Einfluss auf die Gesinnung. […] daher die Beschränktheit im Denken, die .UDIWORVLJNHLWLP+DQGHOQGLHNOlJOLFKH0LWWHOPlȕLJNHLWLP Hervorbringen, die unser Zeitalter zu seiner Schande charakterisiert (Letter to F. C. von Augustenburg, 13 July 1793; NA, 263-264).

Clearly, Schiller’s debut drama shows that body and mind affect each other. If tyrannized by the impulsiveness of passion381 and not by reason, the condition of humankind resembles that of a ‘sinking ship.’382 The realm of reason bears the mark of freedom: Das Reich der Vernunft ist ein Reich der Freiheit und keine Knechtschaft

(NA 26: 258). In asking what causes the hero’s error in judgment or shortcoming,

Aristotle recommends in the Poetics that by its function, the drama can arouse the disturbing emotions of “pity and fear in such a way as to affect relief, i.e. catharsis”

(Cooper 17). In his third medical dissertation, Versuch über den Zusammenhang der tierischen Natur des Menschen mit seiner geistigen (1780), Schiller maintains that barbaric passions tyrannize reason.

[…] die tierischen Empfindungen mit unwiderstehlichen und gleichsam tyrannischer Macht die Seele zu Leidenschaften und Handlungen fortreißen und über die geistigsten selbst nicht selten die Oberhand bekommen (NA 20: 45).

381 Schiller’s insight into the interaction of mind and body, stimulated in various ways by Stahl, Gaub, Haller, Tissot, Zimmermann and Abel, had brought him to realize the potentialities of psychotherapy.[…] If an extreme “passion” could be mollified, rendered less intense, or even resolve, then body/mind relationships would become more harmonious. […] In the case of Grammont, Schiller exposes his destructive passions by getting him to talk about it” (D/R 196-97). 382 Moses Mendelssohn wrote about the power of passion: „Es ist ein Schiff, das lange genug, mit Sturm und Wellen gekämpft, und endlich untergeht.“ Briefe über die Empfindungen; quoted by Martinson, 1975, 7. 205

Although pain functions as a defense mechanism of the body, the evocation of efficacious emotions is able to master the mind and sway judgment. Afterall,

Der Gedanke ist ein selbstständiges Vermögen, welches zwar durch die 6LQQHYHUDQODVVWZHUGHQPXVVVLFK]XlXȕHUQ )$ 627).

With regard to Schiller’s first major drama, G. P. Gooch was the first to address

Schiller’s response to the lethargic conditions that existed in eighteenth-century

Germany.383 “The Robbers, “he writes, „is strong meat; but in its original form it boils with passion” (209).384 For this reason, scholarship has struggled to comprehend the paradox of incongruities in Schiller’s debut play, in particular the engagement of our sentiments in free play between opposing forces, such as vice and virtue, love and hatred, extremes of opposites, political power and social injustice. In his first play, his audience allows that in pursuit of greatness of character in actuality, the spirit of revolt ruled the two Moor brothers. Being accused of “Majestätsbeleidigung” (offence against a sovereign), Schiller defended himself. Cast the stone at the institutional climate that gave birth to such defiled characters that my robbers present if you wish, he responded,385 but I take blame only for being presumptuous.

Das Stück ist erschienen. Die ganze sittliche Welt hat den Verfasser als einen Beleidiger der Majestät vorgefordert—seine ganze Verantwortung sei das Klima, unter dem es geboren ward. Wenn von allen den unzähligen Klagschriften gegen die Räuber eine einzige mich WULIIWVRLVWHVGLHVHGDVVLFK]ZHL-DKUHYRUKHUPLUDQPDȕWH Menschen zu schildern, ehe mir noch einer begegnete. (“Die Ankündigung der Rheinischen Thalia”; NA 22:93).

383 G.P. Gooch, “In spite of the vigorous intellectual engagement of the philosophical minds of the German Aufklärung, the political world ‘degenerated into slackness’” (38). 384 Die Räuber (1781) was a sensation in Germany and England alike. 385 Since the doors of the institution were shut, the pupils had little chance to learn about human beings and their destiny. 206

Whatever the charges brought against his first play, what really mattered to Schiller was that he portray human beings as they are and, he believed, could be.

Inspite of all the uncertainties the dramaturge had about how to sketch human character, Schiller’s Räuber had a great impact upon viewers and readers alike. In pursuit of understanding the appeal that Die Räuber had for its audience, on the one hand, it is necessary to chart how Schiller evoked the sublime to attain his objectives.386 On the other hand, I seek to demonstrate how Schiller’s debut drama owes its exceptionally great effect (“außerordentliche Wirkung”) to the schooling and invigoration of human character not simply through the development of the mind but, even more so, by refreshing and guiding the heart.387 For, as Dewhurst and Reeves understand, “the human mind owes its development, its refinement and its noblest ideas to its body” (D/R 290).

The literary inspiration Schiller experienced at the Academy was of utmost importance for his development as a poet. I take issue here that the literary climate prevailed over the impact of the political conditions. In support, first, we must keep in mind that Schiller’s education at the Academy was of an interdisciplinary nature.

“The curriculum at the Academy did not yet know the rigid boundaries between disciplines, and particularly between the arts and sciences that so often characterize modern universities and scholarship” (D/R, 1) such that Schiller maintained an open mindedness. Second, Schiller’s most influential teacher, Jakob Friedrich Abel, often

386„Erhaben aber ist alles, was dieses Vermögen [der moralischen Freiheit] in uns zum Bewusstsein bringt“ (FA 8: 421). 387 „[…] das energische Prinzip, welches den Stoff beleben muss, um […] das Herz zu erquicken und den Geist zu beschäftigen (FA 8: 761). 207

quoted texts by Shakespeare and other literary authors which he used in support of his philosophical conclusions. Alt writes: “Durch Abels Anregung gerät er auf die Spur

Shakespeares, dessen Dramen er in den damals vorliegenden Übersetzungen Wielands und Eschenburgs studiert. John Miltons Paradise lost (1667) dürfte er Ende der 70er

Jahre gelesen haben“(I, 93). While Greek-Roman poetry was an important constituent of the curriculum, Schiller’s personal reading list contained mostly contemporary literary works, such as Lessing’s Emilia Galotti and Goethe’s Götz, Clavigo, and Die

Leiden des jungen Werther. Shakespeare’s talent for characterization and short scenes registered with him quickly as Schiller’s skillful characterizations of Karl Moor and the robbers illustrate. Years later, Schiller would substantiate the fact in his review of

Goethe’s Egmont, claiming that Shakespeare was the first dramatist to present “whole people” on the stage. He also added that the author of Götz von Berlichingen, Goethe, did so as well. There is sufficient evidence to conclude that Shakespeare’s dramatic art moved Schiller to portray “ganze Menschen und Menschenleben.”388 Next,

Milton’s Satan refined Schiller’s sentiments for startling combinations such as

“schaudernden Erstauens” (Vorrede 5). Finally, in view of the present scholarship,

Dirk Oschmann has proposed that Schiller achieves the appeal of his characters as whole human beings by portraying them not simply as intellectual or as merely sensuous figures but as vital characters who are comprised equally of both components. With his aesthetic products that portray a complete individual, “[…] ein

388 In Review of Goethes Egmont, Schiller emphasized the significance of character portrayal in the new genre of the “Trauerspiel.” Shakespeare “war der erste, der in seinem Macbeth, Richard III. u.s.w. ganze Menschen und Menschenleben auf die Bühne brachte, und in Deutschland gab uns der Verfasser des Götz von Berlichingen das erste Muster in dieser Gattung“ (NA 22: 199-200) 208

Individuum, welches sich in einem Buche lebendig aufgeworfen hat, ist und bleibt ewig das einzige in seiner Art, und kann zwar verkannt aber nie ersetzt werden.“389

As I have argued, in his pursuit of portraying whole characters on the stage,

Schiller understood himself as a poet while studying human physiology. He was also inspired by Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart’s narrative, “Zur Geschichte des menschlichen Herzens.”390 Various sources suggest that the young Schiller chose to study medicine because it was a “better approach to poetry and drama” than law (D/R

32). It was also required of him. In pursuit of ennobling human beings, Schiller brings his whole artistic and intellectual personality into play.

The first edition of Die Räuber took the form of a Schauspiel,391 a kind of dramatized novel, as John Guthrie understands it (454). However, the Vorrede 392 informs us that, on account of the boldness of the subject matter, the author did not recommend his Schauspiel for the stage. Nun ist […] vielmehr der Inhalt, der es von der Bühne verbannet (150). Nevertheless, shortly after publishing the play, in 1781, he was asked to rework his Schauspiel for the stage.393 Die Räuber premiered with great success in Mannheim on January 13, 1782.

389 Oschmann, 2007, 179-180. See, also, Schiller’s letter to Fichte on 3 August 1795 (NA 28: 360). 390 Schubarts Werke, 1965, 241-246. Several sources suggest that Schiller might have been inspired by Johann Anton Leisewitz’s Julius Tarent and Friedrich von Klinger’s Die Zwillinge. My position is that Schubart’s narration influenced Schiller’s idea of the “Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens” in the Räuber. 391 Axel Gellhaus und Norbert Oellers observe that in the original, unpublished foreword, Schiller wrote: “Ich schreibe einen dramatischen Roman, kein theatralisches Drama“ (NA 3, 244). See Schiller. Bilder und Texte zu seinem Leben, 1999. 392 „Der Text entspricht der ersten Fassung des Dramas nach dem Druck von 1781,“ 150. Hereafter cited as Schauspiel 393 See Schiller’s letter to Wolfgang Heribert von Dalberg on 6 October 1781. „Nach vollendeter Arbeit darf ich Sie versichern, dass ich mit weniger Anstrengung des Geistes und noch weit mehr Vergnügen ein neues Stück, ja selbst ein Meisterstück schaffen wollte, als mich der nun getanen Arbeit nochmals unterziehen“ (NA 23: 20). 209

Alluding to the poet’s disgust with the elusive power of vice over the minds and hearts of human beings, Schiller writes: seine Seele sträubt sich [dagegen].394

Under the pretense that he pursues the exposure of the magnitude of vice in his

Schauspiel, Schiller asks to be excused: Das Laster in seiner nackten Abscheulichkeit enthüllen und in seiner kolossalischen Größe vor das Auge der Menschheit stellen

(„Vorrede“). For, as the “Vorrede” suggests, Schiller was resolved to portray to his readers the subversive manner in which vice takes hold of people and ignored to enlighten us about the nature of the poet’s truth. By asking whether it is possible that vice can measure up against the fortress of truth, Schiller boldly directs our attention to the human being that commits the vices he so much abhors: Jedem, auch dem

Lasterhaftesten ist gewissermaßen der Stempel des göttlichen Ebenbilds aufgedrückt

(“Vorrede,” 5). In contending that even the most licentious person resembles the likeness of his Creator, the power of the grand conception in Schiller’s Schauspiel is to have the individual recognize the distinct mark that signifies humankind as the image bearer of God. Schiller does not address directly the biblical view of the image of God in Genesis 1, 27. Rather, the context is the first medical dissertation, in which he proposes: Gottgleichheit ist die Bestimmung des Menschen (NA 20:10). With respect to one’s relationship to God, a person acts within to the master plan of the

Designer. On this point, Schiller was influenced more by Leibniz than by the Judeo-

Christian tradition. In sum, an individual will actualize his or her identity within the larger scheme of things.

394 “Vorrede” of 1781, 1. 210

Schiller stressed the indispensability of attributing to his material (“Stoff”) ein mögliches Bilden (FA 8: 671). For, as he submits, an entirely malicious figure could not be a fitting subject matter of the arts (“[…] ein Mensch, der ganze Bosheit ist, schlechterdings kein Gegenstand der Kunst […] (Vorrede 5)]. In focusing on the effect of tragedy upon the audience, the combination of vice and virtue in Karl

Moor’s characterization lent an element of strangeness and excitement to the dynamics of his Schauspiel. As Schiller’s protagonist himself submits: Es ist ein

Schauspiel, Bruder das Tränen in deine Augen lockt, wenn es dein Zwerchfell zum

Gelächter kitzelt (3.2). The declaration affirms that there is no easy resolution to the dramatic tension. Schiller moves well beyond Aristotle’s view of catharsis. It does not suffice to merely purge disturbing emotions such as pity and fear but to portray human character in its fullness. The special task of poetry consists in giving humanity its fullest possible expression, der Menschheit ihren möglichst vollständigen

Ausdruck...geben (NA 20: 437).

B. The Figure of Karl Moor

Uunderscoring the magnitude of the greatness and strength of Karl Moor and his great moments of mental excitement, scholars have observed that the character threatens to overpower all the other aspects of the plot. I venture to defend the thesis that what his purpose is in serving the portrayal of his ‘irresistible might’ and greatness. In paying attention to the manner in which the events themselves elicit from the protagonist mental responses, we can conclude that Schiller is in the business of schooling our

Empfindungsvermögen for the truly great. 211

In my interrogation of how Karl Moor’s ‘irresistible might’ and greatness function in the play, I drew on the following secondary sources. In his study “Räuber

Moors Glück und Ende,”395 Karl S. Guthke proposed that, instead of scolding Karl

Moor for his foolish erring i.e., Torheit (NA 20: 94), Schiller glorifies the hero’s

‘Groß-Mann Sucht’ (7), that is, er ehrt und achtet es (11). Guthke proposes that the downfall of the hero was due to the eccentric pulls toward greatness in his personal make-up, such as ‘Genuss der Selbstbewunderung‘(6), ‘egozentrische Vermessenheit und Selbstbewunderung‘(8), and ‘ein starker Wille zum Glück‘(10). Guthke’s reading strategy allows new interpretational possibilities regarding the treatment of greatness and strength in his first play. In searching for places where Schiller misspeaks,

Guthke discovers some contradiction in Karl’s lip service about his identity as an instrument of God. This implies that he imagine himself as an able body suited for manufacturing the harmony of the ethical world. To be sure, Guthke cautions against the position that human beings are naturally attracted to everything that is great and magnificent (Longinus).396 Nevertheless, by giving into the magnetic pull of Karl

Moor’s extraordinary strength and power, Guthke does not comment on the other side of the coin, namely, the disconcerted mental state of the protagonist due to his self- identification as a murderer.

395 Karl S. Guthke, 1996, 1-11. 396 Longinus designates the author of the treatise On the Sublime (Vom Erhabenen). Alt disputes that the author was the Greek rhetorician Longinus. “Die aus dem ersten nachchristlichen Jahrhundert stammende (fälschlich Longin zugeordnete) Schrift Peri hypsous“ (Über das Erhabene; Alt, II, 88). I make reference to his writing under “Longinus.” 212

With regard to the qualities the next generation admired about Schiller’s

Räuber, Margaret W. Cooke records that England welcomed Karl Moor’s figure with tremendous enthusiasm. In her article, “Schiller’s Robbers in England,” she writes:

There is in the delineation of Karl Moor a certain preoccupation with large things. […] He became the symbol of strength, beauty and inspiration […] a new vision to dream of, new aims to strive after. […] The recognition of ‘greatness’ that Moore possessed was twofold splendor -- the power to do and endure great things. Emotions […] grip with such painful clutch that no other touch is felt at all. […] Karl Moor in exile or bidding farewell to Amalia, these numb every other feeling at the time. They fill the world (171).397

Thus, it should not take us by surprise that upon reading the Räuber, young Samuel

Taylor Coleridge (is reported to have) asked, “Who is this Schiller? This Convulser of the Heart?”398 While recognizing that Schiller’s first play makes certain demands on our critical minds, Cooke is most appreciative of the fact it was the “depth and intimacy of sentiment” displayed in the drama that brought back the “recognition and dignity” of dramatic literature in England (156). In 2005, the theater critic, Michael

Billington claimed that, after two centuries of having been shunned [!], Schiller was back in favor. Billington asks what changed. Aside from the rediscovery of Schiller’s appropriation of Shakespeare, “Schiller had a masterly understanding of realpolitik”

397 Margaret W. Cooke, 1961, “Schiller’s Robbers in England,” 156-175. In observing that he is ruled by powerful ‘emotions’ of ‘immeasurable’ and ‘infinite’ stature, Cooke appreciates the monumental qualities of Karl Moor as positive traits. Nonetheless, she does recognize Schiller’s ‘twofold’ pursuits of ennobling character by tapping into both the intellectual and emotional faculties of the main character. Cooke claims that it was on the account of the impression of force and grandeur that this turbulent Storm and Stress drama captivated the youth of England. Witte scores the highest, however, when he depicts Schiller’s first literary product as one that at the pinnacle of daring to challenge authority. “Karl Moor, the hero of the play, is the kind of ‘titanic’ young rebel whom one meets again and again in the literature of Storm and Stress, glorying in his strength, impatient of all restrictions” (105). 398 Kooy, 2002, 9. 213

and that “he has a lot to teach us about the dynamics of power.”399 Interestingly enough, in addition to Wallenstein, Karl Moor and Don Carlos have both captured the

English stage in this way.

In suggesting that Schiller’s style is an extremely subtle and complex poetic diction and stressing the power of the word, H. B. Garland focused on the presence of mixed feelings.400 For example, “[…] brutality and libidinousness make their appearance side by side with noble emotions and sublime conception […]” (8).

Although Schiller certainly read Edmund Burke’s A Philosophical Enquiry into the

Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful (1757), Garland short circuits the originality of Schiller’s ideas on the nature of the sublime which were based more so on the ideas of Kant and Longinus.

Understandably, given terrorism in our time, the most recent scholarship on

Schiller has concentrated on the problem of terror, for example, Gert Sautermeister

(2014).401 As H. B. Garland had done already in 1969, some of the most recent

399 See Billington, 2005. “The German Shakespeare. Schiller used to be box-office poison. Why are his plays suddenly back in favor?” 400 See H.B. Garland. Taking note of “what the poet is saying with subtlety and precision”, H. B. Garland determined that “for Schiller, whether writing for the stage or engaging himself in study, the word remained paramount” (3). See also Schiller, Briefe über Kallias oder über die Schönheit.„Das Medium des Dichters sind Worte“(FA 8:327). 401 Gert Sautermeister, “Die Räuber—Generationskonflikt und Terrorismus”, 27-42. Some of the most recent scholarship on the play, addresses the problem of terror. Two contributions that provide excellent insights into Franz’s terroristic activities prefigure that discussion. Wolfgang Riedel suggests that, in conversation with his father, Franz Moor is a genius of inversion. “Wie in I/1 als ‘umgekehrter Auflärer’ [Schiller in his review], tritt er nun als ‘umgekehrter Arzt’ auf, der sich das Wissen der zeitgenössische Anthropologie und Medizin zunutze macht....” (2006, 24). For, “Auf der Suche nach einer wirkungsvollen Strategie des Psychoterrors prüft Franz den aus der zeitgenössischen medizinischen Literatur bekannten Katalog potenziell pathogener Affekte...” (25). Franz goes aground on his own unconscious (Unbewusstes) (40). Kathrina Grätz endeavors to understand Franz’s point of view. Unlike Schiller himself who underscores the bonds of universal love and sees human beings as tied harmoniously together [see Schiller’s second Karlsschulrede, for example], Franz sees human existence „als schonungsloses Konkurrenzverhältnis lauter eigennütziger Individuen, die auf sich allein gestellt rücksichtslos um ihre Interessen streiten. Franz sieht die Menschen in einem fortwährenden 214

scholarship on Schiller follows Burke, not Schiller. According to Edmund Burke,

”’TERROR’ is in all cases whatsoever either more openly or latently the ruling principle of the sublime.”402 Schiller did not agree. Tragedy has a poetic purpose. The individual events of tragedy should mutually work for the purpose of touching our hearts and lifting our spirits by the appeal of das Erhabene.403 For, it is the inner self- reliant human ability that Schiller considers to be das wahre Menschliche.404 In Die

Räuber, the element of greatness in Karl’s figure is connected to Schiller’s evolving ideas on the nature of sublimity.

Looking more critically at Schiller’s portrayal of the leading character, Karl

Moor, are the horrendous actions that Karl Moor and his robbers committed not enough to disqualify Karl Moor as a “hero” of a drama? Schiller himself had stated that an entirely malicious figure could not be a fitting subject matter of the arts.

Wenn es mir darum zu tun ist, ganze Menschen hinzustellen, so muss ich auch ihre Vollkommenheit mithinzustellen, die auch den Bösesten, nie ganz fehlen. […] Ein Mensch, der ganz Bosheit ist, schlechterdings NHLQ*HJHQVWDQGGHU.XQVWXQGlXȕHUWHLQH]XUFNVWRȕHQGH.UDIWVWDWW dass er die Aufmerksamkeit der Leser fesseln sollte („Vorrede,“ 5-6).

Überlebens- und Vernichtungskampf begriffen...” (19). As a result, Franz reject the idea of a moral free will. See, also, Karl S. Guthke 2005a. 402 Edmund Burke, 58. The postmodernist, Jacques Lyotard, claimed that there is no sublime, only terror. 403 See Schiller’s letter to Johann Wilhelm Süvern on 26 July 1800, (NA 30:177), See also „Aber die Tragödie hat einen poetischen Zweck, d.i. sie stellt eine Handlung dar, um zu rühren, und durch rühren zu ergötzen (NA 20:166). 404 See “The Poetic Idea” in Part I (FA 8:780). „Die Fähigkeit, das Erhabene zu empfinden, ist also einer der herrlichsten Anlagen in der Menschennatur, die sowohl wegen ihres Ursprungs aus dem selbständigen Denk-und Willens-Vermögen unsere Achtung, als wegen ihres Einflusses auf den moralischen Menschen die vollkommenste Entwicklung verdient“ (NA 21:52). 215

I suggest that the artistic ordering of the incidents of the plot are more compelling than the central “hero” since in toto they engage our senses, feelings, and mind, excite our imagination, and focus our attention on the dramaturge’s creation of form. The strong effect of the lascivious actions of Schiller’s main character in his debut play ultimately stems from the matter of form, that is, the knitting together of individual of his composition that work together to create the effect the artist has in mind.405 “[D] enn, “as Schiller asserted, „durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des Menschen, durch den Inhalt hingegen nur auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt. “406

To be sure, Schiller was well aware that the strength and power of central heroes irresistibly appealed to human beings, “[…] denn von Größe und Kraft ist er

[der Mensch] längst gerührt, ehe er für Harmonie und Grazie anfängt empfindlich zu werden“(FA 8: 618). Georg Kurscheidt has alerted us to an element of danger that in

Schiller’s portrayal of Karl Moor’s grandiose sentiments. “Die Bewunderung von

Größe und Kraft war eine gefährlich ambivalente Empfindung“(45).407 For good reason, then, as Cooke rightly observed, viewers respond with a “sense of shock” to the tremendous power and strength that Karl Moor exhibits (157). And, yet, Karl

Moor’s extreme moments of mental excitements, deeply felt emotions, exaggerated statements, and outrageous claims engage our critical thinking.

405 For, reference see Bordwell and Thompson, 2010, 50-51. 406 Briefe über die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen (NA 20: 382). 407 Kurt Kurscheidt, 1999, in Schiller Bilder und Texte zu seinem Leben, 169-177.

216

C. Portrayal of Character, along with Thought

“Aristotle called character, along with thought, that aspect of plot from which action arises.”408 “A poem may reflect a philosophical creed, but only in the sense that the emotions aroused by the contemplation of the creed are expressed in beautiful and memorable form” (Witte 60).

1. Rhetoric versus Poetic Diction

As a medical student, Schiller delivered several speeches at the Academy409 written in the epideictic tradition.410 Klaus Berghahn notes that Schiller had a peculiar literary style that is far removed from our reality. “Bei ihm bilden rhetorische

Sprache, pathetischer Gestus und erhabene Haltung noch eine Einheit, die man als Stil zu bezeichnen pflegt. “411 C. S. Lewis observes that nearly all our old poetry was written and read by men to whom the distinction between poetry and rhetoric, in its modern form, would have been meaningless.412 Reviewing the work of classical rhetoricians and English Renaissance poetry, Brian Vickers has demonstrated that

“figures are channels of emotional as well as intellectual expressions.” (100).413

In an attempt to dignify the use of rhetoric in matters on which true knowledge was not available, Aristotle, in his Rhetoric, gave advice for how to make artistic proofs in appealing to logos, pathos, and ethos.414 Kant, however, challenged the

408 Mobley 23. 409See First Karlsschulrede, Ä5HGHEHUGLH)UDJH*HK|UWDOO]XYLHO*WH/HXWVHHOLJNHLWXQGJURȕH Freigebigkeit im engsten Verstande zur Tugend?“ (NA 20: 3-9), and second Karlsschulrede, „Die Tugend in ihren Folgen betrachtet“ (NA 20: 30-36). 410 Ueding, 1971, 3. 411 Berghahn, 1986, 60. 412 C.S. Lewis, 1974, 61. 413 Vickers, 1970, 100. 414 See Aristotle, From Rhetoric, 171. 217

ethical foundation of the art of eloquence. For him, ars oratoria has a negative connotation.

Beredtheit und Wohlredenheit (zusammen Rhetorik) gehören zur schönen Kunst; aber Rednerkunst (ars oratoria) ist, als Kunst sich der Schwächen der Menschen zu seinen Absichten zu bedienen (diese mögen immer so gut gemeint oder auch wirklich gut sein, als sie wollen,) gar keiner Achtung würdig.415

Kant detested the ars oratoria (Cicero) because it can pervert judgment. The art of rhetoric was simply a “hinterlistige Kunst.”416 Although distrusted, eloquence supported the “Geschäft des Verstandes.“417 In the Karlsschulreden, Schiller tied the teaching of the rhetorical skills to a cult, namely, the worship of the absolutist monarch. The monarch himself assigned speeches that followed “die Lehre der

Rhetorik nach traditionellem Vorbild.”418 While lauding the benefactor “der Hohen

Karlsschule,” was esteeming Franziska von Hohenheim419 Schiller was actually searching for the meaning of wisdom. Nonetheless, German speaking poets of

Schiller’s age abhorred any kind of panegyric adulation. In commenting on the decadence of the rhetoric in the eighteenth century, Dirk Oschmann observes that due to the misuses and abuses of rhetoric, Schiller’s contemporaries demanded undisguised and straightforward language. “Da die Rhetorik der Willkür,

Verfälschung und Künstlichkeit verdächtig ist, […] die Herausbildung des

„Literarischen“–nicht der Literatur— hängt mit der Ablösung der Rhetorik

415 Immanuel Kant, 1959, Kritik der Urteilskraft, 185. Quoted by Ueding, 1. 416 Kant, Kritik der Urteilskraft, § 51, 205 und §53, 216, in Aurnhammer, et al. 1998, 112. 417 Strack, 112. 418 Ibid. 113. 419 Friedrich Strack, 1990, „Schillers Festreden.“ Schiller und die Höfische Welt, 11-126. 218

zusammen. […] Forderung einer natürlichen und unverstellten Rede […findet sich] in der Dichtung selbst statt.“420

As is clear from this discussion as well, the German Aufklärung established a number of new “scientific” disciplines, such as modern aesthetics, the philosophy of history, and anthropology. As Oschmann has observed, the need to employ natural language took precedence over rhetoric not only in the disciplines of natural sciences but also in poesy (16). Already earlier, Gert Ueding had seen that the decline of the ars oratoria did not mean that the rhetorical elements were banished from the areas of poesy and aesthetic. For Ueding, Schiller’s position was especially important, “weil er auf der einen Seite zwar die kantisch-idealistische Abwertung der Rhetorik aufgreift, anderseits jedoch die füUHLQHUKHWRULVFKHधVWKHWLN]HQWUDOHQ.DWHJRULHQEHUQLPPW neu diskutiert und inhaltlich damit eine Theorie reaktiviert, die die Stürmer und

Dränger noch zu den ‚abgeschmackten Konventionen’ gerechnet hatten.“421 In spite of Kant’s assertions of the misuses of the ars oratoria, Schiller’s poetic language discloses, for example, the ‘fruitful’ use of chiasmus and hyperbole. As Vickers sees,

“Figures are not fixed, they are flexible, and can be effective channels for quiet varied states of mind.’422 Schiller’s skillful employment of chiasmus lends vitality to his characters by setting up a natural internal dynamics between feelings and thoughts.423

As Matthias Luserke-Jaqui observes, Die Räuber attests to Schiller’s “dichterische

Gestaltungskraft” (36).424

420 Oschmann, 2007, 16. 421 Ueding, 1976, 124. 422 Vickers, 121. 423 See, 1) Lanham 33, and 2) „Poetische Darstellung,“ in Kallias oder die Schönheit (FA 8: 327). 424 Matthias Luserke-Jaqui, 2005, 36. 219

2. Hyperbole as ‘compass’ aiding our comprehension of the ‘greatest’425

Instead of taking Karl Moor’s attraction to large things literally,426 I suggest that Schiller’s skillful employment of the hyperbole fulfills the poetic purpose of moving the audience in such a way that they grasp the meaning of what is truly great.427 In his dissertation „Hyperboles: Exemplary Excess in Early Modern English and Spanish Poetry and Its Origins in Classical Rhetoric and Epic,”428 Dean

Christopher Johnson asks why the notions of Größe and Kraft are able to “fix their elusive mastery over our minds and sentiments” (2). Johnson looks to hyperbole as

Rhetoric’s most extreme trope, poetry’s boldest ornament, philosophy’s smoking gun […] (1). Blamed by most, praised by few, […] obviously, there are countless specimens of hyperbole […]. Yet, every hyperbole because of the gap it creates between language and the world, between figurative and literal truth, makes peculiar demands on our judgment (2). Hyperbole, its defenders from Quintilian to Gerard Genette agree, is uniquely suited to give ‘pensée’ to the ideal […]. Celebrated by Quintilian for its ‘boldness’ and ‘elegant straining of the truth,” by Henry Peacham for its ‘reach’ and ‘compass’ aiding our comprehension of the ‘greatest’[...] it is a figure of thought that can color not only a single conceit, but an entire discourse […]. Yet it is equally clear that hyperbole needs ultimately to be contingent upon the real if the hyperbolist wishes to avoid the ridiculous, absurd or, […] ‘perverse, excessive affectation’ (7).429

In our view, Schiller’s employs hyperbole as an instrument of representation of the explosive power of youth. By virtue of its “elegant straining of the truth,” the distinct

425 Johnson 7 426 As opposed to Guthke, I am not arguing in support of “jenem prahlerischen Pathos, welches [Karl Moors] Wesen bezeichnet.” My purpose is to show how Schiller attends to the inner education, or building of human beings. 427 Aristotle, From Rhetoric. Hyperbole has various uses as a tool of exaggeration, and a figure Hyperbole has various uses as a tool of exaggeration, and a figure of speech that is not meant to be taken literally. In poetry and oratory, it emphasizes, evokes strong feelings, and creates strong impressions. In The Rhetoric Tradition, 169-240. 428 See D. C. Johnson, 2001. 429 Johnson’s dissertation sets the stage for Schiller’s use of hyperbole in Die Räuber. 220

purpose of hyperbole is to give pensée to the ideal.430 But, to what end? Schiller not only challenges our critical faculties but also aids us in comprehending that his subject matter ultimately concerns itself with holding humankind to higher moral principles of conduct. His poetic skills allow him to regulate the irresistible might of youth in spite of its excesses. Schiller was well aware that strength and power irresistibly appeal to human beings. By exaggerating Karl Moor’s actions, the dramatist succeeds in helping his audience to understand that the extraordinary subject matter concerns humankind. Der Mensch, wenn er vereinigt wirkt, ist immer

HLQJURȕHV:HVHQ431 Because it is “poetry’s boldest ornament,” hyperbole is well suited to assist the dramatist with the task of schooling human character.

Denn die Schönheit ist unsere Wärterin im kindischen Alter, und soll uns ja aus dem rohen Naturstand zur Verfeinerung führen, so hat die Natur doch dafür gesorgt, dass sie langsamer reif wird, und zu ihrer völligen Entwicklung erst die Ausbildung des Verstandes und des Herzens abwartet (FA 8: 831).

3. The Sublime and the Ethical Value of Humankind

Nur wenn das Erhabene mit dem Schönen sich gattet, und unsre Empfänglichkeit für beides in gleichem Maß ausgebildet worden ist, sind wir vollendete Bürger der Natur (Über das Erhabene; FA 8: 839).

Schiller combined classical and modern aesthetic theories in a new fashion

“um die Empfindungsfähigkeit des menschlichen Herzens […] zu erweitern.”432 By this, Schiller innovatively remade he sublime as part of his poetic diction. As Alt supports, the concept of the sublime [des Erhabenen] became a complementary term

430 Gerard Genette, 1966, Genette reintroduction of a rhetorical vocabulary into literary criticism (245- 52). 431 To C. von Beulwitz on 27 November 1788 (NA 25:146). 432 Über das Erhabene. FA 8: 838. 221

of the beautiful [des Schönen] in the 18th century. He claims that the evolution of the concept is associated with those appearances of nature that unleash themselves in the disposition of human being. In this respect, no one who has ever studied the literary treatise of Longinus On the Sublime could have failed to notice that this first century literary critic distinguishes between rhetoric and the sublime or elevated writing. In underscoring that the task of rhetorical argument is to persuade or convince the audience, Longinus suggests that the employment of the literary devices, such as the rhetorical figures aim for a particular desired effect. Yet, as J. Douglas Kneale observes, the real subject of Longinus is not persuasion but the effect of the sublime that ‘reigns supreme over every hearer [listener]’ (109).433 By the merit of a diction of

“irresistible might,” Longinus held that the sublime ‘prevails’ over mere persuasion.

“The effect of elevated language upon an audience is not persuasion but transport.”434

To Kneale, the “sublime or elevated writing is in crucial ways different from common rhetorical persuasion and, in fact, ultimately stands in opposition to it” (109).435 As

Longinus wrote, “That phantasia means one thing in oratory and another in poetry you will yourself detect, and also that the object of the poetical form of it is to enthrall and that of the prose form to present things vividly, though both indeed aim at the emotional and the excited.”436 Schiller, however, defines the sublime in terms of an

433 Roberts, Longinus on the Sublime. 434 Ibid. 43. 435 J. Douglas Kneale, 1996, “Transport and Persuasion in Longinus and Wordsworth.” 436 “Dass jedoch die rhetorische Phantasie etwas Anderes will als die dichterische, wird dir nicht entgangen sein, auch nicht, dass das Ziel der dichterischen Phantasie Erschütterung ist, das der rhetorischen aber Deutlichkeit“ (Longinus, Vom Erhabenen, 45; On the Sublime, 217. 222

object that attracts us with irresistible power. We feel “mit unwiderstehlicher Gewalt von ihm angezogen.”

Wir ergötzen uns an dem Sinnlich-unendlichen, weil wir denken können, was die Sinne nicht mehr fassen, und der Versand nicht mehr begehrt (FA 8: 827).

In aiming to release the highest possible mental potential, the sublime, in Schiller’s view, “evokes in the human being a sense of freedom from limitations, thereby instilling the hope of progress. […] In short the sublime is a condition of pure reason.”437

Das Erhabene verschafft uns also einen Ausgang aus der sinnlichen Welt, worin uns das Schöne gern immer gefangen halten möchte, […] durch Erschütterung, reißt es den selbständigen Geist aus dem Netze los […] (FA 8: 830).

The sublime moment releases the power that enables us to comprehend the benefits of upright conduct.438 To Longinus, the sublime more easily ‘transports’ than

‘persuades’ the audience because it captures the listener’s attention

(“Aufmerksamkeit”).439 In responding to the compelling experience of the sublime,

Schiller stands firm in claiming that it is paramount that our mind retains a certain degree of superiority over the powerful impulses within our nature, i.e. unsere

Gemütsfreiheit nicht völlig zu verlieren, denn wo diese dahin ist, da ist das Gemüt zu keiner ästhetischen Beurteilung aufgelegt (NA 20:182).440 Lesley Sharpe reminds

437 Martinson, 1996, 223. 438 Schiller, Vom Erhabenen. “Weil der reine Wille jederzeit mit dem Willen der Gottheit koinzidieren muss, so kann der Fall nie eintreten, […] dass sie durch nichts anders als durch ihre Einstimmigkeit mit dem reinen Vernunftgesetz in uns, in unsere Willensbestimmungen einfließen könne“ (FA 8: 408). 439 On the Sublime, 163. 440 “Nach Schiller dagegen setzt das erhabene Gefühl höchste subjektive Spontaneität und Aktivität voraus. Die Erfahrung des Erhabenen führt nicht zur Aufhebung der Autonomie des Subjekts, sondern 223

here again that an unschooled heart has “an inability or unwillingness to act in accordance with [reason].”441 In recapitulating, I propose that in aiming to move our hearts and uplift our spirits and never to dismantle the process, the dramatic purpose of the Räuber is to instill insight (Einsicht) how to act in accordance with reason in a manner that develops the whole human being.

D. Die Räuber: Interpretation

How is Schiller’s first play Die Räuber concerned with humankind? By drawing on the irresistible forces of Größe, Tatkraft und Begeisterung,442 on the one hand, the play reflects Schiller’s efforts to displace the powerless and impotent attitudes that permeated human modes of thinking of his age.443 On the other hand,

Schiller’s debut play probes our critical faculties. Schiller’s enlightened liberal critic is Karl who criticizes his century as an inkblot. As Luserke-Jaqui argues, despite of

Karl’s crusted criticism of his age, „Dieses tintenklecksende Jahrhundert ist immerhin das Jahrhundert, das sich zur Aufgabe gesetzt hat, den Menschen aus seiner selbst verschuldeten Unmündigkeit zu führen (Kant)[…] ihn von religiösen Vorurteilen zu befreien und die die Aufklärung des Verstandes mit der Besserung des Herzens zu verbinden” (45). For, while Karl intended purpose is to justify his lawless actions as

zur Freisetzung äußerster subjektiver Potentiale, zur gesteigerten Aktivierung des Willens und der Vernunft“ (Barone, 15). 441 Lesley Sharpe, 2005, Concerning, 152. 442 The literary critic, Marcel Reich-Ranicki, on Schillers "Die Räuber“ (November 3, 2002). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tk5kBe_bh94 443 In promoting the aesthetic education of man, Schiller was impacted by two foreign influences, first, Rousseau, the friend of humankind and the heart, and, second, the American war of Independence (1775-1783), Gooch, 36-37. 224

the deeds of a great man, he does it under the pretense that he criticizes the impotent attitudes that permeated human modes of thinking.

Through the playful quality of his creative thinking, Schiller probes the limitations of human greatness. It would be hard to conceive that with the masterful characterization of Karl Moor the playwright wanted to glorify brutality and violence.

Instead, we need to remind ourselves: “Aristotle called character, along with thought, that aspect of plot from which action arises.”444 Aristotle stressed the importance of action that is “directly presented, not narrated (Cooper 17). According to the legacy of the Storm and Stress literary movement, as opposed to Aristotle, the proper subject of tragedy should be character rather than action (Beiser 248). To a certain degree, all the above components play a role in Schiller’s conception of the tragedy, with a striking difference, however. For, as Schiller advocates the tragedy has a poetic, i.e. ennobling purpose.

While Aristotle recommends in his Poetics that “the poet must depict the tragic flaw, yet ennoble the character” (Cooper 52), in pursuit of combatting the indolent tendencies of the heart, Schiller champions that it is significant to portray the tragic flaw of the protagonist in a manner that ennobles human character.

Aber die Tragödie hat einen poetischen Zweck, d.i. sie stellt eine Handlung dar, um zu rühren, und durch rühren zu ergötzen (Über die tragische Kunst, NA 20: 166).

Since human beings learn best by pleasurable experience of materializing their purpose, on the account of the tragic conflict in the drama, the poet needs to speak to

444 Mobley, 23. 225

our heart, and his words – like a spirit-stirring trumpet—need to portray also “the inner tumults of the soul,” I agree with Beiser (248).445 Closer in time to Schiller’s contemporary audience, H. F. Heinrichs observed that the poet’s task was to show that emotions have various shades and express themselves in different ways. For „das

Rührende erfordere mannigfaltig bewegte Leidenschaft in sein nuancierten

Empfindungen.“446 In focusing on the impact of emotions upon human actions,

Schiller’s skillful employment of the hyperbole moves humankind towards the goal of taking a stand against the blind impulses (Triebe) of the own nature through comprehending the difference between compulsion and inclination, i.e. das

Vermögen eines freien Wollens.

1. Exposition: Act I, Scenes 1 and 2

Schiller’s primary concern was to address contemporary audiences about impotent modes of thinking. In wondering what Schiller has to say about the apparition of strength and power in his debut drama, we turn our attention to the first two scenes of the Räuber.

At the onset of the play, we encounter the younger brother, Franz, as he addresses his father: “Aber ist Euch auch wohl, Vater? Ihr seht so blass” (1.1).

Feigning to be caring son, Franz starts a cunning conversation with his father. You are not well, are you Father? You are not able to read yourself the terrible news that the letter contains von unserem Korrespondenten in Leipzig. A back and forth exchange

445 See Beiser, 2005. 446 Heinrichs emphasizes the effect which has to do with the depiction of sensation and ideas and that of multiple moving passions. 226

follows between younger son and the old Moor. In spite of his father’s reassurance that he is perfectly well, Franz insists that in such fragile conditions of health, the old

Moor cannot bare the terrible message that the letter contains. In spite of such an unequal exchange, in focusing on the impact of the old man’s emotions upon his thinking, Franz succeeds to win over his father to his position. On top of it, though never asking for the letter of his elder son, the old Moor submits himself to the verdict that Franz pronounces: Karl cannot retain the right of the firstborn son.

After skillfully manipulating the old man’s resolution, Franz sends Karl the fateful letter with the message that his father had disinherited him. There is no hope for Karl whatsoever to return to his father’s castle and to his young bride! Franz totally ignores his aged father’s request: bring meinen Sohn nicht zur Verzweiflung,

(Geht traurig ab) (1.1, 18).447 Kant rightly observes that in the hands of people with weak moral character, such as that of Franz, the eloquent art of speaking becomes a deceitful manipulative instrument. It is a mere rhetorical device unworthy of our respect.448 Franz not only distorts the content of the letter, but he also destroys the evidence of his false allegation. Franz demands: Herr, muss ich sein, dass ich das mit

Gewalt ertrotze, wozu mir die Liebenswürdigkeit gebricht (1.1, 21). The irony of the situation is that Franz successfully manipulates Old Moor into doing exactly what the father abhors doing to his son: Ein unzärtliches Kind! Ach! Aber mein Kind doch!

Mein Kind doch! (I.1, 17). Furthermore, after retreating into an impotent state of mind, the Old Moor does not take further actions towards wanting to investigate the

447 I reference, act, scene, and page number. 448 Quoted by Ueding, 1. 227

circumstances of his two sons. Whereupon Franz destroys the letter and enforces his coward purpose: Herr muss ich sein. The letter that Franz sends to Karl determines the fate of the elder brother. The reader is left to wonder where all that perversion might lead! We are, however, equally surprised at the ignorance of the father. As already Act I.1 demonstrates, Schiller sets the tragedy into motion by showing that this seemingly insignificant foresight in the Old Moor’s judgment leads to the tragic outcome of the play.

By this short introductory exchange, it is not only proven that Kant rightly challenged the ethical foundation of the art of eloquence, but that Schiller had the skill of the dramaturge, able to characterize his figures through their actions.449 Moreover, by providing artistic proofs of the deceitful actions of Franz appealing to us via logos, pathos, and ethos, Schiller also proves that he was a student of Aristotle’s Rhetoric.450

He had the artistic skill to present Franz in a state of mental deterioration. In Franz’ case, sense and intelligence cease to cooperate with each other to such extent that any kind of interaction between these two faculties is quashed. Though he is reminded that

Karl is his brother (Er ist dein Bruder! [1.1]. the thought does not move his heart to compassion. His state of mind is in a condition described in the “Vorrede”:

Wer es einmal so weit gebracht hat, seinen Verstand auf Unkosten seines Herzens zu verfeinern, dem ist das Heiligste nicht mehr (4).

In proposing that Franz acts under the impulses of his egoistic “tierischen

Empfindungen” (NA 3:9), Schiller purpose is to uncover the mechanics of vice

449 As for the manner of the tragedy, “the imitation is itself in the form of an action directly presented, not narrated” (Cooper, Book 6, 17). 450 Aristotle, From Rhetoric. In: The Rhetoric Tradition, 169-240. 228

(Vorrede 4). On the one hand, “Franzens krasser Zweckrationalismus kann kein Gott und kein Gesetz außer dem seinen eigenen, “as Hans Brittmacher observed.451 On the other hand, in spite of the fact that the old Moor is powerless against Franz’ intrigues, his passivity is inexcusable. For, due to the indolent tendencies of his heart, he is unable to resist his own folly.

[…] Triebe sind die einzigen bewegenden Kräfte in der empfindenden Welt. Wenn die Wahrheit im Streit mit Kräften den Sieg erhalten soll, so muss sie selbst zur Kraft werden […] so liegt es en dem Herzen, das sich ihr verschloss, und an dem Trieb, der nicht für sie handelte (ÄE, 8; FA 8: 581).

2. Why does Karl Moor need to ennoble his character?

How does Schiller bring into question Karl Moor’s ‘irresistible might’ and greatness in the play? We meet the elder brother Karl in the second scene who, “when reading

Plutarch, loathes his own century.”452 Mir ekelt vor diesem tintenklecksenden

Säkulum, wenn ich in meinem Plutarch lese von JURȕHQ Menschen (1.2). Gooch observes that, to young Schiller, Plutarch was “the trumpeter of valorous deeds, the janitor of a vanished world in which men had grown to their full stature.--’He raises us above the dead level of our generation,’ wrote Schiller, ‘and makes us contemporaries of a better and stronger race’” (Gooch 209).453 The protagonist feels disgusted with his own generation’s relaxed mental attitudes.454 As he held, though people appeared to strive for greatness, they could never discern what makes

451 Brittmacher, 330. 452 See E. G. Schmidt, 1999. 453 See Letter of 20.11.1788 to C. von Beulwitz und C. von Lengefeld (NA 25:140). 454 For context, see letter to Friedrich Christian von Augustenburg, dated 13.07.1793 (NA 26:257). 229

extraordinary things happen. An example of such a person is Spiegelberg, whose

Großmannssucht makes him stand out against his fellow gang members:

Wart, lass mich erst warm werden: du sollst Wunder sehen, […] Große Gedanken dämmern auf in meiner Seele! Riesenplane gären in meinem schöpferischen Schädel. Die bisher meine Kräfte in Ketten schlug, meine Aussichten sperrte und spannte; ich erwache, fühle, wer ich bin—wer ich werden muss! (1.2, 27)

Spiegelberg exclaims: “Great thoughts are taking shape in my soul!” (Quoted in HT,

80). Karl is not at all impressed by his fellow robbers outpouring of profane greatness: Du bist ein Narr. Dein Wein bramarbasiert aus deinem Gehirne (1.2, 27).

Spiegelberg’s empty talk appears to lack sense. Wanting of the reciprocal interaction between sense and reason, Spiegelberg’s ‘overshooting statements’ are unsuitable for moving Karl over to believe in the sincerity of the speaker. Karl knows that

Spiegelberg exaggerates and labels his fellow’s cheap talk as foolish.

At this moment, it matters very little to Karl what his companions are doing.

He is expecting mail from home. Like a schoolboy who is impatiently is waiting for his first love letter, Karl restlessly anticipates his father’s reply to his penitent letter.

He is fully convinced of his father’s generous forgiving heart and upright handling of his wayward past. Wo Aufrichtigkeit ist, ist auch Mitleid und Hilfe. Last uns Abschied nehmen, wir sehen uns nicht mehr, Moritz (1.2, 27-28). However, things turn out quite differently. Upon recognizing his brother’s handwriting, Karl is stricken with wonder:

Meines Bruders Hand! (1.2, 28). Instead of contemplating the significance of his brother’s handwriting, he soon drops the letter and runs outside. The novelty in Karl’s extreme behavior (er zittert, er ist bleich, 1.2 28) catches the attention of his fellow outlaws (and Schiller’s audience). Upon witnessing such an extreme emotional state 230

of mind, they are quick to reconstruct the story of the letter, as such. Das müssen schöne Neuigkeiten sein. Lass doch sehen! (1.2, 29). Roller reads out the letter loud.

Ein zuckersüßes Brüderchen! In der Tat! –so Schweizer (1.2). Spiegelberg meddles:

Von Wasser und Brot ist die Rede? Ein schönes Leben! Da habe ich anders für euch gesorgt! (1.2) Ultimately, Spiegelberg puts an end to all the talk by demanding that it is time to dare to do something great! He addresses his fellows as ‘Rabbits, cripples, lame dogs” and chides them for lacking the conviction to dare the great act!” (1.2)

Playing to his barbarous mental state of mind, Spiegelberg’s brutal imagery underscores ‘the influence of animal nature’ over his mind. It is one of those examples in which Schiller delivers his most shameful robbers to the disgust of the world (Vorrede 5).

Spiegelberg forms a gang of robbers out of the circle of his present companions: Wir wollen uns in den böhmischen Wäldern niederlassen, dort eine

Räuberbande zusammenziehen […] (1.2, 30). As Roller points out, in spite of acting with ungoverned raw animal instincts, the gang decides to choose a head: Das Tier muss auch seinen Kopf haben, Kinder (1.2, 34). With Karl in mind, Spiegelberg retorts that the animal has to carry an enlightened head: Das muss ein erleuchteter

Kopf sein (1.2, 34). Of course, the mind has not been engaged. “As John Guthrie sees it, as a group the robbers deteriorate to the state of a collective animal and, like a mere

“Tier,” they need a ‘Kopf’” (449).455 As the animal imagery implies, guided by their

‘primitive instincts,’ the robbers’ desire to escape from the constraintsofsocietyand

455 John Guthrie, 1999. 231

return to what one may think is a natural state.456 But the connection to Jean-Jacques

Rousseau is superficial. If anything, they are violating nature as Schiller understood it.

At that moment, Karl rejoins his companions in an extremely bewildered state of mind. Per the stage directions, indicating that his mind cannot control the psychological pressure, Karl runs up and down with wild steps speaking his thought aloud with vehement intensity. Under such extreme emotional duress, Karl’s imagination goes wild, allowing his mind to see human beings assuming formsof falsche heuchlerische Krododilbrut! Ihre Herzen sind Erzt! Schwerter in Buse!,and

Löwen und Leoparden füttern ihre Jungen (1.2, 34) In talking about people whose cruel coward hearts were bred by lions, leopards and crocodiles, Karl’s hyperbolic utterances are suggestive of his animal like state of existence, well-suited to create a

‘strong emotional bond’ between him and his robbers.457 As “the poet and ironist,”458

Schiller lends an element of peculiarity to his hero’s raging. Exactly whenKarl’s hopes are set high on the forgiveness of his father, the strength of his penitent heart is tested. Unable to a stand against his own blind impulses, Karl succumbs to his companions’ animal-like behaviors. When Roller suggests that the life of a robber is better than falling into utmost despair, Karl will not hear of it. He retorts with a measure of disgust. Such a spirit should take up his habitation as a tiger and not as a human being. Instead of asking what his brother’s handwriting has to do withhis father’s verdict, Karl responds out of anger. Ist das Vatertreue? Ist das Liebe für

456 “An element of Rousseauism is present here: man strives to achieve a more natural state akin to the life of the beast” (Guthrie, 1999, 449). 457 See D. C. Johnson about “Aristotle’s last comment on hyperbole” (91). 458 D.C. Johnson, 91. 232

Liebe? (1.2, 35). Thinking his natural right has been violated, Karl wants to turn himself into a bear and organize an uproar. Such a thing is unheard of! How canitbe that nature did not embrace her penitent son, when he felt sincere remorse? In underscoring the excesses in Karl’s utterances, Schiller portrays with a touch of irony the revolt of his impatient “titanic” young rebel against nature’s restriction. While vice takes hold of the mind of his protagonist, Karl’s heart goes faint. As Gail Hart has observed, it is especially ironic that it is Karl’s “great expansive nature that enables him to lead a band of robbers in the Bohemian woods” (62).459 Schiller uses the technique of antithesis to highlight the striking contradiction in Karl’s character.

On the one hand, he displays a sensitive agile nature that expresses itself by his penitent genuine attitude using mournful words. On the other hand, Karl’s words are aggressive and create a foreboding atmosphere of violence. Restraint seems impossibe.

In light of my explication in Part I, Karl’s problem could be diagnosed as a matter of the lethargic condition of a sense impulse too sluggish to defend its own limits and combat the cowardice of his heart to do what is right (ÄE 13; FA 8: 605).

Karl does not take time to think intelligently about how the message of the letter might pertain to his father and brother. Nor does he exercise caution and discernment, as also his hyperbolic exegesis attests. Instead, Karl agrees right on the spot to become the captain of his robbers. At this point, he seems to be ruled by the same

Großmannssucht that he so much abhorred in Spiegelberg just a short time ago: Der

459 See Gail K. Hart, 2005. 233

Gedanke verdient Vergötterung-- Räuber und Mörder, so wahr meine Seele lebt, ich bin euer Hauptmann (1.2, 36). Karl utters here “Falsche Begriffe von Tätigkeit und

Einfluss, Fülle und Kraft“(NA 3: 6). In a mental state of utmost agitation, Karl’s heart is not able to register that which his tongue brags about (und mein Herz hörte nicht, was meine Zunge prahlte 1.2, 25). Katharina Gräz observes: “Die vaterlose Existenz bedeutet für ihn den Rückfall in die Anarchie, in einen vorzivilisatorischen

Naturzustand.”460 Grätz quotes from Schiller’s second Karsschulrede (1780). “Die

Liebe, de den vater an den Sohn, den Sohn an den Vater fesselt […], kann mächtig würken auf die Harmonie des Ganzen” (27). The critic shows that for the spectator of not only sense but of intellect, the inhumanity of Karl points to the need for its opposite, which is humane humanity. Indeed, Schiller’s portrayal of the breakdown of the reciprocal interaction between Karl’s emotional and intellectual faculties shows the limitations of his prodigious revolt, as well as excites the idea that poesy’s function is to cultivate the harmonious alliance between thought and feelings through exercising, i.e. schooling, these powers.

Elisabeth Blochmann observes that the root of barbarism lies not so much in the depravity of the enlightened ideas but in the weak condition of will power to combat the blind impulses of human nature. “Die Barbarei des Zeitalters nicht auf dem Mangel an Aufklärung beruhe, sondern auf der ‘Feigheit des Herzens‘ die mit der Erkenntnis nicht ernst zu machen wagt“(498). According to Ellis Finger, “the

460 Katharina Gräz, 2005, “Familien-Bande. Die Räuber” (28). Grätz quotes from Schiller’s second Karsschulrede (1780). “Die Liebe, die den Vater an den Sohn, den Sohn an den Vater fesselt […], kann mächtig würken auf die Harmonie des Ganzen” (27). 234

formula seems tailor-made for the kind of moral ennoblement which Schiller imparted to many of the tragic struggles in his dramas” (166).461 However, as I suggest,

Schiller’s skillful employment of the hyperbole appears to avoid such a predictable application of the ideas in ÄE 8, even before he recorded it. As my analysis of Karl

Moor’s hyperbolic exegesis has shown, the peculiar combination of vice and virtue lent an element of “strangeness” with a touch of irony to the dynamics of his character. As Dean Christopher Johnson has also seen, it becomes clear that hyperbole should be contingent on what is real, provided, of course, that the hyperbolist wishes to avoid absurd, “perverse...affectation” (7).462

3. Historical Truth versus Poetic Truth. Act 2, Scene 3

Gail Hart rightly proposes that it is hard to comprehend Schiller’s centralheroasa

“murderer of father, beloved, and enemies” (65). But, as she argues, Schiller may well need “the charisma of crime—somewhat tempered by the repeated imprecations against the times and the implications that law has not served its true purpose—to explore the kinds of great deeds that challenge order and define great men” (64).

While it is undeniable that the protagonist’s murderous actions are morally reprehensible, Hart comprehends that, in Schillers case, “the ‘charisma’ofKarl’s crime is ‘aesthetically useful.’”463

461 See Ellis Finger, 1980. 462 Johnson’s dissertation set the stage of my discussion of Schiller’s use of the hyperbole in Die Räuber. 463 Hart, 65. Concerning Schiller’s treatment of crime, Hart cites Schiller’s “Gedanken über den Gebrauch des gemeinen und Niedrigen in der Kunst,” which was published in 1802 but, in all probability, written in the early 1790s. “Stehlen z.B. ist etwas absolut Niedriges, […] Wird aber dieser Mensch zugleich Mörder, so ist er zwar moralisch noch viel verwerflicher; aber ästhetisch wird er dadurch wieder um einen Grad brauchbarer“ (FA 8: 455). 235

The locations of these scenes are significant for an interpretation of the

Schauspiel. Werner von Stransky-Stranka-Greifenfels has identified the scenes

Schiller designates. For example, the first reference to Saal im Moorischen Schloss in

Act I, Scene 1 is a Castle of Franconia (93).464 A Franconia castle serves as the backdrop for a number of settings in the play, and the major battle of the robbers, in act 2, scene 3, and takes place near here in the Bohemian woods. Since these locations actually exist, Schiller’s skillful employment of the hyperbole is contingent on history. In connecting the robbers’ murderous actions to the rejection of the corrupt actions of the medieval Catholic Church by the Taborites,465 Schiller would seem to justify the robbers’ battle against the priest’s army in act 2, scene 3. Indeed, Schiller finds even a historical person after whom he models Karl’s masterful management of the robbers’ battle in this scene. It is the legendary Jan Ziska (103) who wasthe captain of the military band of the Hussites who assembled on Tabor Mountainin southern Bohemia. To some, Ziska was a ruthless warrior; to others, he was a humane captain of his troops. Because he exercised clemency to those whom he defeated, historical accounts claim that he was not a merciless military leader. In any case, there is no question that Ziska was a masterful tactician. Karl’s skillful management of the battle of the robbers in Act 2, Scene 3 defines him as a great man in the manner of

Ziska. Schweizer, for example, praises Karl’s tactics as Meisterlich, vortrefflich! (2.3,

74). Even though the enemy outnumbered the robbers, Karl’s masterful strategies

464 Werner von Stransky-Stranka-Greifenfels, 2005. 465 Drawing upon medieval circumstances most certainly suggests that the critical spirit of the Aufklärung “assailed traditional religion before it grappled with political institutions” (Gooch, 19). 236

secured victories. The gang of robbers lost one man while the enemy lost three hundred soldiers. Concerning Schiller’s topical and historical models, it seems clear that Schiller was always of what his references indicated: […] der Vorzug der

Wahrheit, den die Geschichte vor dem Roman voraushat, könnte sie schon allein über ihn erheben (NA 25: 154; Greifenfels, 99). Even if the robber’s battle was contingent on historical models, as already his masterful characterization of his figures and their historical circumstances reveal, we can conclude that Schiller is interested in his characters as human beings and wants to find out what drives them to commit murderous actions.

To understand how aesthetics gave fullest expression to Karl’s compelling greatness, let us look more closely at the robbers’ battle in act 2, scene 3.In conversation with the representative of the clergy, Karl’s hyperbolic language indicates his disconcerted mental state of mind. Boiling over with rage, Karl unleashes his anger against hypocritical ruling class who unjustly exploits the poor.

“Bemerken Sie die vier kostbaren Ringe, die ich an jedem Finger trage—gehenSie hin und richten Sie Punkt für Punkt den Herren des Gerichts über Tod und Leben aus!

[…] Ich könnte Ihnen noch mehr Geschichten von meinen Ringen erzählen“ (2.3, 77).

„ […] O über euch Pharisäer, euch Falschmünzer der Wahrheit, euch Affen der

Gottheit! “ (2.3, 78).

Through hyperbole and portrayal of Karl’s emotional state of mind, Schiller lends additional power to the fight against social corruption. By taking Karl’s words at their face value, a sober minded and alert reader would question his incredible physical might under the pretense of the rings on each of Karl’s fingers. Therings 237

symbolize greater strength and victory similarly to Götz von Berlichingen’s clenched fist in Goethe’s early drama. Rather than allow ourselves to get lost in a senseless labyrinth of unjust acts, we should follow Schiller’s advice to remain mindful of what

Karl reveals and why he speaks, feels and acts in a certain manner at particular moments, such as when he encounters the clergy.

Dass der Mensch in solchen Lagen so empfindet, handelt und sich ausdrückt ist ein großes wichtiges Factum für den Menschen; und das muss der Dramatiker oder Romandichter leisten. […] In diesem großen Felde ist der Dichter Herr und Meister. […Dem Geschichtsschreiber] fehlt die Freiheit, mit der sich der Künstler mit schöner Leichtigkeit und Grazie bewegt (NA 25: 154).

In unfolding the poetic quality of the protagonist’s hyperbole, Schiller, ever in his pursuit of schooling our Empfindungsvermögen, lets his audience experience the deterioration of Karl’s mind and soul. In pursuit of expanding not only the faculties of the intelligence, but also refining the sensibilities of our heart, Schiller’s purpose for having Karl engage in a conversation with the clergyman is most assuredly to allow a glance into the nature of Karl’s mighty anger at the clergy’s abuse of power.

Via the formal, poetic quality of the Räuber, we gain insight into how Schiller endeavors to develop human beings’ ability to sense the deterioration of their state of mind (Gesinnung). Though Karl usurps the role of the irresistibly mighty captain whose robbers defend the just cause of the oppressed, his wrath is misguided. On the account of his wounded pride, Karl demonstrates that he is vulnerable to rage. Of course, as Aristotle suggests, it is true that young men do have hot tempers and strong appetites; nonetheless, it is not through youth that they act accordingly, but through anger or appetite (Rhetoric, Bk 1, IX, 201). Hence, while it is an important revelation 238

why in a certain situation a character speaks, feels and acts in a particular way,

Schiller has us learn that it was Karl’s rage and not his irresistible might that fueled his murderous actions.466 As also his hyperbolic exegesis suggests, he suffered much pain due to his consuming rage. Our understanding of Schiller’s unique employment of the hyperbole depends to a great extent on whether we perceive the superiority of the poetic truth over the contingencies of history which the dramaturge has woven into the whole fabric of his drama.

In order to make extra demands on our critical faculties concerning Karl’s impressive, but strange figure, Schiller takes pains to signalize that, though Robber

Moor boiled over with rage, he did not act out his revenge indiscriminately. As events prior to the robbers’ battle revealed, Karl demanded from his gang members civilized conduct toward all those who were powerless, such as the elderly, women, children and the sick.467 Even so, by reporting about shameful actions that the gang members committed against the female tenants of the Cäcilienkloster, Spiegelber signals that

Karl’s robbers were shamelessly defiant. After relating his story to Razmann,

Spiegelberg bids his fellow robber not to mention the outing to anybody, especially not to Karl. By this, he forces us to take a closer look at Karl’s moral character and the charisma of his crime as well.

Hm, hum! Bruder, was ich dir vorhin erzählt habe, bleibt unter uns, er braucht’s nicht zu wissen. Verstehst du? Du kennst ihn ja! Er hat so seine Grillen (2.3, 65).

466 Schiller here alludes to Achilles’s wrath in Homer’s Iliad. 467 Consider Karl’s indignation at Schufterle: Kranke, sagst du, Greise und Kinder? –[…] Wirklich, Schufterle? —Und diese Flamme brenne in deinem Busen, bis die Ewigkeit grau wird! —Fort Ungeheuer! (2.3, 71). 239

Upon encountering Schufterle, we witness a similar revelation concerningKarl’s character. This new gang member reports with pride his horrifying and shamelessly cruel treatments of expecting mothers, babes, the elderly and the sick. In disgust, Karl retorts: away with you, monster! Fort Ungeheuer! Lass dich nimmer unter meiner

Bande sehen! (2.3, 71). As John Guthrie elaborates, “Schufterle’s account of atrocities and destruction results in his expulsion from the group, whereupon Karl’s ambition to lead is confronted with the beginnings of his failure.”468

All of the events in act 2, scene 3 attest that the paradox of the situation is that while “at the pinnacle of daring” Karl’s magnitude of greatness challengesorder,at the same time he himself cannot avoid being a hypocrite. For he is the captainofa group of robbers whose monstrous actions lack human dignity. As a result, “Primitive instincts re-emerge and cause the disintegration of the group” (Guthrie, 1999, 449).

In his portrayal of Karl’s extraordinary personality, Schiller introduces the dramatic device of soliloquy and for the first time in act 2 scene 3. “Soliloquies and set speeches” also had “a pride of place in Shakespeare’s plays.”469 Schiller places the protagonist’s first monologue just before the robbers’ battle and right after Karl’s reproach of his shameless gang members. In the stage instruction, Schillerplanted deliberate intention for the actor in parenthesis signaling that there is a close tie between the characters’ bodily movements and the expression of their mental state of mind. (Sie gehn zitternd ab. Moor allein, heftig auf und ab gehend, 2.3, 72).

Nonetheless, in spite of everything, Karl “retained a sense of the wholeness of

468 John Guthrie, 1999, 444. 469 William Shakespeare, Soliloquy! The Shakespeare Monologues (Women), XIX. 240

character and personality” (Guthrie, 1999, 453), hence it is up to the actorto determine how to express his “moralisch empfindenden Geist” (FA 8: 334).While the gang members walk away trembling, Moor remains alone fiercely pacing up and down. Searching for a sincere solution to the tension that has become unbearable to him, Karl’s soliloquy reveals to us Karl’s innermost thoughts and feelings.

–Was kann ich dafür? […] —O pfui über den Kindermord! den Weibermord! —den Krankenmord! […] Geh, du bist der Mann nicht, das Rachschwert der obern Tribunale zu regieren. […] hier entsag ich dem frechen Plan (2.3, 72).

Frustrated over the inhumane deeds of his gang members, Karl is ready to give up.

While admitting that it was a despicable plan, Karl does not know how to cope with his robbers’ shameless murderous acts. Schiller defends himself. Ich habe Räuber geschildert, und Räuber bescheiden zu schildern, wär ein Verbrechen gegen die Natur

(NA 22: 130). Robber Moor is just about to take flight when his gang members run to him hastily to inform him that the enemy has surrounded them.

Although Karl’s first soliloquy is hard to lock into a precise category, it reveals the protagonist’s disconcerted mental state of mind at the morally deprived condition of his own and that of his gang members. As the consequence of his entangled state of affairs, Robber Moor’s words and his movements convincingly communicate that his soul suffers unbearably. Moor’s fierce pacing up and down portrays him as a disconcerted and restless individual. By its merit, Karl’s first soliloquy is an interior monologue. It is a pitiful lament that the protagonist performs upon recognizing the error of his choices, as well as reveals the resolution that he will leave the gang behind. A resolution that Karl will not carry out at this time. 241

In sum, Schiller presents the themes and problems of crime and social injustice here as he does in many other dramas. In his pursuit of “educating” and “edifying,”

Schiller’s theater sought to become an instrument of “prevention” (Hart 13).

Nonetheless, Schiller did not believe that he could eradicate crime by showing how vice operates (NA 20: 95). Instead, he demonstrates his genuine interest in the human being who commits these crimes. A criminal can sense pain as the consequenceofthe atrocities he commits. Schiller pursues the poet’s task to make poetic truth perceptible to one’s mind’s eye through the inner consonance (innere Wahrheit, die innere

Uebereinstimmung) that the poet has woven into the full fabric of the play.

[…] der Vorzug der Wahrheit, den die Geschichte vor dem Roman voraushat, könnte sie schon allein über ihn erheben. Es fragt sich nur ob sie innere Wahrheit, die ich die philosophische und Kunstwahrheit nennen will, und welche in ihrer ganzen Fülle im Roman, oder in einer anderen poetischen Darstellung herrschen muss, nicht eben so viel Wert hat als die historische.470

Amidst crises of consciousness between feeling contempt for the crimes of the ruling class and disgust for his own murderous actions, Karl holds his audience in suspense.

As we have seen in previous chapters, the dramatist also places demands on our judgment. His goal is to nurture the desire, “einMenschzusein” (NA 20: 100). For,

“Es ist die poetische und nicht die historische Wahrheit auf welche alle ästhetische

Wirkung sich gründet“(„Über das Pathetische“; NA 20: 448).

Act 3: Peripeteia and Discovery

So darf bei der Elegie die Trauer nur aus einer, durch das Ideal erweckten Begeisterung fließen. Dadurch allein erhält die Elegie poetischen Gehalt (“Elegische Dichtung“; FA 8: 749).

470 See Schiller’s letter to Caroline von Beulwitz on 10 December, 1788 (NA 25: 154). 242

Following Aristotle “peripeteia is the most powerful part of a plot in a tragedy along with discovery.” Die Räuber proves that, from early on in his poetic career,

Schiller was well aware that the peripeteia could be useful for many different poetic purposes, especially for refining our mental faculties to be alert to sense impressions

(Empfindungen)471 and passions (Leidenschaften, Affekte),472 “um die

Empfindungsfähigkeit des menschlichen Herzens […] zu erweitern” (FA 8: 838).

Schiller employs the peripeteia at strategic locations in his dramas in order to excite our imagination and visualize how harmonious human beings function.473

According to Cooper, “discovery,474 as the word itself indicates, is the transition from ignorance to knowledge” (36). Himself committed to the artistic pursuit of awakening in humankind the desire for the excellence of character, the dramaturge, Schiller, constructed his plot in order to ennoble character in all human beings; hence his declaration, “was die Menschheit innerhalb ihres Vesens verdelt, verdient das höchste Augenmerk” (NA 20: 88). Often, the turning point in the

471 Georgia J. Cowart, 1984. Cowart has shown that the terms sense and feeling caused a lot of confusion in eighteenth-century musical thought. In this respect, it is interesting to note: “Empfindung, then, in 1755 refers to the sense perception which is gently touched by an outside stimulus, and is distinguished from Leidenschaft” (262). Compare with Friedrich Kirchner, Wörterbuch der Philosophischen Grundbegriffe. (1890). „Empfindung (egtl. Innenfindung) heißt der durch einen Nervenreiz veranlasste Zustand der Seele. […] Es ist die Aufnahme eines Sinneseindrucks in die Seele. […] Ferner unterscheidet man a) sensitive Empfindung (bringt uns den Zustand unseres eigenen Leibes) und sensorielle Empfindung [wodurch] die Außenwelt zum Bewusstsein [wird] (109-110). 472 Johann Adam Hiller makes an enlightening comparison of sentiments (Empfindungen) with passions (Leidenschaften) as they relate to music. According to Hiller, the intellect (Verstand) is concerned with pictures and ideas and the heart (Herz) with passions and sentiments. See „Von der Nachahmung der Natur in der Musik,“ in Historisch-kritische Beiträge I (1754-55). “Es gibt Empfindungen, die sich besser fühlen als ausdrücken lassen; die vom dem Getümmel der mächtigen Leidenschaften beständig so unterdrücket lassen, dass sie sich nur schüchtern zeigen“ (523). 473 Schiller’s review, “Matthissons Gedichte” (NA 22: 268-269). 474 The Poetics defines peripeteia in terms of a ‘Reversal of Situation,’ or turning point and discovery (Cooper 36). 243

characters’ viewpoint and actions is the result of schooling their rational and sensuous capacities to interact harmoniously.

5. The Sorrows of Amalia

Act 3 is divided into two scenes. In scene one, we gain greater knowledge of Amalia and Franz. Scene two portrays Karl Moor in the company of his exhausted robbers in the Danube scene at a moment when Kosinsky declares his interest in joining the robber’s gang. Scene one stages a special kind of soliloquy in a form of musical lament, i.e. Klagelied, which entails a formal expression of sorrow or mourning in both verse and song.475 Believing that he has died, Amalia sings her requiem in honor of her late beloved. To Martinson, the key to interpretation of this beautiful lament is found in the stage direction: AMALIA (im Garten, spielt auf der Laute, NA 3:73, HT

83). While playing upon her lute, Amalia is in the garden, “a location where concord between human being and Nature should reign” (HT 83). The manner Amalia presents her requiem accompanying herself on the lute alludes, however, also to the close relation between music and lyric.476 For Schiller, die lyrische […] in ihrem verjüngenden Blick […] die getrennten Kräfte der Seele wieder in Vereinigung bringt.477 Dieter Burdorf cites Johann Adolf Schlegel (1751) in support of his claim stating that poesy aims to move the listener by revealing genuine vs. artificial) emotions (4).478

475 http://www.dictionary.com/browse/lament. 476 “‘Lyrik‘ leitet sich vom griechischen lyrikos her, (lyra, Leier, Zupfinstrument), zum Spiel der Lyra gehörig. Herkunft des Wortes: weist auf enge Verbindung der Musik mit der Lyrik hin“ (Burdorf, 1997, 2). 477 “Über Bürgers Gedichte“; NA 22: 245. 478 „Johann Adolf Schlegel, der erste Übersetzer Batteux‘ Schrift (1751) setzte sich gegen Batteux’ aristotelische Zurückführung aller Dichtung auf das Nachahmungsprinzip zur Wehr. Nicht allein in 244

Schiller’s contemporary Heinrich Koch proposed that the musical art should address the heart and inspire in us noble resolutions. “Die Tonkunst ist die schöne

Kunst welche die Absicht hat, edle Empfindungen in uns zu erwecken“ (Koch, 117).

In common German usage, Empfindung designates an interior emotional experience.479 While the musical art may be able to tune our disposition for the reception of certain sentiments (Empfindungen), in Schiller’s view the poet needs to inspire the inner formation (Bildung) of humankind. In order to affect the heart, that is to inspire noble resolutions in us, Schiller recommends that, in addition to its subject matter, a poetic composition assumes a form that expresses sentiments and feelings, as well as appeals to us as music (Ausdruck von Empfindungen sei und als Musik auf uns wirke, NA 22:272). In case of the Elegische Dichtung, Schiller is concerned with the attitude of the mind, i.e., Empfindungsweise as well. The lyrical setting in the garden is a harmonious space that, by quieting the weight of Amalia’s affliction at her heartfelt sorrow, allows the heroin to genuinely lament her beloved. Her mode of presentation is a stirring declamation of her desire to memorialize her beloved in an idealized fashion. This implies that poetry, if rightly constructed, is able to express all types and all degrees of emotions, as well as inspire the inner building of humankind.

Transforming her elegiac lamentation into a song of exaltation, Karl becomes an idealized object of sorrow, a poetic substance of aspiration, which stands opposite

ihrem Ursprung sei die Poesie ein ‚Ausdruck nicht nachgemachter, sondern wirklicher Empfindungen’ gewesen (Batteux, 1976, Bd. 1: 368; Burdorf, 1997, 4). 479 „Der Begriff Empfindung ist seit dem 14. bis 15. Jh. belegt (spätmhd. empfindunge) Im Deutschen gilt die Bezeichnung, die auch in dem Verb ‚empfinden‘ (ahd. intfindan 8. –11. Jh.) anzutreffen ist, als Ausdruck von seelischen Gefühlen, wie Schmerz, Reue, Freundschaft empfinden“ (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empfindung). 245

reality. This is consistent with Schiller’s description of elegiac poetry: „so darf bei der

(OHJLHGLH7UDXHUQXUDXVHLQHUGXUFKGDV,GHDOHUZHFNWHQ%HJHLVWHUXQJIOLHȕHQ“(FA

8: 749). Amalia’s lamentation is the product of her inspired mental activity

(Begeisterung).480 Her song of ardor flows from the faculty of her imagination. It is not elicited from the demands of her circumstances. Schiller’s dramatic art indicates how poetic composition arises in the mind of the artist. We recall that in the first medical writing nature’s powers sound jointly in a single beautiful melody, similarly to the melodiously sounding string instrument (alle Kräfte wirken, und ineinander wirken, gleich Saiten eines Instruments, NA 20: 10). While nature serves as a model of representation of harmony, 481 Amalia’s love song rekindles the memory of past pleasures of love, likening the participants to two flames operating with each other interlocked and with voices sounding like a melodiously tuned harp.

Seine Küsse-- paradiesisch Fühlen!-- Zwo Flammen sich ergreifen, wie Harfentöne ineinander spielen Zu der himmelvollen Harmonie.

Following the invocation, the second stanza of Amalia’s lied calls to memory the mad delights of the short-lived love relationship in oxymoronic terms, Sein Umarmen --

Wütendes Entzücken!, which reawakens the pleasures of the kisses the lovers shared in the past. At the very center of this beautiful love song, the lovers are memorialized.

They interact perfectly with each other in harmonious alliance with the powers of

480 “Begeisterung ist durch physische Reize oder durch lebhafte Vorstellungen erzeugte Steigerung unsrer Geistestätigkeit, wodurch die Einbildungskraft entfesselt, das Gefühl erwärmt, das Interesse angespannt, der Verstand geschärft und der Wille gestärkt wird“ (Kirchner, 51). 481 Compare „...alle Kräfte wirken, ineinander wirken, gleich Saiten eines Instruments tausendstimmig zusammenlautend in eine Melodie (NA 20: 10). 246

nature. It is a beautiful, even sublime moment of fulfillment but, as in life, it is only a moment.

The concluding stanza conveys a much different sensibility. It expresses

Amalia’s sorrowful state of mind at feeling the loss of her lover. The low vowels in the concluding lines of the song underscore her disconsolation and agony.

Er ist hin-vergebens ach! vergebens Stöhnet ihm der bange Seufzer nach (3.1)

Schiller proposed later that when human beings are under duress, their need of for melting beauty (die schmelzende Schönheit) is intimately related to music. For this form of beauty harmonizes tensed human mental and emotional faculties.482 The manner in which Amalia performs her elegiac song on the lute attests to her sensitive heart. At the heart of nature, the human heart symbolizes freedom, “[…] das recht gestimmte Herz [empfängt] ‘der Freiheit süȕHV5HFKW]XUück’” (Bochmann, 495). As

Amalia’s song signals, she senses that Karl has been torn away from her, but it is not final knowledge. Weil GLH(PSILQGXQJGHP%HZXȕWVHLQYRUKHUJHKW(ÄE 20; FA 8:

632).

In retrospect, at the onset of Act III, Schiller not only creates an elegiac mood but also assigns additional dignity and meaning to Amalia’s ‘heart-rending’ song.483

But how does he achieve such a positive effect? First, the purpose of Amalia’s requiem is to idealize Karl in a state of perfection. By elevating the beloved to the

482 “Die schmelzende Schönheit ist also Bedürfnis, die in dem abgespannten Menschen die Harmonie […] wieder herstellt“. See ÄE 16; FA 8: 618, and ÄE 17; FA 8: 620. 483 Compare Schillers letter to Goethe on 24 November 1797. “Man sollte wirklich alles, was sich über das Gemeine erheben muss, in Versen wenigstens anfänglich konzipieren“ In Friedrich Schiller Briefe II. 1795-1805 (342). 247

ardent subject matter of an elegy, Karl’s image becomes an ideal object of poetic lamentation (ein innerer idealischer Gegenstand der dichterischen Klage; FA 8: 750).

Second, Amalia’s heart-rending song expresses her innermost feelings (innern

Bewegungen des Gemüts) and imagines two lovers comprising a complete harmonious entity (jene Zustände sinnlichen Friedens zugleich als Gegenstände moralischer Harmonie sich vorstellen lassen, FA 8: 749). Third, while Amalia’s heart-rending song expresses the various aspects of her sorrow over her loss, they are all motivated by the dominant desire to cherish the memory of the “late” beloved. As she is given to say, ,FKVHKHEORȕDXIGLH>«@KHUUVFKHQGH(PSILQGXQJVZHLVHGLHXQV elegisch rührt (FA 8: 748). An elegiac mode of sensibility requires that a feeling be maintained that touches our heart. For Schiller, and this is significant, it is not the literary form but an attitude of mind (Empfindungsweise) that determines the success of the elegiac mode of sensibility.484

Finally, Schiller assigns dignity to Amalia’s lamentation through music, for music is the genuine outpouring of the affects, in this case, Amalia’s heartfelt sorrow.

To be sure, an essential feature of musical art is the expression of emotions. “Die

Tonkunst ist der Ausdruck der Empfindungen und Leidenschaften” (Koch 126). In his review of the Matthissons Gedichte, Schiller makes a similar observation stating that the musical art motivates the outer expression of the inner world of emotions. Musik begleite und versinnliche die inneren Bewegungen des Gemüts durch analogische

484 Schiller: “Setzt der Dichter die Natur der Kunst und das Ideal der Wirklichkeit so entgegen, dass die Darstellung des ersten überwiegt, und das Wohlgefallen an demselben herrschende Empfindung wird, so nenne ich sie elegisch“ („Elegische Dichtung“; FA 8:748). 248

äußere (NA 22: 272). In order to effect the heart and inspire noble resolutions in us,

Schiller requires that a poetic composition assume a form expresses particular sentiments and feelings and appeals to us as music (...als Musik auf uns wirke; NA 22:

272). Remarkably, Amalia’s ‘heart-rending’ song is a musical lamentation over the loss of love485 that is expressed through the singer’s real character.

Schiller appears to have an additional purpose with the scene in the garden. He shows that the outside world is in opposition to a love relationship that is already doomed to fail. Certainly, Amalia’s beautiful requiem lacks „das energische Prinzip, welches dem Stoff beleben muss, um das wahrhaft schöne zu erzeugen“(FA 8: 761).

While Amalia’s song dies away, a change takes place in the beautiful, peaceful garden scenery. The younger brother, Franz, reappears and savagely disturbs nature’s harmony. Emphatically declining Franz’s proposal of (insistence upon) marriage,

Amalia’s reply attests to a strong individual with sound judgment: Du hast meinen

Geliebten ermordet, und Amalia soll dich Gemahl nennen! du-- (3.1, 82). A heart that is sensitive (“zart”) and alive (“lebendig”), senses the truth (Bochmann, 495). Upon

Franz’s appearance in the garden, Amalia presents herself in a manner that is the very opposite of the elegiac mode of sensibility expressed through her Liebeslied. When

Amalia resists Franz’s advances, his anger drives him to brutal threats. A union with such villain (Bösewicht) would not only violate Amalia’s moral integrity and sense of freedom. It would disrupt the harmony of nature. In sum, Amalia’s sensitivity to truth reflects the fact that an harmonious soul “incorporates both beauty and morality.”486

485 “Die Poesie soll […] das Herz treffen“[…] (Über das Pathetische; FA 8: 449). 486 Jelavich, 334. 249

5. The Danube-Scene

As we have determined, scene two of Die Räuber creates new opportunities for deeper insights into how Schiller explores a set of emotions connected to the elegiac mode of sensibility. The present romantic scene is the bank of Danube. Exhausted,

Karl sits himself down on a beautiful hill while the robber band surrounds him.

Setting the lyrical mood, the stage direction depicts (“malend”)487 the harmony of the scenic location: gelagert auf einer Anhöhe unter Bäumen, die Pferde weiden am

Hügel hinunter (3.2, 85). Most scholars agree that the impressive portrayal of the paradisiac scenery on the bank of the Danube inspires the beholder to comprehend

Karl’s great emotions intuitively. For Luserke-Jaqui, Karl appears to assume a sentimental reflective mindset and melancholic temperament. “Er idealisiert das

Heldentum ebenso wie seine Kindheit” (58). In his essay “Räuber Moors Glück und

Ende,“ Karl Guthke has called attention to Schiller’s medical views on hydration, according to which, water supplies both physical and spiritual well-being.

„[…] die offensichtliche Anwendung medizinischer Einsichten in der dramatischen Gestaltung, wie etwa in der Donauszene, wo u.a. dargestellt wird, wie ein Trunk Wasser, […] nicht nur das physische Wohlbefinden wiederherstellt, sondern zugleich auch die geistige Balance […]“ (1966, 2).

Cooke holds that “grandiose sentiment verging on sublimity” is the strongest attraction of Schiller’s debut play. It was a romantic sentiment that helped to revitalize the recognition that literature has dignity (156-57).

487 See John Guthrie, 1999, 452. 250

What are the clues the dramatist provides concerning Karl’s composure at the

Donauszene? When the scenic location on the bank of the Danube reminds Karl of the forgotten happiness of his childhood, for a moment, nature and the idyllic scene on the bank of the Danube forge alliance with each offering themselves to “sing” the tune of joyous sentiments. Ja, Freunde, diese Welt ist so schön […] Dies Erde so herrlich

(3.2). In his third medical writing, Schiller proposed that “human life depends on the mind being informed through pleasure or pain of its physical condition” (D/R, 291).

Karl’s sense of freedom is an effect of both external nature and our own human nature. The beauty of the surrounding scenery delights Karl. At the same time, the idyllic setting evokes in us, the audience, feelings of sorrow and of joy, both of which are expressed by the elegiac mode of sensibility. Entweder ist die Natur und das Ideal ein Gegenstand der Trauer, [oder…] ein Gegenstand der Freude […] (FA 8: 748).

Schiller writes that he is inspired to compose lines formed by the elegiac mode of sensibility in which die Trauer nur aus der durch das Ideal erweckten Begeisterung fließen darf (749). In the Danube-scene, Karl able to relax his agitated state of mind and enjoy a moment of nature’s splendor which is a moment of bliss (Glückseligkeit).

As Dewhurst and Reeves suggest, Karl’s joy at the peaceful environment has a

“curative impact” (D/R 293). For Karl’s sensitive soul soon recognizes the contrast that exists between the beauty of the earth and the ugly monstrosity of his crimes: ich ein Ungeheuer auf dieser herrlichen Erde (3.2). Nature’s perfection (completion) reminds Karl of his happy childhood, at which time when he felt “glücklich” and

“vollkommen” (FA 8: 723). Karl confronts the ugliness of his (human) condition. It is a moment of peripeteia. Agitated by remorse and sorrow, Karl agonizes over the loss 251

of his happy childhood. His “grip with such painful clutch” means “that no other touch is felt at all” (Cooke, 171). Paying attention to how Schiller communicates the protagonist’s emotions, Karl’s corporeal movements express his inner turmoil.488 In contemporary parlance, it is obvious that Schiller plays with „affect display.“

Kirchner explains. “Affekt ist eine plötzliche und gewaltsame Gemütserschütterung, welche durch äußere oder innere Überraschung veranlasst wird und unseren leiblichen

Zustand stark beeinflusst“(15).489 In his own time, Schiller’s third medical writing highlights that “the neural connection between our two natures forms the basis for communication of feelings” (D/R 279). As the stage direction illuminates, Karl’s agonizing “mental state [is reflected] in his posture.”490 Wild zurückfahrend, Karl remarks on how he is encircled by murderers (Umlagert von Mördern; 3.2). A horrible recognition, indeed. Karl’s bodily gestures tellingly go along with his agitated disposition. This is one of the numerous literary representation, in which the dramaturge Schiller assumes the role of a pictorial re-enactor (Seelenmaler) of his own tenet that the body and mind are interconnected (D/R 295). The bodily movements of his figures disclose profound interior states of mind.491 Karl’s convulsing heart loses grip on his own self-respect. Nevertheless, on account of the

488 See Schiller’s third medical writing “Versuch,” para 22 (NA 20: 68; D/R 279). 489 Friedrich Kirchner, Wörterbuch der Philosophischen Grundbegriffe, Sammlung der Hauptwerke der Philosophie, alter und neuer Zeit. Vol. 94 (1897). Google book. 490 See Schiller’s third medical writing, para 17, in D/R, 294. 491 In his review of Matthisson’s poems, Schiller understood the following about the poet. „Der Dichter macht den innern zu seinem Objekt. Dringt nun der Tonsetzer und der Landschaftsmaler in das Geheimnis jener Gesetze ein, welche über die inneren Bewegungen des menschlicher Herzens walten, und studiert er die Analogie, welche zwischen diesen Gemütsbewegungen und gewissen äußern Erscheinungen stattfindet, so wird er aus einem Bildner gemeiner Natur zum wahrhaften Seelenmaler“ (NA 22: 272). 252

poetic-aesthetic qualities of his drama, violent passions are also characteristic of the dignity of art.

Even so, after recalling the ‘Elysium-like moments’ of his childhood, Karl does not miss the opportunity of remembering the kind of happy tears he had shed as a child in this father’s majestic castle. Indeed, Unsre Kindheit ist die einzige unverstümmelte Natur, […] jede Fußstapfe der Natur außer uns auf unsre Kindheit zurückführt (FA 8: 726). After being reenergized by such beautiful poetic notion, Karl starts composing his own series of lines that allude to the parable of the prodigal son

(Luke 15: 11-32). Unlike the prodigal son, however, Karl wants to experience the ecstasy of that one blessed moment he had experienced in the Elysium of nature, Die

Seligkeit einer einzigen Träne (3.2.29).

Why does Schiller’s close attention to emotions and mental attitudes matter?

First, as Guthke observes, Schiller is ambitious in shaping, designing, and, in Karl’s case, reframing human character. “Schiller lenkt ja in seinen Vorreden und

Kommentaren zu den Räubern und anderen früheren Dramen das Interesse gerade auf das Menschengestalterische, nicht aber auf eine vermeintliche Ideenverkörperung.

Um ganze Menschen hinzustellen, er will ‚das ganze innere Räderwerk‘ des

Seelenlebens darzustellen und dabei ‚die wirkliche Welt, ‘die Natur zu treffen. “492

Guthke’s insight is a good example of what I understand to be das Dichterische in

Schiller’s work. The focal point of Schiller’s poetic rendering is the inner life of the characters which “speaks to” his audiences and readership. As Luserke-Jaqui

492 Karl S. Guthke, 1994, “Karl Moors Glück und Franz Moors Ende”, 35. 253

elaborates, “Nicht Geburtsadel ist für das tragische Schicksal einer Figur und deren,

‘Dramentauglichkeit’ entscheidend, sondern Seelenadel, nicht ökonomisches

Vermögen, sondern moralisches“ (2005, 43).

How does Schiller reshape Karl’s character? On account of the turmoil that he experiences in his soul, Karl longs to return to the happy state of childhood, the condition in which the correspondence between feelings and thought (die

Übereinstimmung zwischen seinem Empfinden und Denken) was imagined as real.

Given the problem of his modern condition, however, Karl seems to desire the impossible (FA 8:714).

Oh all ihr Elysiumszenen meiner Kindheit! —Werdet ihr nimmer zurückkehren —nimmer mit köstlichen Säuseln meinen brennenden Busen kühlen? (3.2)

In yearning to reclaim the past pleasures of his youth, Karl becomes homesick.

Instead of looking forward to a promising future, he looks backwards in the

(frustrated) hope of recovering an Elysian-like moment of bliss. Such a condition requires that sense and intelligence, receptive and self-acting faculties, act together as harmonizing entities (FA 8: 733-34).

While the romantic Donauszene tests the releasing effect of melting beauty

(schmelzende Schönheit) on his tensed (abgespannt) protagonist, Schiller’s purpose is to guard Karl from enervation as the aftermath of the robbers’ battle that took place in the previous act. 493 After a short moment of the invigorating experience in the romantic setting on the bank of the Danube, Karl falls into a state of stagnation, too

493 The word, Entnervung (de-nerving), recalls Mendelssohn’s reflections on physiology. 254

feeble to move forward. Indeed, while Karl is yearning to reclaim the paradisiac moments of his past, we must ask. What is the matter with Karl? How is it that Karl has not shown any interest yet in Amalia? In order to counteract Karl’s lethargic state of mind, Schiller will not put up any longer with such powerless pose i.e.

Kraftlosigkeit. As Goethe observes, in Schiller’s drama, who lets his reader “einen

Augenblick zu Behaglichkeit kommen. “494 Following the releasing effect of melting beauty, next Schiller decides to set Karl into motion by the effect of the energetic beauty (energische Schönheit), i.e. das energische Prinzip, welches den Stoff beleben muss, um […] das Herz zu erquicken und den Geist zu beschäftigen (FA 8: 761).

6. The Konsinsky Scene and Karl’s Tragic Flaw (3.2)

As the discussion of the previous scenes reveal, all events in Schiller’s debut play work together show the enormous tumult in Karl’s soul under the weight of the magnitude of his crimes which evokes compassion.

Die Tragödie ist dichterische Nachahmung einer zusammenhängenden Reihe von Begebenheiten welche uns Menschen in einem Zustand des Leidens zeigt, und zur Absicht hat, unser Mitleid zu erregen (NA 20: 164).

The concluding episode of the Danube scene reveals the motivational force behind

Karl’s foolish decision to organize a gang. When Kosinsky appears and wants to join the robber’s gang, Karl is unwilling to grant his wish. Instead he begins to interrogate

Kosinsky. As Luserke-Jacqui observes, with the Kosinsky-scene, “Schiller arbeitet mit einem simplen Trick, indem er die Kosinsky-Episode als Spiegelgeschichte zu

494 Goethe to Schiller, Letter on 3 February 1798, in Caroline von Wolzogen, Agnes von Lilien (Hilsdesheim, 1988). “Nachwort“ by Peter Borner, 403. 255

Moors Leben entfaltet“(Luserke-Jaqui 59). More challenging appears to be in this episode, however, to figure out what is the central conflict situation, the Punctum saliens, and how it is related to the tragedy of Karl Moor.

During his lively exchange with Kosinsky, Räuber Moor starts out with effective persuasive techniques in an effort of changing the mind of this young aristocrat. Do you know how a reckless boy you are, he asks? Mord, Knabe, verstehst du das Wort auch? (3.2) In appealing first to Kosinsky’s rational faculties (logos),

Karl advises him to reflect on the consequences of his decision: Besinne dich, Denk

(think)... Ich rate dir als ein Vater! In presenting himself as a father-figure, Karl wants to raise the emotions of his viewer favorably to his own position. For, he is well aware that his state affairs greatly deteriorated. Finally, Karl proves the credibility of his own reasons by confessing that he regrets ever having become a robber.

Wenn dir noch ein Funken von Hoffnung, irgend anderswo glimmt, […] Noch einmmal, mein Sohn! So verlass diesen schrecklichen Bund (3.2) —Glaube mir, man kann das für Stärke des Geistes halten, was doch am Ende Verzweiflung ist—Glaub mir, mir! Und mach dich eilig hinweg (3.2, 91-92).

This is the first locale where Schiller explores the literary possibilities of confession.495 What starts out as a simple act of rhetorical persuasion, evolves into an elevated poetic diction of “irresistible might.” By bringing power and insight to Karl’s confession, the protagonist eloquently makes the transition from ignorance to the recognition that it was a foolish act of oversight failing to exercise insight before deciding to become a robber.

495 “It will be recalled that when Grammond first sought a sleeping-draught Schiller eventually brought his to confess to his suicidal motive” (D/R 196). 256

According to Luserke-Jaqui, Karl acted under the impulsive influence of the affect of despair (Affekt der Verzweiflung). Indeed, Karl himself admits that he organized the gang of robbers out of despair (Luserke-Jaqui, 59). If we accept

Luserke-Jaqui’s profound observation, we also need to consider that the word

Verzweiflung denotes a state of powerlessness.496 What kind of powerlessness? Karl’s stupidity results from the relaxation of his mental faculties (widriger Anblick der

Erschlaffung, der Geistesschwäche, NA 26: 257). By offering an adverse aspect of

Karl’s slack mental faculties, Schiller strives for a counter-effect in his debut play.

Unsere Tragödie, […] hat mit der Ohnmacht, […] und mit einer gemeinen Denkart zu ringen (NA 30: 177).497 The task of the tragedy is to wrestle with powerless and vulgar attitudes. Karl acted under the influence of an impulsive force he could not control. Nevertheless, as Luserke-Jaqui reminds, Karl had no reason to despair because of Amalia. But “Kosinskys Amalia wird erpresst […] ein solches Schicksal drohte Karl Moor’s Amalia hingegen nicht und es bleibt letztendlich rätselhaft, worüber Karl verzweifelte” (60). Indeed, the problem appears to lie with Karl and his failure to attain the forgiveness of his father, which thwarts his hopes of personal happiness (“Vorstellung von seinem Glück”; Guthke, 1966, 8).498 Most importantly,

496 Kirchner writes: “Man kann die Affekte einteilen in sthenischen, welche unser Lebensgefühl fördern, und asthenischen, die es hemmen (Kant). Zu aktiven Affekten gehören z.B. Zorn, Freude, Begeisterung; zu den passiven Affekten Scham, Furcht, Verzweiflung. […] diese der Ohnmacht vergleichbar” (15). 497 For an analogy between Schiller’s and Rousseau’s pursuit of ennobling human character, see Wilhelm Humboldt’s statement in his famous work “ Thoughts on the Limitation of State Activity” (1792): “When will someone arise to accomplish for legislation what Rousseau accomplished for education, and direct attention from mere external, physical results to the life and growth of the soul?” (110). 498 Aristotle inserts here: “People who are afflicted by sickness or poverty of love or thirst or any other unsatisfied desires are prone to anger and easily roused” (BK II, 215). 257

when Roller offers that the life of a robber is better than falling into utmost despair,

Karl becomes overtly self-centered. In his agitated state of mind, he completely forgets about his love for Amalia. Instead, Karl despairs because his desire to return to safe heavens was not granted to him.

Dagmar C. Stern draws on Schiller’s “Thesophie des Julius,” to show that love is meant to feel the attraction of excellence (Liebe ist eine Anziehung des

Vortrefflichen; NA 20:119). Love can also forgive the transgressions of others. By her excellence, love is able to rediscover a possession that was once disposed (Verzeihung ist das Wiederfinden eines veräußerten Eigentums; NA 20: 120). Stern rightly concludes that “in the theosophical system, by forgiving and loving others, a person improves her or his own essential nature and becomes more God-like” (322). Though

Karl sincerely sought the forgiveness of his father, he was ignorant of his need to pursue excellence. His only concern was to reclaim the paradisiac-like state of existence (edles Vergnügen) of his past in the arms of Amalia. Not surprisingly, after following the fine clues in the whole action, we can discover that Karl’s downfall was caused by an unschooled heart. After his prospects were thwarted, Karl was not in the right frame of mind to discern499 that he acted upon the blind impulses of his nature.

On top of it, Karl augmented the magnitude of his crimes on the grounds, “dass er aus privaten Gründen einen öffentlichen Krieg führt, ohne zu wissen, was an die Stelle des in Schutt und Asche gelegten Alten treten werde, “as Norbert Oellers observes about the protagonist’s criminal acts (2005, 132).

499 In Chapter 13 of his Poetics, Aristotle describes flawed action as the ‘blindness of heart’ over and against rational action. In Cooper (1913), 39. 258

Long before Daniel informs Karl about the intrigues of his elder brother Franz,

Karl transitions from ignorance to knowledge by admitting that it was a foolish act to form a gang of robbers. Our sympathies with Karl most powerfully arouse when he discovers that his brother set the trap for him. In response, Karl bitterly exclaims: Oh ich blöder, blöder, blöder Tor! (Wider die Wand rennend.) Ich hätte glücklich sein können—oh Büberei, Büberei! (4.4, 108). Indeed, the error in Karl’s judgment could have been avoided, had he been vigilant enough to register the hidden clues his gang members hinted at in their witty statement concerning his brother’s handwriting. Das müssen schöne Neuigkeiten sein. Lass doch sehen! Ein zuckersüßes Brüderchen! In der Tat! As suggested in his Schaubühne-Rede, Karl’s tragic flaw most assuredly proves that his crime resulted from a seemingly insignificant human failure. Das

Glück der Gesellschaft wird ebenso sehr durch Torheit als durch Verbrechen und

Laster gestört (NA 20: 94).

Conclusion

Weil der Weg zu dem Kopf durch das Herz muss geöffnet werden (FA 8: 582).

Schiller remained consistent. The only secret that would protect humankind against its own folly is that it learn to bolster its heart against its own indolent tendencies. Ich kenne nur ein Geheimnis, den Menschen vor Verschlimmerung zu bewahren, und dieses ist – sein Herz gegen Schwächen zu schützen.500 Lesley Sharpe is right to point out that an unschooled heart is unable and unwilling to co-operate with reason

(Concerning, 152). I contend that Schiller’s tragedies purposefully target the human

500 Was kann eine gute stehende Schaubühne eigentlich wirken? (NA 20:135). 259

being (den Menschen) in order to educate, i.e school his sensibility, i.e.,

Empfindungsvermögen and enable rational discernment, “weil der Weg zu dem Kopf durch das Herz muss geöffnet werden,“ and „selbst darum, weil sie zu Verbesserung der Einsicht erweckt (ÄE 8, FA 8: 582). But to what end?

One favorable outcome of his conversation with Kosinsky is that the protagonist’s conscience and heart begin to operate in a complimentary fashion. In a short period of time, Karl becomes concerned about Amalia’s state of affairs and wants to change his course of action. Sie weint, sie vertrauert ihr Leben. Auf! Hurtig!

Alle! nach Franken! In acht Tagen müssen wir dort sein (3.2, 94), whereupon the band of robbers quickly sets out for Old Moor’s castle. Upon arrival, Karl disguises himself in order to test Amalia. He is assured that Amalia still loves him. Scholarly opinion is that Amalia does not recognize Karl. It is apparent, however, that Amalia knows that Karl is the visitor. To be sure, she soon senses that their hearts cannot regain the harmonious union (zusammenstimmen) they used to share. Even when Karl joins Amalia singing their favorite song--and they take turns in singing and playing their lines in the accompaniment of the lute--the song breaks off with Karl’s lines.

This time, poesy is unable to reunite the lovers harmoniously.

Because of Karl’s violent actions, Schiller does not allow the lovers to renew their love relationship.501 Upon sensing their discord, Karl throws away the lute and flees the garden. As Guthrie argues, “Music does not soothe the angry soul […] Karl’s frustration surfaces again and is expressed in the violent gesture of throwing away his

501 Schiller:. „[…] die Dichtkunst ist beinahe allein, die die getrennte Kräfte der Seele wieder in Vereinigung bringt“ („Über Bürgers Gedichte“; NA 22: 245). 260

lute” (Guthrie, 2009, 63). This moment weighs so heavily upon Karl’s soul that he is unable to speak. Knowing that he cannot avoid his tragic end, Karl has to choose between suicide or giving himself over to the authorities. The last scene of act 4 portrays the tumult in Karl’s soul. He sings the Römergesang while playing his lute.

Ein Todesstoß von Brutus’ Schwerte! (4.5) Choosing suicide would be an easy solution. In the eighteenth century, suicide still had the stigma of abjection and damnation. As Martinson understands the situation, “had a singular act of suicide been acted out on the stage (itself a violation of decorum), it would have shocked and, therefore, alienated the audience” (2013, 123). But this is precisely the opposite effect that Schiller was trying to achieve at the premier of his debut play. If Karl gave himself over to the authorities, it would mean that he would face torture before his execution. Garland observed that “The full force of the motif of justice embodied even more directly in the repeated references to court, judges, and judgement” (26).

Neither suicide nor execution could be acceptable to the heart, nor could they command the rational dictates of the mind. None of these choices could appeal to a person with normal intelligence and sympathies. The question, then, is, how Schiller opens the blockage to Karl’s head via the heart?

How does Schiller open the way to Karl’s intellectual faculties? After old

Moor dies and Franz commits suicide, Amalia is in danger of falling prey to the lawless animal instincts (rohe gesetzlose Triebe) of Karl’s robbers. They shout unanimously, Opfer um Opfer! Amalia für die Bande! (5.2, 146). Karl is just about to leave the scene when Amalia begs him to kill her. Tod ist meine Bitte nur. –Verlassen

[…] Ich kann’s nicht überdulden (5.2, 146). Amalia provocatively challenges him and 261

his gang members to the point that one of the robbers decides to take aim at her. For

Karl, it is too much to bear. Acting impulsively, he cries out, Halt! Moors Geliebte soll nur durch Moor sterben! (5.2, 147), and kills her. Following a detailed account of this moment in the drama, Christoph Schweitzer concludes that Karl „uses the beloved Amalia as a sacrificial offering on the altar of his personal freedom, thus putting personal freedom at the highest point of his scale of values” (166). “He [Karl] definitely lacks true love of others and thinks first of himself, of his freedom and his reputations as ‘höherer Mensch” (166). Due to Karl’s’ high esteem of himself, to

Schweitzer “….love is assigned a lower place on his scale of values” (168). It would be indeed difficult to accept Karl’s proclamation that his act of murder is a sign of greatness („Größe“; 168).

We propose to read carefully the preceding scene, in which Amalia and Karl find each other and join their hearts embracing each other in a brief moment of their ecstasy. Karl confesses that peace returned to his soul. “Der Friede meiner Seele ist wiedergekommen, die Qual ist ausgetobt (5.2, 145). Whereupon the robbers accuse

Karl of being a traitor. “Ein Räuber grimmig hervortretend, […] Steckt das Schwert zwischen beide” (5.2, 145). Karl’s real problem is that in his foolish commitment to the robbers, he allowed this misplaced passion to dominate the will of his mind and intellect. 502 As Schiller concluded in his first medical dissertation, since such individuals don’t know how to function freely and morally at the same time, a

502 Compare the Philosophie der Physiognomie. “So kann es Leute geben, die zuletzt mechanisch gutes oder böses tun. Anfangs hatten sie es frei, moralisch gethan, da nehmlich ihre Aufmerksamkeit noch unbestimmt war. Jetzt aber ist die Idee auch ohne Aufmerksamkeit die lebhafteste, sie fesselt die Seele an sich, sie herrscht über den Verstand und Willen. (NA 20:27, para. 10). 262

habitual or recurrent idea can easily enslave their will. Thus, I propose that in his enslavement to his robbers, the territory of Karl’s reasoning power was inhibited. As a sign of the mismanagement of his human faculties, he killed Amalia.503 Perhaps because Karl never knew what moral freedom was, Schweitzer’s statement has some validity claiming that “love is assigned a lower place on his scale of values

(Schweitzer 168). It is also true that Karl sacrificed Amalia, as Schweitzer proposes.

“Ich habe euch einen Engel geschlachtet” (5.2, 147). Unlike Schweitzer, however, we propose that Karls’ motivation is not personal freedom. In the light of Schiller’s understanding of moral freedom, Karl’s real problem was that he could not bear any longer to share his life with those who represent to him full of hideousness and shame

(“voll Abscheulichkeit und Schande”, 5.2, 147). Already at the time of formulating his Philosophie der Physiologie, young Schiller was convinced that art’s task was to enable humankind to function freely and morally at the same time. Indeed, Schiller portrays that the impact of the act of killing Amalia is so enormous that it shocks Karl out of his insensibility, bringing him to his senses. Karl’s responsibility is both to act morally but also to face the consequences of his actions.504

503 Moralität des Menschen hat ihren Grund in der Aufmerksamkeit, d. h. im tätigen Einfluss der Seele auf die Materiellen Ideen im Denkorgan. (NA 20: 27, para. 10). 504 Some of the most recent scholarship on the play, addresses the problem of terror. Two contributions that provide excellent insights into Franz’s terroristic activities prefigure that discussion. Wolfgang Riedel suggests that, in conversation with his father, Franz Moor is a genius of inversion. “Wie in I/1 als ‘umgekehrter Auflärer’ [Schiller in his review], tritt er nun als ‘umgekehrter Arzt’ auf, der sich das Wissen der zeitgenössische Anthropologie und Medizin zunutze macht...” (2006, 24). For, “Auf der Suche nach einer wirkungsvollen Strategie des Psychoterrors prüft Franz den aus der zeitgenössischen medizinischen Literatur bekannten Katalog potenziell pathogener Affekte...” (25). Franz goes aground on his own unconscious (Unbewusstes) (40). Kathrina Grätz endeavors to understand Franz’s point of view. Unlike Schiller himself who underscores the bonds of universal love and sees human beings as tied harmoniously together [see Schiller’s second Karlsschulrede, for example], Franz sees human existence „als schonungsloses Konkurrenzverhältnis lauter eigennütziger Individuen, die auf sich allein gestellt rücksichtslos um ihre Interessen streiten. Franz sieht die Menschen in einem fortwährenden 263

It remains to be told how Schiller ennobles the character of Karl. After putting his hero through a number of heart-rending acts, Schiller takes special care not to dismantle him completely. For, tragedy “muss also Kraft und Charakter zeigen, sie muss das Gemüt zu erschüttern, zu erheben, aber nicht aufzulösen suchen (NA 30:

177). The impact on Karl of Amalia’s death is of such a magnitude that nothing can stop him from giving himself over to the authorities. The sublimity of the moment enables Karl to free his mind from the restraints of his commitment to the robbers. It is also a matter of asserting his moral free will. We are reminded here that “Freiheit ist Selbstbestimmung durch die Kraft der Vernunft, die sich der blinden Natur entgegenwirkt. “505 The source of the determination of freedom that occurs from within is the greatest cooperative interaction between mind, and body, and soul.

Schiller proposes that the realization of such high-yielding disposition impresses the mind with grandeur and power. Erhaben ist alles, was dieses Vermögen in uns zum

%HZXȕWVHLQEULQJW(Vom Erhabenen; FA 8: 421). The freedom and privilege of humankind is to determine one’s self no matter how entangled reality may become. In the end, Schiller ascribed the condition of pure reason to his main character. In so doing, he suggests that even a Karl has the potential of becoming a whole human being (Mensch sein).

[…] sie [die Tragödie] muss also Kraft und Charakter zeigen, sie muss das Gemüt zu erschüttern, zu erheben, aber nicht aufzulösen suchen (NA 30: 177).

Überlebens- und Vernichtungskampf begriffen...” (19). As a result, Franz reject the idea of a moral free will. See, also, Karl S. Guthke 2005a.

505 Muschg, 1961, 227. 264

Karl realizes that a man with eleven children can benefit from his condition. Wer den großen Räuber lebendig liefert—dem Mann kann geholfen werden (5.2).

Aber die Tragödie hat einen poetischen Zweck, d.i. sie stellt eine Handlung dar, um zu rühren, und durch rühren zu ergötzen (NA 20: 166). 265

CHAPTER FIVE: DON CARLOS (1787)506 Ein dramatisches Gedicht

Schiller’s Don Carlos dramatically renders the life of historical persons at the beginning of the Dutch War of Independence.507 In placing the emphasis on the concept of Bildung concerning the human being, Karl Guthke succinctly states, “in all of his historical plays, Schiller focuses not so much on the course of history and its ulterior meaning as on the prominent man or woman caught up in it.”508 On the account of Schiller’s compositional difficulties with the historical material (Stoff), i.e.

“poetischer Kampf mit der Geschichte,”509 the play had an exceptionally long gestation period.510 Another had to do with Schiller’s understanding of the trajectory of his poetic pursuits regarding the aesthetic education of the human being. For, while during the long compositional process, Schiller generated new ideas about how to express die Empfindung, ein Mensch zu sein,511 it was also his own poetic calling that challenged him to contemplate how he ought to fashion himself as a poet and dramatist.

Während der Zeit […] hat sich – in mir selbst vieles verändert […] Neue Ideen, die indes bei mir aufkamen, verdrängten die früheren (NA 22: 138).512

506 Friedrich Schiller, Don Karlos, Infant von Spanien. Leipzig: Göschen, 1787; translated by Hoehden and Stoddart as Don Carlos, Infant of Spain. London: Miller, 1797. In Companion (2005), xi. Frederick W.C. Lieder mentions the following editions: 1799, 1801, 1802, 1804, and 1805. In “Don Carlos Theme in Literature,” Journal of English and Germanic Philology, 1910, 490. 507 Dutch War of Independence (1568–1648), or Eighty Years’ War. To the outcome of the drama, it is significant that 1568 happens to mark the death of both the successor of Philip II, Don Carlos (1545– 1568) and the third wife of Philipp II, Elizabeth von Valois (1545-1568). 508 Guthke, Karl S. „Die Jungfrau von Orleans.“ In Companion, 227. 509 Norbert Oellers. Schiller. Elend der Geschichte, Glanz der Kunst. 2006. 510 Buchwald, 423. 511 “Die Schaubühne ist die Stiftung, wo sich Vergnügen mit Unterricht, […] wo Kurzweil mit Bildung gattet. Wir werden uns selbst wiedergegeben, [… unsere] Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20: 100). 512 Briefe über Don Karlos (NA 22: 137-178). 266

Certainly, the play’s long gestation period indicates that Schiller wrestled with the task of integrating the building up of the whole human being into the historical material. To be sure, first and foremost, the dramaturg's material is the human being.

Nevertheless, according to Schiller the indispensable power of theater lies on the mode of expression, i.e. Ausdruck. As Lucas Zenobi has re-determined “Die Wahrheit des Theaters liegt in seinem Darstellungscharakter.”513 How to use the capricious human forms and deprived human state of affairs at the court of Philip II to conceive art that expresses the sensation of a full human being?514 In sketching his characters, should he follow Shakespeare and avenge human nature?515 Or should he shape the historical material artistically in a manner responsive to the need of men and women to be educated through the arts? Dirk Oschmann takes an honest look at the realities of human struggles in Schiller’s Don Carlos, viewing the play’s action unfolding on seven conflict levels.516 While all these conflicts are presented in the first act of the play, Schiller’s originality relies in his ability to solicit beauty as an enabling force of human potential against the problematic bond of the friendship between the Marquis and the Prince. In the context of various scholarly responses, it is undeniable that

Schiller’s provocative approach to the obstacles of human progress is enigmatic.

513 Luca Zenobi, „Schillers Tragödie. Von der Nachahmung der Natur zum Theater des Ideals,“ 46-58. 514 Die Schaubühne-Rede, NA 20:100. 515 Vergl. „Die Dichter sind überall, schon ihrem Begriffe nach, die Bewahrer der Natur. Wo sie dieses nicht ganz mehr sein können, […] da werden sie als die Zeugen und als die Rächer der Natur auftreten“ (NSD, FA 8: 728). 516 Oschmann, 2009, 43. 267

Nevertheless, following the ÄE 8,517 we can grasp intuitively that Schiller’s

Don Carlos pursues the human heart and the powers of human will both on the conceptual and artistic levels. In his desire to ennoble human character, Schiller sought to counteract the one-sided rational development of human beings and created art so that the truth with respect that human potential518 may be known and beauty, as a symbol of the alliance between Geist and Sinn, may be revealed in the face of human struggles.519

Wenn die Wahrheit im Streit mit Kräften den Sieg erhalten soll, so muss sie selbst erst zur Kraft werden, und zu ihrem Sachführer im Reich der Erscheinungen einen Trieb aufstellen; denn Triebe sind die einzigen bewegenden Kräfte in der empfindenden Welt (ÄE 8. Brief, FA 8: 580).

While the political situation in the play’s setting was likely familiar to

Schiller’s audience, it was unable to offer a satisfactory solution to the never ending conflicts in the world.520 Schiller resolves to use poesy in a manner that, by lifting the imagination above the actual, inspires the inner building of the human character (ÄE

8, FA 8: 580). Alle Verbesserung im politischen soll von Veredelung des Charakters ausgehen (ÄE 9, FA 8: 583). “The human element is but the beginning of the poetic” purpose, Helmut Rheder once said (19). In aiming for excellence, the poet must make

517 In ÄE 8, Schiller contends that the characteristics of the human mind and soul instructs that if is not sufficient to “say that all the intellectual enlightenment deserves our respect only insofar as it exerts influence upon the character; to a certain extend it proceeds from the character, since the way to the head must lie through the heart.” (FA 8: 582). 518 Poesy’s purpose is to cultivate and [re]shape feelings and thoughts, the intellect and the imagination. The goal is to enact the harmonious alliance between these powers and thereby create the beauty which is the complete (whole) human being (NA 22: 245). 519 Compare „Ich Schreibe als Weltbürger, der keinem Fürsten dient, […] Natur hat mich in meinem Geburtsort zum Dichter verurteilt. […] Leidenschaft für die Dichtkunst ist feurig und stark, wie die erste Liebe“ (11.11.1784, NA 22: 93). 520 Compare ÄE 8, „Der Konflikt blinder Kräfte soll in der politischen Welt ewig dauern?“ (FA 8: 580). 268

a conscious effort to treat his subject matter in a manner that ennobles human character. In the process of self-fashioning, the poet’s purpose is to benefit humankind through the education afforded by art. Veredelung, ohne welche er aufhört seinen

Namen zu verdienen (NA 22: 246; 253). As Immanuel Kant seems to have agreed,

“Man nennt das durch Ideen belebende Prinzip des Gemüts Geist. […] Dichtkunst

[…ist] auf eine Stimmung des Gemüts angelegt, wodurch dieses unmittelbar zur

Tätigkeit aufgeweckt wird.“521 Schiller searched also for the energizing principle with the purpose to enable humankind to transition from his ailing powerless condition to an operatively thinking state of mind.522 In the essay Über die naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung, he writes: „ […] das energische Prinzip, das den Stoff beleben muss, um das wahrhaft schöne zu erzeugen, […um] das Herz zu erquicken und den Geist zu beschäftigen (NSD, FA 8: 761). At some variance from Kant, in

Schiller’s view it was the distinct poetic idea, das Dichterische that assumed the role of engaging our mental faculties in a free play of imagination. According to Schiller’s poetic pursuits, only after establishing equilibrium between sense and intellect was poesy able to tune our disposition to such an extent that we could perceive the right course of action.

Nevertheless, Schiller’s unique conception of his Don Carlos also reveals that in searching for an energizing principle that inspired the intellect and the heart toward

521 Immanuel Kant, 1996, „Vom Kunstgeschmack.“ Schriften zur Ästhetik und Naturphilosophie, 193. 522 ÄE 23 states: „Der Übergang von dem leidenden Zustande des Empfindens zu dem tätigen des Denkens und Wollens geschieht also nicht anders, als durch einen mittleren Zustand ästhetischer Freiheit. Und, obgleich dieser Zustand an sich selbst weder für unsere Einsichten, noch Gesinnungen etwas entscheidet, mithin unsern intellektuellen und moralischen Wert ganz und gar problematisch lässt, so ist er doch die notwendige Bedingung, unter welcher allein wir zu einer Einsicht und zu einer Gesinnung gelangen können“ (FA 8: 643). 269

cooperation, the play is not void of “fundamental anxieties,”523 as Stephanie Hammer observes. Suggesting seeing Schiller’s Don Carlos in terms of “traumatized autobiography,” as Hammer argues, the play also wrestles with the artist’s predicament of having to earn money with the instrument of his mind and his resentment of doing so.524 While it is true that breadwinning held up Schiller’s creative pursuits at times, I am concerned here to illustrate how the play’s artistic values resolve the tension that exists between the German poet’s aesthetic concerns of ennobling human character and the realities of human struggles.

For example, Schiller recommends that the poet should conceive his forms in reminiscence of nobler times, able to properly cultivate human mental faculties, as well as excite the imagination.525 The poet of truth and beauty surrounds his beholders with noble and spirited models and symbols that project the idea of excellence.526

Der Künstler ist zwar der Sohn seiner Zeit[…] Den Stoff zwar wird er von der Gegenwart nehmen, aber die Form von einer edleren Zeit. (ÄE 9, FA: 584)

In endeavoring to inspire progress via an aesthetic experience, Schiller’s treatment of art form suggests that in search of the energizing principle, he distances himself from his own age. In seeking to transition his figures from their ailing powerless condition

523 Stephanie Hammer, Schiller’s Wound. The Theater of Trauma from Crisis to Commodity, 66. 524 Hammer 66-67. 525 Immanuel Kant, 1996, „Man nennt das durch Ideen belebende Prinzip des Gemüts Geist. *HVFKPDFNLVWHLQEORȕHVUHJXODWLYHV%HXUWHLOXQJVYHUP|JHQGHU)RUP>«@*HLVWDEHUGDVSURGXNWLYH Vermögen der Vernunft, ein Muster für jene Form a priori der Einbildungskraft unterzulegen (193). Compare „Die Dichtkunst führt bei dem Menschen nie ein besonders Geschäft aus […] Ihr Wirkungskreis ist das Total der menschlichen Natur, und bloß, insofern sie auf den Charakter einfließt, kann sie auf seine einzelne Wirkungen Einfluss haben (Über das Pathetische, NA 20: 219). 526 C.M. Bowra, “The Greeks gave “equal respect to mental and physical prowess” (27). In ÄE 6, Schiller observes that these people were ‘happy’ and ‘beautiful.’ “[…] so kann die Anspannung einzelner Geisteskräfte zwar außenordentliche, aber nur durch das die gleichförmige Temperatur derselben glückliche vollkommene Menschen erzeugen“ (FA 8: 576). 270

to an operatively thinking state of mind, his main concern is to explore the effect of the aesthetic experience upon his figure’s disposition, insights, intellectual and moral values.527

Statement of conflict

In response to the corrupt and unworthy purposes to which human beings subjected themselves in his own era, how should a dramaturge fit the historical material to the poetic pursuit of giving der Menschheit ihren möglichst vollständigen Ausdruck? (NA

20: 437). How to use the capricious human forms at the court of Philipp II in a manner that inspires the inner building of humankind?528 On the one hand, as

Frederick Beiser argues, “Schiller is explicit and emphatic that the vocation of man is to perfect his spiritual nature. […] On the other hand, Schiller is no less clear and firm that the purpose of life is to develop our complete humanity, which includes not only the spiritual but also the physical, not only the intellectual but also the sensible sides of our nature.”529 I contend that the conception of Don Carlos shows that, though it is necessary to develop both of our sides, nevertheless, such pursuits require an ideal and harmonious path530 that, unfortunately, clashes against the demands of reality. If

527 Vergnügen an tragischen Gegenständen, „ Die Kunst wirkt also nicht deswegen allein sittlich, weil sie durch sittliche Mittel ergötzt, sondern auch deswegen, weil das Vergnügen selbst, das die Kunst gewährt, ein Mittel zur Sittlichkeit wird“ (FA 8: 236). 528 See „Die Dichter sind überall, schon ihrem Begriff nach, die Bewahrer der Natur. Wo sie dieses nicht ganz mehr sein können, […] da werden sie als die Zeugen und als die Rächer der Natur auftreten“ (NSD, FA 8: 728). 529 Frederick Beiser, Schiller as Philosopher, 22. 530 Compare High, Schiller’s Rebellion Konzept und die Französische Revolution, „ […] die Entwicklung des Staates von der Entwicklung seiner Bürger abhängig ist. […] der einzige Garant der Glückseligkeit des Ganzen die Harmonie seiner individuellen Bestandteile – sei […]“ (128). 271

so, by what means can a poet in an artificially civilized human society expresses the sensation of being a full human being.531

In responding to the unworthy and corrupt purposes human beings subjected themselves to in his era, Schiller articulates in his treatise Über das Pathetische

(1793) that first and foremost we must regard that humankind is ein empfindendes

Wesen. 532 In looking for exemplary models in the naïve art of the Greeks, Schiller highlights the qualities that touch our heart: Diese zarte Empfindlichkeit für das

Leiden, wahr und offen da liegende Natur (NA 20: 198). While Greek art never exhibits insensitivity towards human sufferings, such portrayal of human nature animates our soul and touches our heart. Two years later in his treatise Naive und

Sentimentalische Dichtung (1795), Schiller again states: Und doch ist es die

Menschheit allein, in die der Grieche alles einschlieȕt (NSD, FA 8: 334). The Greek fable, i.e. naïve poesy, 533 as Schiller contemplates, did not need the erudition of the philosophical intellect to portray happy dignified subjects. Nie darf ihm [dem

Griechen] die Sinnlichkeit ohne Seele zeigen (FA 8: 334). As also the unique conception of his Don Carlos attests, it was during the compositional process of his dramas that Schiller realized how he ought to search for the human in an artificial

531 „Wir werden uns selbst wieder gegeben, [… unsere] Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20:100). 532 Friedrich Schiller, Über das Pathetische, „Nirgends such der Grieche in der Abstumpfung und Gleichgültigkeit gegen das Leiden seinen Ruhm, sondern in Ertragung desselben bei allem Gefühl für dasselbe. […] Diese zarte Empfindlichkeit für das Leiden, diese warme, aufrichtig wahr und offen gelegene Natur, welche uns in den griechischen Kunstwerken so tief und lebendig berührt, ist ein Muster der Nachahmung für alle Künstler“ (NA 22: 198-199). 533 Friedrich Schiller, Anmut und Würde. „Ich habe […] den Begriff der Anmut aus der griechischen Fabel […entwickelt…], wie in soviel andern Fällen wahr ist, dass sich die philosophierende Vernunft weniger Entdeckungen rühmen kann, die der Sinn nicht schon dunkel geahndet, und die Poesie nicht geoffenbart hätte“ (FA 8: 334-45). 272

civilized age. Then, when writing about his ideas discursively, he arrived at the conviction that the poet “den Stoff durch die Form vertilgen müsse” (Oellers, 2005,

447). Sharpe translates Schiller’s poetic dictum as such: “The subject matter is consumed (or abolished, to translate more literally) but the art object has sensuous reality and through its form conveys to us a particular sense of life” (Concerning 162).

Unlike Oellers and Sharpe, I contend that, although Schiller was challenged by the compositional difficulties of his fourth play, he did not abolish the historical material or the capricious human forms at the court of Philipp II. Rather, he transformed them for his poetic purposes to unsettle both the mind and the heart over the human state of affairs. Oddly enough, in responding to his own call to impart to the world the direction that elevates the thinking not only to contemplate necessary, but also eternal values,534 Schiller’s fourth play does not resolve the contradiction that it creates between the real and ideal […].”535 Rather, in striving for building up the whole human being, his Carlos-Dichtung appears to engage the reader in climactic experience of tension as the tragedy of the titular figure approaches. Ultimately, as I contend, prompted by the calling of his poetic mission in the writing of Don Carlos, the dramaturge, Friedrich Schiller inserts his literary voice into the political world by posing the rhetorical question in ÄE 8: Der Konflikt blinder Kräfte soll in der politischen Welt ewig dauern? (FA 8: 580).

534 Compare “Gib der Welt, auf die du wirkst, die Richtung zum Guten, wenn du, lehren, ihre Gedanken zum Notwendigen und Ewigen erhebst, wenn, du handelnd oder bildend, das Notwendige und Ewige in einen Gegenstand ihrer Triebe verwandelst“ (ÄE 9, FA 8: 586). 535 Lesley Sharpe, “Concerning Aesthetic Education.” Sharp states: “In Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung, written immediately after the Ästhetische Briefe, Schiller set out his vision of modern literature, which is characterized by a tension between real and ideal […]” (157). 273

To further illuminate this aspect of my thesis, we must consider the historical circumstances in which the Marquis appears. “Der Zeitpunkt, worin er auftrat, war gerade derjenige, worin stärker als je von Menschenrechten und Gewissensfreiheit die

Rede war.“ (NA 22: 141). Walter Müller-Seidel underscores that the goals of the rebels fighting for the independence of Flanders represent European enlightened ideas which were: “Menschenrechte, Freiheit der Gedanken, Frieden” (430). “Die Rebellion wird diesen Ideen untergeordnet, und wie auch sonst bei Schiller scheitert sie an der

Wirklichkeit, oder, anthropologisch ausgedrückt, an der Natur des Menschen“ (430).

As Müller-Seidel contends, never before and never after this moment did Schiller address the problems attending to the French Revolution to such an extent as he did in this Menschheitsdrama.536 Indeed, as the unique poetic conception of Schiller‘s Don

Carlos signifies a peaceful negotiation of Flanders and the struggle for human rights and freedom miscarries in the cruel hands of the inquisition and the human being is torn apart. Nevertheless, Schiller’s Menschheitsdrama concerns itself not only with the intellectual content but also with the expression of human emotions (Ausdruck von

Empfindungen), as the writer proposes also in his review of Matthisson’s poems (NA

22: 272). My examination of Schiller’s compositional skills in his first “classical” piece will prove that in aiming to reshape and cultivate feelings properly, his play cannot ever be accused of being subservient to political end, pursuant to dismantling our spirits. For, as Schiller insists, the tragedy has a poetic purpose. The individual

536 Walter Müller-Seidel, 1990. “Nie zuvor und nie danach hat sich Schiller der Ideenwelt der Französischen Revolution so angenähert, wie in diesem Menschheitsdrama, um das es sich handelt“ (436). 274

events of the tragedy should mutually work together for the final purpose of lifting our spirit and touching our heart, but never disintegrate the human spirit to the extent that he succumbs to barbaric instincts.537

Following Schiller’s proposal that in an artificially civilized age the poet should conceive his forms in the light of nobler times, I enter the debate about

Schiller’s treatment and development of his characters in view of ÄE 9. In drawing attention to the manner in which Schiller brings about the dramatische Rührung

(arouses in us strong emotional response), Dieter Borchmeyer encourages us to note the difference “Philosophischer Zergliederung und poetischer Darstellung. “ 538

Although the indispensable power of the theater rests in its Darstellungscharakter, what really matters, as Schiller instructs, is that the tragic hero earns our respect as a sensitive compassionate human being: Der tragische Held als empfindendes Wesen sollte sich bei uns legitimiert haben, ehe wir ihn als Vernunftwesen huldigen.539 But, how should we approach the capricious human figures at the court, such as the tyrant

Philipp II? The dramatist makes every effort to show how needy this tyrant is who indiscriminately employs the resources that he learned under the instruction of the inquisitor. It is of significance that at this important juncture of his poetic career,

Schiller becomes more and more aware of the correlation between human

Empfindungen and poesy. Poesy has a dual purpose. In addition to depicting the

537„Erhaben ist alles, was dieses Vermögen in uns zum Bewuȕtsein bringt“ (Vom Erhabenen, FA 8: 421). 538 Dieter Borchmeyer, 2001, 352. 539 Friedrich Schiller, Über das Pathetische (NA 20: 197). 275

operating thought, the conception of form should support the expression of

Empfindungen (sensations, emotions).

Wir unterscheiden in jeder Dichtung die Gedankeneinheit von der Empfindungseinheit, die musikalische Haltung von der logischen, kurz wir verlangen, dass jede poetische Komposition neben dem, was ihr Inhalt ausdrückt, zugleich durch ihre Form Nachahmung und Ausdruck von Empfindungen sei und als Musik auf uns wirke.540

Though the task of expressing a prevailing sensation [Empfindung] in the human heart appears impossible, to Schiller it is a matter of dramatic mode of rendition. In pursuit of touching the human heart in such manner that ennobles human character, Schiller engages “das Kopf-Herzproblem,” contention that theGerman

Aufklärung und Empfindsamkeit541 grappled with (Blochmann 498). In aiming for excellence, the poet learns to develop himself. Die Darstellung des Ideals den Dichter machen muss (NSD, FA 8:734). The goal is to cultivate and reshape feelings and thoughts, the intellect and the imagination, in a manner that enacts the harmonious alliance between the mental faculties and thereby create the beauty which is the complete (whole) human being. The purpose of training our heart to be sensitive is to incite a higher level of insight, i.e. Einsicht and improve our conditions.542 This artistic truth is woven into the intricate fabric of his Don Carlos. “In der Dichtung ist die Wahrheit.”543 The poet’s truth as an integral attribute of Schiller’s artistic creed

540 Fridrich Schiller, „Matthissons Gedichte“ (NA 22: 272). 541 Empfindsamkeit bezeichnet in der europäischen Aufklärung eine Tendenz, die etwa von 1720 bis zur Französischen Revolution (1789–1799) reicht. In der Literaturwissenschaft ist die Empfindsamkeit eine Epoche zwischen 1740 und 1790, https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empfindsamkeit 542 See ÄE 8, FA 8:582. 543 We are reminded here that the thinking component (der selbsttätige Gedanke) of the human mind and soul comes into play only after the sensuous impulse (Empfindung) sets in (Part I, CH 2). In Chapter 3, I proposed to understand das Dichterische as a distinct poetic idea. Das Dichterische becomes available to us by an intuitively comprehensible imaginative experience that the artist makes 276

finds its first expression in his Don Carlos. A heart that is tuned by the sensation of beauty symbolizes freedom. “Schiller’s aesthetic conception of freedom […] regards freedom as the autonomous development of all our human powers, sensibilityaswell as reason” (Beiser 3). As it follows, neither the cold region of the intellect, nor erudition nor self-seeking interest are suitable means to interpret poesy. Since poesy flows from the heart, it has the facility to change the inclination of the heart and influence human actions, as Schiller entreats in his treatise Über das Pathetische

(1793).

Die Poesie soll ihren Weg nicht durch die kalte Region des Gedächtnisses nehmen, soll nie die Gelehrsamkeit zu ihrer Auslegerin, nie den Eigennutz zu ihrem Führsprecher machen. Sie soll das Herz treffen, weil sie aus dem Herzen floss […] auf den Menschen (FA 8: 449).

The great vocation of man is to develop his spiritual nature, and it is best done in the spirit of love, as Beiser observes.544 Oddly enough, though Schiller explores various types of love in his fourth play, none comes true in his Carlos-Dichtung. If so, what poetic truth, i.e. innere Wahrheit permits in his fourth play the experience of the beautiful (whole) human being (die Empfindung, ein Mensch zu sein?)545

perceptible to our mind and soul by the internal connection between sensation and thinking, i.e., the artistic or the philosophical truth that is discernible in the intricate fabric of a given literary work. Compare Schiller’s letter to Caroline von Beulwitz on 10.12. 1788. “Die innere Übereinstimmung, die Wahrheit wird gefühlt und eingestanden” (NA 25: 154). 544 Compare Beiser. “Love was the favorite theme and the very heart of Schillers’ early ethic. Love is the creative force that made nature and man […] Love is the great bond of the spiritual universe […] it make everyone come together in harmony” (21). 545 “Die Schaubühne ist die Stiftung, wo sich Vergnügen mit Unterricht, […] wo Kurzweil mit Bildung gattet. Wir werden uns selbst wiedergegeben, [… unsere] Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20: 100). 277

Synopsis

The story of Don Carlos centers on the relationship among key significant characters: the Crown Prince Don Carlos, the Marquis Posa, Queen Elizabeth and Philipp II,

Princess Eboli and Duke Alba. While these characters are historical persons, they live against the backdrop of Spanish absolutism. The emperor, Philipp II, is under the powerful control of the grand inquisitor. At the onset of the drama, Marquis Posa arrives in Madrid as an ambassador of an oppressed heroic nation (unterdrücktes

Heldenvolk). His intention is to negotiate a peaceful settlement of the political conflict that erupted between the despotic rule of Philipp II and Flanders’ strugglefor freedom. In support of this mission, the Marquis wants to enlist the Crown Prince Don

Carlos, with whom he used to share his dreams about Menschlichkeit (humanity) and

Menschenglück (happiness of humankind) during their academic years. Hoping to win

Carlos over to his side, Marquis Posa reminds his friend that his royal duty was to concern himself with the wellbeing of his future subjects. Since, however, the crown prince is desperately in love with the queen, he is not grown for the task. This point of conflict erupts the tragedy. On the one hand, Carlos is between conflicting imperatives, the desires of his heart or the dictates of his duty as a future king, for the choice before him would decide the fate of his future subjects. On the other hand, the most powerful monarch in the world, Philip II, fears his son for two reasons: “first, as a rival in winning Elisabeth’s love and, second, as his successor, who, he believes could overthrow him at any time, as he himself had done to his own father” as Rolf-

Peter Janz observes (137). 278

What is at stake in Schiller’s Don Carlos? In delineating the desperate efforts of Marquis Posa in support of the cause of Flanders, a political system comes alive in

Schiller’s dramatic portrayal which, due to its rigid hatred deforms his subjects, regardless of birth and social rank.546 While Schiller grapples with the standing of human beings in an absolute monarchy.547 Janz observes, “Tears serve as a hallmark of true and honest humanity“(120). In alluding to the problems of his age, Sharpe sees that the Enlightenment did not fail in the education of the mind as it did in the cultivation of the heart, of sensibility […].”548 As Schiller argues, if we want to prevent barbaric savagery, the passage to the head must be opened through the heart.

Thomas Mann explained that the historian Schiller reserves it to be the poet’s right to show the most inner feelings of those subjected to the oppressive system of absolutism. „Die verwunderliche Wahrheit […] empfindet man, dass die Aufgabe, die ein Historiker sich stellte: zu zeigen, ‚wie es in Wirklichkeit gewesen‘, was wenigstens das innerlichste Menschliche angeht, doch eben dem Dichter vorbehalten bleibt“(405).549 By weaving into the private affairs of the royal family the vivid accounts of friendship between Marquis Posa and Don Carlos, Schiller clarifies that his purpose is to engage the “Kopf-Herz-Problem” in a manner that engages his beholders to contemplate the difference between Liebe zu einem wirklichen

546 Compare Rolf-Peter Janz, “Great Emotions—Great Criminals? Schiller’s Don Carlos.” In: Companion, 137-143. 547 Schillers Don Karlos. Edition der ursprünglichen Fassung und entstehungsgeschichtlicher Kommentar, ed. Paul Böckmann. Stuttgart 1974, 495. In Berghahn, 1968, 75. 548 Lesley Sharpe, in Companion, 151. 549 Thomas Mann, 1982, “Versuch über Schiller” zum 150. Todestag des Dichters—seinem Andenken in Liebe gewidmet. Leiden und Größe der Meister. 279

Gegenstand und Liebe zu einem Ideal, per se.550 If the Marquis better understood how his passion for the ideal was in conflict with his mission, he would have dealt with the crown prince on a more personal level. Instead, he invents artificial situations that were doomed to fail. In spite of this error of insight, when Marquis Posa chooses death rather than subjugating himself to the despotic power of Philipp II, his moral supremacy demonstrates to Carlos the necessity of his mission.

Buchwald contends, however, that Schiller’s conception of his fourth play challenges “die Begeisterung eines gebildeten Geistes” (Buchwald 521). On the one hand, amid the clashing forces in the political world, the death of the Marquis does not bring the expected results. Not surprisingly, much controversy surrounds Posa’s role because of this. On the other hand, it is even a more puzzling undertaking why

Schiller’ Don Carlos persists to stand firm as literary monument to the ideals of

Menschenglück, when at the end of the tragedy Marquis Posa’s death appears to be senseless? In my analysis I identify what methods Schiller employs to engage us in the climactic experience of tension that develops between ideals of Menschenglück and the dramaturge’s pursuit of cultivating and [re]shaping feelings and thoughts to permit the sensation of a complete (whole) human being (die Empfindung, ein Mensch zu sein, NA 20: 100).

5.1. OVERVIEW OF RECENT SCHOLARSHIP:

Scholarly research has repeatedly dealt with Marquis Posa’s daring and spirited, but strikingly complicated character. Except Wallenstein, none of Schiller’s dramas has

550 Compare 11. Brief über Don Karlos, NA 22: 170. 280

generated more controversy than his Don Carlos. According to Helmut Koopmann,

Schiller’s Briefe über Don Carlos are in part to blame for they deliver the material of argumentation (317).551 Dieter Borchmeyer emphatically declares that, although the writer’s criticism of Marquis Posa in his letters is fascinating, it has hardly anything to do with his dramatic figure. “Schiller hat hier die Figur weitergedichtet und dann seiner Kritik unterzogen“ (235).552 Nevertheless, Wilfried Malsch contends that it seems significant that ever since Julian Schmidt despised Posa’s figure, labeling him a

”Roberspierre […] ante portas,” critics started to express moral outrage over Posa’s manipulative behavior concerning the crown prince.553 Based on Schiller’s Briefe

über Don Carlos, Andre von Gronicka opposed Posa for his fanaticism, accusing him being of “despot of the idea.”554

Thomas Mann defended Schiller against his accusers. As Mann elaborates, by sacrificing his life for Carlos, Posa’s death is proactive for the future. Rette dich für

Flandern! Das Königreich ist dein Beruf. Für dich zu sterben, war der meinige (V.3).

Thomas Mann opposed those who claimed that Posa’s heightened emotional state of mind lead to destruction.555 Nevertheless, as Malsch contends, in overtly focusing on

Posa’s actions, research tends to reduce Schiller’s Carlos-Dichtung to the tragedy of

Posa’s character (“auf Posas Charaktertragödie”).556 Walter Müller-Seidel

551 Helmut Koopmann, Hans-Jürgen Schings, Die Brüder der Marquis Posa. Schiller und der Geheimbund der Illuminaten, Review, 317. 552 Wilfried Malsch, 1988. „Moral und Politik in Schillers Don Carlos,“ 69. 553 Wilfried Malsch, 1990, “Roberspierre ad Portas? Zur Deutungsgeschichte der Brief über Don Karlos von Schiller“, 69-103. 554 Malsch, 1990, 89. 555 Thomas Mann, 1965, Briefe 1958-1955 und Nachlese. Ed. Erika Mann. Fischer, 232. 556 Malsch, 1990, 89. 281

underscores two major events that determine Marquis Posa’s actions. First, he comes to Philipp’s court as an ambassador of a group of conspirators, therefore he cannot openly disclose the purpose of his mission. Second, Posa must act under disguise and be able to discern the schemers from the supporters of the conspirators.

“Verschwörungen setzen verdecktes Tun und Handeln voraus […] im Verbergen der eigenen Absichten müssen sich die einen wie die anderen auskennen“ (425). Although the Marquis is able to identify Elizabeth as an important supporter of the conspirators, the tragedy of the situation is that he has neither the skill to circumvent the intrigues at

Philipp’s court nor are his actions flawless. However, as Müller-Seidel makes the distinct point, Schiller challanges us to discern the difference between the schemes of

Philipp’s subjects and Posa’s awkward schemes in favor of his rescue attempts for

Flanders. “Aber zwischen intrigantem Tun, in dem es sich der handelnde Mensch verstrickt, und der Figur des Intriganten, wie Herzog Alba oder die Prinzessin Eboli, gilt es zu unterscheiden“ (435).557

Most recently, Matthias Luserke-Jaqui joins the Auseinandersetzung over

Posa’s imposing figure as pertinent to Schiller’s Briefe über Don Carlos.558 By keeping close eye on Posa’s central mission as the ambassador of “Gedankenfreiheit,”

557 In an earlier article on the image of the acting human being of 1999, Müller-Seidel undersood that the play calls out for “Gedankenfreiheit” and “Menschenrechte” over and against claims of power by the state and its institutions. Don Carlos remains the main figure of the drama. “Das sich weiterhin alles um ihn dreht, der uns von seiner Gemütsverfassung her eher wie ein Antiheld vorkommt als ein Held alten Stils, bleibt anzumerken” (208). In short, he accepts Schiller’s description of the play as “ein Familiengemälde in einem fürstlichen Hause” (letter to Dalberg, 7. 6. 1784). Carlos is in actuality “ein kranker Königssohn” (207). 558 Matthias Luserke-Jaqui, 2005. “Freiheitsthematik und ‘Hautpidee des Stückes.’ Zur Kritik des Marquis Posa inSchillers Don Karlos”.

282

Luserke-Jaqui argues that inspite of the fact that research has promoted Posa as a figurative portrayal of the Humanitätsideal of freedom, in reality, the main character’s idea of freedom is founded on human being’s natural right. In linking Posa’s mission to nature, Luserke-Jaqui quotes Posa’s statement: “Auf Freiheit ist sie gegründet”

(3.10, 3218). In the end, he is disappointed in Posa’s “Tugendidealismus” because it is not without contradiction. “Wenn Freieheit als sein Naturrecht des Menschen verstanden wird (vgl. 3218), dann kollidiert dies mit Schillers Vorstellung, [dass]

Natur gekennzeichent ist durch Triebe und Notwendigkeit, später sprichet Schiller auch von Naturzwecmäßgkeit” (222). In establishing the connection between

Schiller’s play and his Briefe über Don Carlos,559 Luserke-Jaqui proposes that Posa’s petition of Gedankenfreiheit represents an aesthetic experience that can be best understood as the idea of unity of human nature (223). Not surprisingly, the sensor is disappointed. “Die Vorstellung, Natur sei auf Freiheit gegründet, is demnach ein fundamentaler Widerspruch in Posas Denken” (223).

First, if our purpose it to connect the play with the writer’s theoretical exogenesis of his Briefe über Don Carlos, then I propose considering the following statement in BDK 8. “Unter beiden Freunden bildet sich also ein enthusiastischer

Entwurf, den glücklichsten Zustand hervorzubringen, der der menschen Gesellschaft erreichbar ist, und von diesem enthusiastischen Entwurfe, wie er nämlich im

Konflikte mit der leidenschaft erscheint, handelt das gegenwärtige Drama” (NA 22:

164). While Posa and Carlos thought about creating the most benevolent conditions

559 Schillers Briefe über Don Karlos (NA 22: 137-178). 283

that a human society can achieve, the friends considered their proposal as a dream that first needed to be realized as an idea: „Vorbei / Sind diese Träume“ (178-179). More importantly, by placing the emphasis on Posa’s idealistic approach to freedom,

Luserke-Jacqui fails to keep in mind the statement point that the speaker makes preceeding his appeal to freedom of thought. „Geben Sie / Die unnatürliche

Vergötterung auf. / Die uns vernichtet. Werden Sie uns Muster / Des Ewigen und

Wahren“ (3204-07). In fact, by drawing out the conflicting aspirations of Posa and

Carlos, Schiller underscored the fragmented condition of human beings.

Posa addresses the deformed human condition of Philipp as well as that of his subjects. On account that the actions of the absolutist monarch were guided by either the extremes of reason or “sensual drives,”560 he dismembered his own nature.561 In an effort to show Philipp his deplorable mindset, Posa tells him that the space he occupies resembles a cemetery, peaceful as it may be: “Die Ruhe eines Krieghofs”

(3.10, 3160). On account of the cruel treatments of human beings, Philipp’s subjects shed many tears as an expression of their feelings.562

As demonstrated, Schiller’s play is concerned to show that under the artificial cultural conditions, 563 the intimate correspondence between feeling and thought is broken. Since feeling is that condition of our state of being in which it is conscious of

560 Jeffrey L. High, 2004,„Abstract.“ Schillers Rebellionskonzept und die Französische Revolution. High observes that Schiller’s first writings on aesthetics and moral philosophy reveal that from early on Schiller faulted actions that were dominated “by either sensual drives or abstract reason” (vii). 561 Compare ÄE 6. “Anstatt die Menschheit in seiner Natur auszuprägen, wird er bloß zu einem Abdruck seines Geschäfts, seiner Wissenschaft“(FA 8: 573). 562 Compare Rolf Peter Janz in Martinson, 2005. “At the time of Empfindsamkeit, which runs parallel to the Enllightenment, tears serve as hallmarks of true and honest humanity” (139). 563 Compare ÄE 6 “Anstatt die Menschheit in seiner Natur auszuprägen, wird er bloß zu einem Abdruck seines Geschäfts, seiner Wissenschaft“(FA 8:573). 284

the betterment i.e. the worsening of his condition,”564 Posa as Schiller’s mouthpiece appeals to Philipp’s heart in order to unlock the powers of his mind and soul.

Since, however, Luserke-Jaqi places the emphasis on the abstract concept of freedom that supposed to be without contradiction, in seeking philosophical solution, he fails to appreciate the imaginative intellectual quality of Schiller’s poetic pursuit in his piece. Das Dichterische becomes intuitively comprehensible to us through contemplating Schiller’s artistic conception of his characters’ form. As I argue, while

Schiller’s study of human physiology informed his poetic impulse of capturing human being’s best possible expression, the purpose of the interactions between Philipp and

Posa in the audience scene (3.10) is to facilitate the dynamic interaction of human faculties and, by this, to recreate the sensation of the wholeness of being.

Due to his close contact with Schiller’s letters, Luserke-Jaqui does not account for the creative or literary qualities of a poet’s first “classical” drama. Although his observation is valid, namely, that under modern cultural conditions freedom needs to be fought for, he ignores Schiller’s poetic pursuit of allowing human being to experience their character as whole. Only, after that are human beings able to fight successfully for freedom. For, as Schiller commissions, by tapping into both the intellectual and the emotional faculties of human beings, poesy’s key function is the

Bildung of the whole human character.565 Ultimately, as I contend, by placing the emphasis on Posa’s need of ennobling his character, it was the one-sided rational

564 Friedrich Schiller, “Empfindungen des geistigen Lebens.“ Philosophie der Physiognomie, para 11. „Meine Seele ist nicht allein ein denkendes; Sie ist auch ein empfindendes Wesen“ (NA 20: 28). 565 See “Ihr Wirkungskreis ist das Total der menschlichen Natur, und bloß, insofern sie auf dem Karakter einfließt, kann sie auf seine einzelne Wirkungen Einfluß haben (Über das Pathetische, NA 20: 219). 285

development of human beings that gave rise to the conception of the play. For, it is the poet and not the philosopher who has the artistic skills to portray and evoke emotions.

We are, however, drawn to Luserke-Jaqui’s observation that it was not possible for Schiller to reconcile the disparity between his lofty theoretical pursuits and his poetic creativity.566 Schiller’s pivotal letter to Körner on 8 February 1973 explains that through building the definition of an abstract concept such as freedom, the intelligence demands agreement between thought and its representation of form.

In case of intuitive comprehension, however, our mind is caught by surprise when sensing an agreement between sense and reason. By explaining the difference between intuitive and logical comprehension, Schiller comes here closest to understand why he had hard time to overcome the contention between his lofty theoretical pursuits and poetic creativity. In spite of all this, from early on in his poetic career the German dramaturge considered poesy to be an exquisite instrument of schooling both the rational and emotional faculties toward cooperating with each other. Unfortunately, Luserke-Jaqui does not capture Schiller’s poetic pursuits, as his interpretation of Schiller’s concept of nature evinces.

566 According to the pivotal letter to Körner on 8 Februar 1793, Schiller was driven between logical and teleological (functional) understanding of the nature of an object. “Die theoretische Vernunft wendet ihre Form auf Vorstellung an, und diese lassen sich in unmittelbare (Anschauungen) und in mittelbare (Begriffe) einteilen. Jene sind durch den Sinn, diese durch die Vernunft (obschon nicht ohne Zutun des Sinnes) gegeben. In den ersten, den Anschauungen, ist es zufällig, ob sie mit der Form der Vernunft übereinstimmen, […] dort wird sie überrascht, wenn sie es findet. […] In den Begriffen ist es [die Übereinstimmung] notwendig, wenn sie sich nicht aufheben will. […] Das Objekt des logischen ist Vernunftmäßigkeit, das Objekt des teleologischen ist Vernunftähnlichkeit” (NA 26: 179-180). 286

An other recent critic Luzia Thiel567 seek to counterbalance the trend of focusing mainly on the figure of the Marquis. Thiel argues from the standpoint of the friendship between Marquis Posa and the crown prince, claiming that critics neglected to discuss the role of Schiller’s titular figure.568 In elaborating on the essence of friendship between the Marquis and Carlos, Thiel emphasizes both the personal and political pursuits of their alliance. Certainly, the question of friendship between Posa and Carlos is a significant component of the drama. Nevertheless, when tracing the manner in which the crown prince prepares himself for his royal duties, Thiel focuses on the public values that mattered to the Marquis. Schiller reminds, however, that the tragedy’s purpose is to portray an action that is worthy of our sympathies, i.e. poetiche Nachahmung einer mitleidswürdigen Handlung (NA 20: 169).

Die dichterische Nachahmung einer zusammenhängenden Reihe von Begebenheiten, welche uns Menschen in einem Zustand des Leidens zeigt, und zur Absicht hat, unser Mitleid zu erregen (NA 20: 164).

Following Schiller’s pursuits in ÄE, 23,569 Thiel successfully argues that Carlos did in fact transition from his powerless condition to an operatively active state of mind.

Nevertheless, Thiel focuses exclusively on the Ideenwelt (world of ideas) of this friendship.570 Her one-sided approach calls up the need to examine the play’s poetic qualities. Examining how form attends to the Ausdruck von Empfindungen

567 Luzia Thiel, 15-18. 568 According to Thiel, the bibliographies to the play reflect that research engages with the figure of the Marquis almost exclusively. 569 Compare “Der Übergang vondem leidenden Zustande des Empfindens zu dem tätigen des Denkens und Wollens geschieht also nicht Anders, als durch einen mittleren Zustand ästhetischer Freiheit, […] die notwendige Bedingung unter welcher allein wir zu einer Einsicht und zu einer Gesinnung gelangen können” (FA 8: 643). 570 For further elaboration on friendship, see Manfred Koch (2007). 287

(“Matthissons Gedichte,” NA 22: 272), I argue that Schiller’s purpose is to show that in the process of transitioning from his ailing powerless condition to an operatively thinking state of mind, humankind needs also to have sensibility in order to arrive at insight.571 For the ideals of Menschlichkeit necessitate that the participants operate as interlocked, sounding jointly, similar to the powers of nature joining their voices in a single beauteous melody.

In his “Versuch über Schiller,”572 Thomas Mann treasured the poetic qualities of the play: “Don Carlos heißt ‚ein dramatisches Gedicht’” (385). Praising the play’s stirring cadences and rhetorical sway, Mann asserted that Schiller’s “political pulse beats as one with the dramatic one” (391). He emphasizes the contradictions between the attitudes of unbending hatred as well as the noble-minded ideas that the drama represents. By eliciting emotional responses in the spectator, the affects, the play motivates us to take a stand against inhuman managements in the world. As Mann writes,”Das ist kein Rhetor nur und Moraltrompeter, dais ist Dichter, der das Auge zu feuchten, während er zugleich das Herz erbittert gegen das Unmenschliche” (391). By highlighting the qualities of das Dichterishe of Schiller’s play, Thomas Manns depicts here via a moving account the manner in which the poet Schiller presented his moral message to his audience: if we want to prevent barbaric savagery, the way to the head must be opened through the heart.

Starre Menschenverachtung und edelmütigen Ideen, Ideen von Freiheit und Völkerglück, die den Vers klingen und schwellen machen und ihm

571 Compare „Matthissons Gedichte.” “Wir unterscheiden in jeder Dichtung die Gedankeneinheit von der Empfindungseinheit, die musikalische Haltung von der logischen, kurz wir verlangen, dass jede poetische Komposition neben dem, was ihr Inhalt ausdrückt, zugleich durch ihre Form Nachahmung und Ausdruck von Empfindungen sie und als Musik auf uns wirke (NA 22: 273). 572 Thomas Mann, 1982. 288

nicht nur in rednerischem Schwung, sondern mehr als einmal einen unvergleichlich rührenden Tonfall verleihen (391).

Mann called Schiller’s fourth play a „proud poem“ whose language exalts the poet.

Mann’s appraisal of the play has the character of a confession stating that the author of the speech identified with Schiller’s sense of poetic calling. „Don Carlos,-- wie könnte ich je die erste Sprachbegeisterung meiner fünfzehn Jahre vergessen, die an dem stolzen Gedicht entzündet“ (392). Indeed, as Mann infers, Schiller’s art of poetic language excites our imagination as we picture the capricious figures coming alive as if they were actual human beings.

Walter Müller-Seidel sees that the dramatist’s pursuit of portraying his characters as human beings is most apparent in his portrayal of the tyrannical figure of

King Philipp.573 Schiller’s adeptness compels us to ask -- who among the four major characters in Don Carlos summons our affect of sympathy?

5.2 THE GENESIS OF THE CARLOS-DICHTUNG

Schiller wrote his drama, Don Carlos, over a span of four years (1782-1786). The writer had been thinking about the historical material of the Spaniards already two months before his flight from Stuttgart. In a letter to the director of the Mannheim

Theater Heribert von Dalberg, he wrote: Die Geschichte des Spaniers verdient allerdings den Pinsel eines Dramatikers, und ist vielleicht eines von den nächsten

Sujets das ich bearbeiten werde (FA 11: 43).574As this letter reveals, Schiller’s intention was to use history for the poetic purposes of ennobling human character in

573 Müller-Seidel, “Schiller hat im Fortgang seiner Arbeit am Drama nichts unversucht gelassen, uns diese Gestalt menschlich näher zu bringen – so sehr, dass er zeitweilig eine tragische Person zu werden scheint“ (434). 574 Oellers, Elend der Geschichte, 172. 289

his own time. Before ever deciding on the conception of a plan, however, it was important to him to become thoroughly familiar with Nationalkarakter, den Sitten und der Statistik des Volkes.575 The Dutch Revolt (1568-1648) serves as a historical background and landscape of the drama. Schiller represents Philip II as a dreadful absolute monarch who impersonates the state, as does his historical counterpart.576

An essential part of my thesis consists in the following. Schiller’s efforts to move, stir and enkindle his audience attain fruition in his singular portrayals of human characteristics. And it is this pursuit that discloses Schiller’s self-understanding and mission as a poet.

In Bauerbach, surrounded by the idyllic landscape, Schiller thought about his titular figure this way. Because we witness their most secret feelings, both sorrows and joys, it is important to perceive them as human beings (NA 23: 78-79). A great poet like Friedrich Schiller has the ability to foster friendship with his characters. For example, when the poet engages with his characters as human beings, he or she is able

575 See Schillers letter to Reinwald on March 1783 (NA 23:75); also in: Rolf Albrecht, 55. 576 Frederick W.C. Lieder. According to Lieder’s historical account,576 Don Carlos was born in 1545, as the son of Philip II (1527-1598) of Spain and his wife, Mary of Portugal (1527–1545). During the prince’s youth, his engagement with Princess Elizabeth of Valois, daughter of Henry of France, was discussed but never formally announced. After the death of Philip’s second wife, Mary of England, it was the king and not Don Carlos who in 1558 married Elizabeth of Valois (1545-1568). Saint-Réal’s Histori de Dom Carlos, fils de Philipe II. Roy d’Expagne short novel (1672), Dom Carlos is depicted as being hopelessly in love with Elizabeth of Valois, who became his own step-mother, instead of his wife. Lieder underscores that “The king’s jealousy and the prince’s imprisonment and death at age twenty-three have offered a rich material for many different dramatic treatments” (490). Schiller’s dramatic treatment of the theme of Don Carlos has been a favorite of the English as well as many other nations. The tragedy of Schiller’s Don Carlos has been translated into English more often than any other of his dramas except Wilhelm Tell (Lieder, 490). 290

to move our sympathies, the Emperor Philip II, whose heart is cold, and his son Don

Carlos, who never knew what it meant to be loved by a father.

Rolf Albrecht observed that on account of his intensive engagement with the construction of his dramatic figures, Schiller immersed himself in the emotional world of his heroes,577 drafting the first version of his tragedy, titled as Dom Carlos Prinz von Spanien.578 Norbert Oellers points out that, already in the preface of the first draft, an important topic emerges, the representation of the inquisition. In dramatic fashion, he asks how one should portray such an institution that shamefully degrades humankind?

[…] will ich es mir in diesem Schauspiel zur Pflicht machen, in Darstellung der Inquisition, die prostituierte Menschheit zu rächen, und ihre Schandflecken fürchterlich an den Pranger zu stellen.579

Schiller’s original intention was to expose the degrading institution of the inquisition.

However, the writer went into hiatus for a while. Only after having finished Kabale und Liebe in mid-1784 did Schiller return to work out the details of his Carlos-

Dichtung. At this early stage of development, Schiller reveals his interest in exploring the poetic-artistic potential of the theme of the family, namely ein Familiengemälde in einem fürstlichen Hause (an Dalberg, 7. Juni 1784, NA 23:144).580

Suggesting that Carlos inherited his soul from Shakespeares Hamlet, it was the poet- dramaturge in Schiller that gave him the heartbeat (den Puls, 123).581 Schiller also

577 Rolf Albrecht, Schillers Dramatischer Jambus. Vers und Prosa in den ersten Fassungen des Don Karlos. As Albrecht puts it “ein erstes Sichversenken in die Gefühlswelt seinen Helden“(57). 578 See Bauerbacher Entwurf, in Hermuth Koopman, 1969, 128-130. 579See letter to Reinwald on 14 April 1783 (FA 11: 72). 580 Compare Oellers, 2005, 173; Koopmann, 1969, 123. 581 Helmut von Koopmann, 1969, 122-130. 291

shows his delight in his work by divesting various characteristics of the historical personages, thereby underpinning the poetic purpose of the tragedy: sie stellt eine

Handlung dar, um zu rühren, und durch rühren zu ergötzen (NA 20: 166). According to Helmut Koopmann, the Familienstück became a Freundschaftsdrama (Koopmann,

1969, 124) but, as Dirk Oschmann adds, “mit Bewährungsprobe.“ 582 Upon expanding the private affairs of the royal family with a political agenda, Koopmann considers

Schiller’s Don Carlos to be a “Charaktertragödie.”583

Michael Hofmann addresses the debate regarding whether Schiller’s play is a

„Familiendrama“ or an „Ideendrama“ and how, perhaps the tesnions might be reconciled. Hofmann argues that the actual object of Schiller’s drama is the

“bürgerlich-aufklärerische Konditionierung von Gefühlen” (111). This form of manipulation concerns the matter of the genre, namely “daß die Aufklärung entgegen ihrem eigenen Anspruch nicht Freiheit und ‘natürliche’ Verhältnisse befördert, sondern neue Formen der Fremdbestimmung erzeugt” (116). Hofmann makes the astute observation that such relations are characteristic not only of the relationship between Posa and Carlos but, also, that of Posa and Elisabeth. Elisabeth becomes a

“medium” of a process of sublimation. Posa instrumentalizes her when, for example, he flatters the queen, calling her an angel. According to Hofmann, beauty and virtue is thereby bundled together in an abstract synthesis that suppresses the sensual desires of the woman which is a form of non-violent violence (“gewaltlose Gewalt”; 112).

582 Oschmann, 2009, 43. 583 Helmut von Koopmann, 1969, 126. 292

Hofmann believes that he resolves the issue by understanding the play to be a

“Freiheitsdrama.” While Hofmann’s reading is certainly compelling, we redirect our attention to the subtitle of Schiller’s classic play, Don Carlos. Ein dramatisches

Gedicht. By scholarly consensus, of the four plays Schiller conceived during his early period of creative-critical endeavor, Don Carlos is the most complex.584 In fact, when taking into consideration the history of its formal origination, it is the most complex among his dramas. Having composed the play in blank verse, with regular metrical but unrhymed lines (unrhymed iambic pentameter), Don Carlos is Schiller’s first classical drama.585 Rolf Albrecht’s thorough research makes it clear that Schiller experimented with this mode of versification with latitude, especially in the last two acts (3).586 Unlike Albrecht, Benno von Wiese had viewed Schiller’s employment of blank verse as a method that subdues the moments of irrational impulses of the youth.

“Wir spüren noch die jugendliche Flugkraft, […] Nur mühsam ist die emotionelle

Bewegung dieser Verse gebändigt“ (1969, 27). However, as I argue, the ways in which Schiller portrays the experience of the capricious figures at the court of Philipp makes it clear that the poet-dramaturge’s purpose was to unsettle both the mind and the heart over the degenerated human state of affairs through which the drama can generate its greatest effect on the audience and the reader.

584 Oschmann, 2009, 43. Oschmann suggests to understand the complex conflict situation in seven different levels. Schiller complicated the understanding of the driving force of these conflicts by his Briefe über Don Carlos. 585 Compare Thiel, „Am Don Carlos […] kündigen sich die Elemente der Klassik an“ (15). 586 Rolf Albrecht, According to Albrecht, it is hard to tell whether the dramaturge was urged into versification out of concerns to emphasize the meaning of poetic expression or he merely used verse form out of convenience (3). 293

In the light of the fact that Schiller composed his first classical piece as a book-drama in blank verse,587 I submit that Schiller’s manner of versification has much to do with his poetic ambition of dramatizing the conditions that must be present in an artificially civilized human society to stimulate and activate the sensations of the beautiful (whole) human being. Even more fundamentally, as I am arguing, an integral part of Schiller’s professional identity as a poet-dramaturge consists in his promotion of the stage as a moral institution that generates moving and pleasing Bildung by cultivating and (re)shaping feelings and thoughts that allows spectators and readers to experience the sensation of being a complete (whole) human being.

Die Schaubühne ist die Stiftung, wo sich Vergnügen mit Unterricht, […] wo Kurzweil mit Bildung gattet. Wir werden uns selbst wiedergegeben, [… unsere] Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20: 100). [emphasis mine]

For, while Schiller explores the poetic potential of the theme of the family in his first

“classical” drama, he does it for the purpose of schooling our Empfindungsvermögen to sense the heightened dramatic tension between the interior and outer circumstances of human being.588 Schiller composed his Don Carlos in blank verse and designated it as a dramatic poem (ein dramatisches Gedicht), I analyze key elements that allow us to esteem Schiller’s Don Carlos as his first polished (“classical”) drama. Tracing

587 Compare Albrecht, 72; Streicher, 214. 588 Immanuel Kant, „Von den fünf Sinnen.“ Schrift zur Ästhetik und Naturphilosophie. (Frankfurt am Main, 1996). <188>§535. „Ich habe Empfindungsvermögen (facultatem sentiendi), § 534,216, d.h. Sinn (sensum). Der Sinn stellt (repraesentat) als innerer entweder einen Zustand meiner Seele oder als äuȕerer einen Zustand meines Körpers vor. § 508. So ist die Empfindung (sensatio) entweder innerlich durch den inneren Sinn (das Bewuȕtsen im strengeren Sinne) oder äuȕerlich, wenn durch den äuȕeren Sinn erregt (actuata), § 534. 294

Schiller’s strange combination of the beautiful and sublime, I expose why Schiller felt necessary to expand his poetic ambition of refining the sensitivity of the human heart by the means of the beautiful with the dignity of the sublime (“das Gefühl, welches

Achtung genannt wird”)589 even within artificially civilized human conditions.

Book versus Stage as Platform of the Play

When the Mannheim Theater did not renew Schiller’s engagement after 1 September

1784, Schiller was no longer obligated to produce plays limited to between 2500-3000 verses. In 1785 Schiller found a lifetime friend in Christian Gottfried Körner and was rid of financial worries for the next two years. In February 1786, the second act of

Dom Carlos appeared in the second issue of the Thalia. At this stage, the pre-print consisted of 3185 verses.590 In the next issue of the Thalia, Schiller excuses the overtly large dimension of his fourth play:

Es wird kaum mehr nötig sein zu bemerken, dass der Dom Karlos kein Theaterstück werden kann. […] Die dramatische Einkleidung ist von einem weit allgemeineren Umfang, als die theatralische Dichtkunst, und man würde der Poesie eine große Provinz entziehen, wenn man den handelnden Dialog auf die Gesetze der Schaubühne einschränken wollte (NA 6: 495).

The poet’s priority should be to esteem the province of the poesy over the rules of the stage.591

We recall that, for Thomas Mann, the poetic language that Schiller determined for his “Buch-und Lesedrama” gave the impression of a proud poem. For Müller-

589 See Über Anmut und Würde (FA 8: 387). 590 Oellers, 2005, 175. 591 Dieter Borchmeyer, 2002, „Was ist klassisch? Was ist romantisch? Versuch einer möglichst abschießenden Erklärung aus literarhistorischer Sicht.“ Goethe: “Was will der ganze Plunder gewisser Regeln einer steifen veralteten Zeit […]?“ Das heißt, Goethe spricht von „einer Befreiung von den Fesseln nichtssagender Regeln“ [wie der drei Einheiten der klassischen Tragödie] (34). 295

Seidel, Schiller’s Don Carlos demonstrates such an exuberant poetic utterance that is unsurpassed.592 As Mann observed, the poet-writer did not think that his Don Carlos was appropriate for the stage. Even after shortening the piece, it still consisted of over

5000 verses.593 In spite of its length, the German theater did not want to miss

Schiller’s Don Carlos, “das gar gute Rollen und einen so wunderbar tragenden Vers hat” (Mann, 385).

To a great extent Schiller’s friendship with Christian Gottfried Körner contributed that the first book edition of Schiller’s Carlos-Dichtung was published in the middle of 1787, titled Dom Karlos / Infant von Spanien.594 After Schiller successfully adapted his piece to the state,595 the play premiered in Hamburg on

August 29, 1787.

5.3 DON CARLOS, ein Dramatisches Gedicht596

Die dramatische Kunst hat ihre Würde darin, dass sie alle Kräfte der Seele, des Geistes und des Herzens beschäftigt (NA 20:89).597

592 Müller-Seidel, Walter, “[…] geschrieben in einer begeisternder Sprache, die nicht ihresgleichen hat“ (435). 593 Several sources record the complicated genesis of Don Carlos in great detail, e.g., Hartmut Rheinhard, 1998, Koopmann, 1969, and Oellers, 2005. 594 Albrecht comments that originally Schiller designated the title of his play and several of his stage adaptations as “Dom Karlos,” Though Wieland reminded the dramaturge that instead of “Dom” he should use “Don,” the title was changed only in the 1801 edition to “Don Carlos.” In: Albrecht, p. 1, Footnote Nr. 1. 595 Albrecht notes: “Zu den ersten Fassungen von Schillers Don Karlos gehören neben der Thaliafassung und die erste Buchausgabe auch zahlreiche Bühnenbearbeitungen (1).“ According to Buchwald, throughout the years Schiller avoided to label his Carlos-Dichtung as tragedy. “Erst als er in seinem letzten Lebensjahr den endgültigen Text für die geplante Gesamtausgabeseines „Theaters“ vorbereitete, hat er die Lessingsche Formel „Ein dramatisches Gedicht“ aufgenommen, eine letzte Huldigung für den groȕen Vorgänger und sein Werk, nachdem er sich immer wieder als Kritiker und Bearbeiter auseinandergesetzt hatte“ (450). 596See Oschmann, 2009. “Dies sind die diskursiven Ränder eines Oeuvres, das dennoch ganz im Zeichen der Dichtung steht” (119). Zeichen: a) etw. Sichtbares, Hörbares (bes. eine Geste, Gebärde, ein Laut .o.Ä.), das als Hinweis dient, etw, deutlich macht, mit dem jmd. auf etw. aufmerksam macht, zu etw. veranlasst o.Ä.), […] um erkennen zu lassen, […] zur Begeisterung, Verdeutlichung“ (Duden, 2001, 4th revised ed, p. 1843). 597 Compare „Die Schaubühne als eine moralische Anstalt betrachtet“ (1784, NA 20: 87-100). 296

Jedes Werk der schönen Kunst nämlich hat einen objektiven Zweck, den es ankündigt, und der ihm gleichsam seinen Körper verschafft. […] Jedes schöne Kunstwerk aber hat zugleich den subjektiven Zweck, (den es verschweigt, ob es gleich sehr oft der vornehmste Zweck ist) durch die Art, wie es jenen objektiven Zweck ausführt, den Geschmack zu ergötzen.598

In his treatise, Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung, Schiller contends that the tragedy of modern man is that, unless he learns to direct his physical and intellectual faculties towards cooperation, he is threatened to regress either to the deplorable state of barbarism or to the overwhelming mastery of reason.599 Given the fact that the Enlightenment did not fail in the education of the mind but in the cultivation of the heart, of sensibility,”600 it is necessary to examine how Schiller’s

Don Carlos comments on the dramaturge’s own contention that, if we want to forestall barbaric savagery, the way to the head must be opened through the heart. In this way, the play complements the poet-dramaturge’s pursuit of developing our humanity by emphasizing the importance of cultivating not only intellect but, as we know from the writer’s early medical writings, the spiritual and the sensuous sides of our nature.601 This requires from us the ability to understand how Schiller’s characters transfer and receive messages not only verbally but also through the operation of their senses. “Die Fähigkeit, sinnlichen Eindrücken durch seelische Anteilnahme einer

598 Schiller’s letter to Körner on 3 February, 1794 (NA 26:345). 599 See ÄE, 13, “Beide, der Sachtrieb und der Formstrieb haben als Einschränkung, und insofern sie als Energien gedacht werden, Abspannung nötig. […] aber keineswegs die Wirkung eines physischen Unvermögens und einer Stumpfheit der Empfindungen“ (FA 8: 605-607). 600 Lesley Sharpe, „Concerning Aesthetic Education“ (151). 601 As Schiller wrote in essay Über das Pathetische. „Denn der Mensch ist –ehe er etwas anders ist – ein empfindendes Wesen. Die zweite Forderung an ihn macht die Vernunft, denn er ist ein vernünftig empfindendes Wesen“ (FA 8: 426). 297

besonderen Bedeutsamkeit zu geben (the ability to express spiritual sympathy through sensuous impression).”602

As much as his insights in his early medical studies influenced his dramatic pursuits Schiller also had strong poetic models. For example, “It was Shakespeare who portrayed first whole people on the stage” (NA 22: 200).603 That entry is followed by Goethe, the author of Egmont. With respect to Goethe’s mode of portrayal of his naive protagonist, Schiller writes: “Die Einheit dieses Stückes liegt also weder in den Situationen noch in irgendeiner Leidenschaft, sondern sie liegt in dem Menschen” (NA 22: 200). Schiller does not mention Goethe’s Iphigenie auf

Tauris (prose, 1779, verse, 1786) perhaps because Iphigenie is a classical example of ein vernünfig empfindendes Wesen, who learns how to present her case intelligently and convincingly without having to use violence or allowing the barbaric customs to dictate her decision.

As stated in Part 1, Schiller’s impetus for treating the aesthetic education of humankind poetically was the magnificent force of harmony. In his first medical dissertation (1779), Schiller held that when the body and mind harmoniously interact with each other, the soul senses their “sympathetic vibration”604 (NA 20: 24, para 9).

On account of the interdependence of mind and body, we derive pleasure when improving ourselves and suffer when we neglect to do so: Vollkommenheit an

Vergnügen, Mißvergnügen an Unvollkommenheit gebunden (NA 20: 11, para 1). In

602 Compare H. Emmel, “Empfindsamkeit,” in Historisches Wörterbuch der Philosophie, 455. In: John Guthrie, 42. 603 Compare Roger Paulin, The Critical Reception of Shakespeare in Germany,236. 604 John Guthrie used this term (18). 298

his third medical dissertation (1780), Schiller marvels at how intimately body and mind sympathize with each other like zwei gleichgestimmte Saitensinstrumente (two string instrument tuned to the same pitch, NA 20: 63, para 18). In his third medical dissertation, Schiller privileged feelings as sensory acts, in which case emotions are felt and expressed in the body before they are processed by the conscious mind.

Schiller’s characters do not enjoy the blissful state of unity (ungeteilte sinnliche Einheit). Rather, amid the realities of their struggles, Schiller’s figures experience tension or total detachment between their intellectual and physical faculties, as is consistent with his theory. Die sentimentalische Dichtung hat mit zwei streitenden Objekten, mit dem Ideale nehmlich und mit der Erfahrung, zugleich zu tun

(Übereinstimmunhg und mit Widerspuch, FA 8: 768). Schiller was well aware that wrestling with how to permit die Empfindung, ein Mensch zu sein,605 the most that is granted to modern man is to strive toward completeness (FA 8: 735). Scholars contend, however, that the manner in which Schiller’s fourth play engages the problem of human progress is enigmatic. Admittedly, Schiller’s main concern in his play is the cultivation of the human heart. While his figures face the realities of human struggles amidst conflicts, the writer delivers a poetic composition as a double-edged sword. First, if we follow ÄE 8, we are able to grasp the idea that

Schiller’s Don Carlos pursues the human heart and the powers of human will.606 For

605 “Die Schaubühne ist die Stiftung, wo sich Vergnügen mit Unterricht, […] wo Kurzweil mit Bildung gattet. Wir werden uns selbst wieder gegeben, [… unsere] Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20: 100). 606 ÄE, 9, „[…] gib der Welt, auf die du wirkst, die Richtung zum Guten. […] wenn ihre Gedanken ]XP1RWZHQGLJHQXQG(ZLJHQHUKHEVW>«@KDQGHOQGXQGELOGHQGLQGHPLQQHUHQQLFKWEORȕLQGHP lXȕHUQ0HQVFKHQ>«@GDVVQLFKWQXUGHU*HGDQNHVRQGHrn auch der Sinn ihre Erscheinung […] von der Wahrheit liebend ergreife“ (FA: 8: 586). 299

the beautiful appearance that a work of art creates (beauty) culminates in a symbol of the alliance between Geist and Sinn that the truth of human potential for wholeness of being may be revealed. Importantly, such is accomplished it is done in the face of and through the realities of human struggle.

5.4 CLASSICAL PERIOD: AESTHETIC EDUCATION VIA THE ARTS

Don Carlos occupies a prominent place in Schiller’s oeuvre. As the last play of his early period, it transitions Schiller from Storm and Stress into his classical period. At the same time, the play announces the beginning of Schiller’s intensive engagement with the nature and role of art in his aesthetic theory and conception of drama.607

During the play’s long gestation period, aesthetic problems challenged Schiller’s creative energies, such as, the interdependent, but tension-filled relationship between grace and dignity, the idea of freedom, and the limitations of the body. How does the writer ennoble the character that is overtly influenced either by the body or the intellect? Schiller’s Don Carlos may be also considered as his first classical play. In his well-known classical dramas, Schiller treats history from the standpoint of his pursuit of the aesthetic Bildung, i.e. ästhetische Erziehung of the whole human being.

Die Dichtkunst, […] welche gleichsam den ganzen Menschen in uns wieder herstellt.608 In focusing on das Menschliche, Schiller’s Don Carlos is concerned not only with the intellectual content but it also with the expression of sensations

607 Oschmann, 2009. „Es sind Texte vornehmlich zu Ästhetik—immer aber ästhetische Texte. […] Sie handeln darüber hinaus von Aspekten von poetischer Darstellung.” (86). 608 Compare Übers Bürgers Gedichte. „[…] die Dichtkunst beinahe allein, welche die getrennten Kräfte der Seele wieder in Vereinigung bringt, welche Kopf und Herz Scharfsinn und Witz, Vernunft und Einbildungskraft in harmonischem Bunde beschäftigt, welch gleichsam den ganzen Menschen in uns wieder herstellt“ (NA 22: 245). 300

(Empfindungen) which he captures through emotional tension in dramatic verse. How can the poet most effectively express feelings that have an effect on the heart and bring about the resolution of conflict?609

Schiller’s thesis in his Philosophie der Physiologie presupposes that the mind and soul can also sense the dissonant relationship between sense and reason. For, poetic assertions are often dramatized by the tension that is created forms of expression. Schiller was well aware that certain musical moods also inspired the formation of poetic ideas and literary works.610 Moses Mendelssohn argued that maintaining harmonious tone is a basic impetus for greatest possible performance (PE

104). Since music was best in evoking emotions (die Form der Empfindungen),

Schiller maintained that music has an intimate affinity with our senses.611 [what are you referring to? Oellers translates Schiller’s lines as follows: “There he wrote that it is inopportune to want to ‘think reasonably’ immediately following the enjoyment of the ‘lively sensation’ of delightful music.”612 Music can also disrupt our pleasure at the sensation of harmony.613 Moses Mendelssohn argued that the collaboration

609 Johann Sulzer, ed. Allgemeine Theorie der schönen Künste, Vol 2., „Die schönen Künste überhaupt, und also auch die Tonkunst, besitzen etwas Eigentümliches, welches sie in den Stand setzt, durch künstliche Veranlassungen in uns Empfindungen zu erwecken. […] Bedienen sich nun die schönen Künste dieses ihnen eigentümliches Vermögens so, dass die durch sie erregten Empfindungen edle Entschlüsse bewirken, so, dass diese Empfindungen auf die Bildung und Veredlung des Herzens Einfluss haben, dann bedienen sie sich ihrer höchsten Absicht, und zeigen sich in der ihnen eigentümlichen Würde“ (16). In Baker, „From Teil to Tonstück, 117. 610 Compare NSD. Die Tonkunst, bloss einen bestimmten Zustand des Gemüts hervorbringt (NSD, FA 8:756). 611 Schiller wrote in ÄE 22: „Die Ursache ist, weil auch die geistreichste Musik durch ihre Materie noch immer in einer größeren Affinität zu den Sinnen steht, als wahre ästhetische Freiheit duldet“ (FA 8: 640). Hans Knudsen quotes the same passage (18). 612 Norbert Oellers, in Companion, transl. by Martinson, 173. 613 See Lohn Guthrie, 2009. Compare, Schiller’s Räuber, act 4, scene 3: “Music does not soothe the angry soul: he is momentarily moved by the poetic mood into which she sinks, but his frustration surfaces again and is expressed in the violent gesture of throwing down the lute” (63-64). 301

between the intellectual-spiritual network of the mind and the sensuous system of the body is of a peculiar kind, namely the experience of “einen verwirrenden Knoten”

(10. Brief, 81). Hence, by producing tension, music is also able to set our thinking into motion.614

Novalis was greatly impressed by Schiller’s philosophical statements in the light of music. He remarked, “Schiller musiziert sehr viel philosophisch.“615 Music and poetry move us emotionally. In other words, they affect us inwardly. John Guthrie insightfully proposes that Schiller held that “music was close to the source of feeling that was the seed of a work of poetry” (18). In addition to creating “mood”

(Stimmung), the dramatic verse allows also the treatment of characters and their actions. In addition to their meaning, words, of which poetic lines are composed, have their peculiar sounds and produce effects. Schiller maintained that the voice of the poet—like a spirit stirring trumpet—could stir the heart and move us to action.

Alluding to Moses Mendelssohn, Schiller perceived that a work of art has both an objective and subjective purpose. In his letter to Körner on February 3, 1794,

Schiller arrived at one of his most insightful ideas.

Jede schöne Kunst führt aber immer einen doppelten Zweck aus, […] einen objektiven Zweck, den es ankündigt, und ihm gleichsam seinen Körper verschafft. Der Bildhauer will einen Menschen nachahmen, der Musiker will Gemütsbewegungen der Form nach ausdrücken, der Dichter will eben das, der Materie nach tun. Jedes schöne Kunstwerk hat zugleich den subjektiven Zweck (den es verschweigt, ob es gleich sehr oft der vornehmste Zweck ist), durch die es jenen objektiven Zweck ausführt, den Geschmack zu ergötzen (NA 26: 345).

614 Compare Moses Mendelsohn, Briefe der Empfindungen. „Die Zauberkraft der Harmonie [wirkt] mit so mächtigem Reiz auf die Menschen“ (11. Brief, 86). 615 Novalis Schriften, 365. Quoted by Hans Knudsen 17. 302

In assigning to a work of art a dual purpose, Schiller argues that, in addition to the engagements of thoughts, poetry tunes our mental disposition in such manner that inspires a kind of resolution in us that brings us closer to our purpose. As Schiller’s first medical dissertation proposes, the happiness of humankind to a great degree depends on one’s ability to recognize, appreciate and fulfill one’s own purpose.

In sum, Schiller’s view, the noble-minded, i.e. subjective purpose of a work of art is to excite collaboration between the intellectual-spiritual network of the mind and the sensuous system of the body in such a peculiar manner that that collaboration serves the purpose and happiness of humankind.

For all his appreciation of music, music is unable to account for the event

(Inhalt des seelischen Geschehens) that inspires such feeling.616 For,

Empfindungen [sind] ihrem Inhalte nach, keiner Darstellung fähig; aber ihrer Form nach sind sie es allerding, und es existiert wirklich eine allgemeine beliebte und wirksame Kunst, die kein anderes Objekt hat als eben diese Form der Empfindungen. Diese Kunst ist die Musik (NA 22: 273).

Both music and poetry are suited to expresses feelings but with a distinction. Though music could arouse within us emotional responses, a musical composition cannot account for the circumstances that evoked these feelings, unless aided by poesy.

Hence, the poet’s advantage is that he or she can use words in a manner that delights our senses and have a similar effect upon us as does music.

[…] kurz wir verlangen, dass jede poetische Komposition neben dem, was ihr Inhalt ausdrückt, zugleich durch ihre Form Nachahmung und Ausdruck von Empfindungen sei und als Musik auf uns wirke (NA 22: 272).

616 Hans Knudsen: „Das hatte Schiller ja betont, dass sich Empfindungen zwar in der Musik darstellen ließen, aber nur ihrer Form, nicht dem Inhalt nach“ (18). 303

At the same time, the poet should use words to excite our imagination by bringing the message vividly before our minds’ eyes. Concerning the poetic mode of representation, in the letters, Kallias, oder über die Schönheit, Schiller contends:

“[…] der Dichter soll alles vor die Einbildungskraft bringen (darstellen) die

Dichtkunst will Anschauungen, die Sprache gibt nur Begriffe“ (FA 8: 329). In all,

Schiller determines that, in its fullest form, poetic composition is able to impart to us the experience of beauty, harmony and truth, as well as to bring to mind a certain sentiment that we recognize by intuitive comprehension.617 How does Schiller’s unique conception of his fourth play engages our mental faculties in a manner that brings humankind closer to its purpose?

5.5 DRAMATIC POEM: FORM AND IDEA

Schiller’s Don Carlos as ein dramatisches Gedicht is mutually dependent on the aesthetic618 experience of harmony and disharmony.619 The scientific basis for harmony and disharmony is the consonant and dissonant relationship between two or more pitches in music.620 According to one of Schiller’s contemporaries, Heinrich

617 Compare „Die Poesie in ihrer vollkommensten Ausbildung muss uns, wie die Tonkunst, mächtig fassen, zugleich aber, wie die Plastik, mit ruhiger Klarheit umgeben.“ In Hans Knudsen, 19. 618 Compare Sulzer, Vol. 1, 27. „Aesthetik“. „The wort „aesthetics“, or the theory of the fine arts, actually means the science of feelings; the rules which govern these arts are derived from the system of the emotions which they seek to express” (Baker 135). 619 Compare Alt, II. In seiner Definition der Tragödie beleuchtet Schiller allein deren ideale Wirkung: “Dir Tragödie wäre demnach dichterische Nachahmung einer zusammenhängenden Reihe von Begebenheiten (einer vollständigen Handlung) welche uns Menschen in einem Zustand des Leidens zeigt, und zur Absicht hat, unser Mitleid zu erregen“ (NA 20: 164). Demnach, wie Alt erörtert, sinnliche Empfindung und moralisches Bewusstsein finden sich gleichermaßen angesprochen. [Mit Schillers tragischer Mitleidkonzeption] rückt die leibseelische Natur des Menschen ins Zentrum der Betrachtung“ (90). 620 Baker, „From Teil to Tonstück“. “Through the writings of the acoustician Ernst Florens Friedrich Chladni (1756-1827), “The Entdeckungen über die Theorie des Klanges “(1787) and “Die Akustik (1802), Koch had learned that the cause of consonance and dissonance was connected with vibrations. Those intervals whose vibrations meet frequently have a high degree of intelligibility and are called 304

Koch, harmony relates to one key, that is one idea i.e. Grundstimmung, and dissonant chords have their basis in more than one key, meaning, they convey more than one idea.621 This implies, that harmony and disharmony can be intuitively comprehended in terms of aesthetic experience, as well as in terms of ideas bearing intellectual content. In Schiller’s view, it is the mind and the soul that sense through the vibration of the strings the relationship between the idea(s) and the emotions they arouse. Koch assigns a high degree of intelligibility to the intervals (ideas and emotions) whose vibrations meet frequently. Due to interacting with each other harmoniously and intelligently, Koch calls these intervals (ideas) consonant (Baker 25). Due to their consonant relationship, these ideas show affinity and are comprehensible intuitively.

The dramatic verse is, however, characterized by tension, often high intensity of tension. It is a kind of reflective poem that engages our sentiments between two conflicting imperatives, the ideal and the real experience.622 The dramatic verse rouses powerful emotions in the recipients. “Das Ziel der Gemütsbewegung verfolgt

[…] und im hohen Masse die Leidenschaft der Zuschauer mobilisieren möchte“ (Alt,

II, 88). Schiller’s lines are often rough and dissonant and difficult in meaning.

Moreover, we need to be reminded again and again that Schiller conceived his poetic

consonant; those which do not are called dissonant. Koch therefore has a scientific basis for his classifications of consonance and dissonance and no longer need relay on feeling as the criterion” (25). 621 Baker. „From Teil to Tonstück“ 122, 51.a 622 Compare „Die sentimentalsiche Dichtung nämlich unterscheide sich dadurch von der naiven, dass sie den wirklichen Zustand, bei dem die letztere stehen bleibt auf Ideen bezieht, und Ideen auf die Wirklichkeit anwendet. Sie hat es daher immer, wie auch schon oben bemerkt worden ist, mit zwei streitenden Objekten, mit dem Ideale nämlich und mit der Erfahrung, zugleich zu tun. (NSD, FA 8: 768). 305

ideas by the way of constructing his dramatic figures. Many of his ideas predate the definition of his concepts, as also Buchwald observes:

Es kennzeichnet Schillers geistige Art, dass ihm seine Erkenntnisse immer zuerst an Gestalten seiner Dichtung […] aufgegangen sind; erst nachträglich hat er sie auch gedanklich formuliert. (444).

Only after having conceived his poetic ideas expressed “in beautiful and comemorable forms”623 did Schiller confident to write about them discursively.

Schiller’s Don Carlos served as a poetic model for many of his writings; for example,

Anmut und Würde (1793), Über das Erhabene (1793-96), Über das Pathetische

(1793), Naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung (1795). While these writings concern themselves with the relationship between “Sinnlichkeit” (sense) and “Vernunft”

(intellect) and the idea of moral self-reliance, they are core values that Schiller represents in his dramas. Alt submits: „Sinnliche Empfindungen und moralisches

Bewußtsein finden sich, so Schillers Überzeugung, durch die Tragödie gleichermassen angesprochen“ (II, 90). Schiller was convinced that the cultivation of feelings (ob es gleich sehr oft der vornehmste Zweck ist, NA 26: 345) consists not only in the spiritual, but also in the sensible sides of humankind, is necessary to appeal to the moral consciousness of the audience.

Schiller considered beauty a creative power. Schiller’s conception of the figure

(Gestalt) of Queen Elizabeth in his Carlos-Dichtung proves this position. From the vantage point of poetry, Elizabeth’s beauty symbolizes the alliance between Geist and

Sinn; nevertheless, her amiable disposition is the result of her own efforts that she

623 Witte 60. 306

cultivated by facing with courage the realities of her struggles. Anmut ist eine

Schönheit, die nicht von der Natur gegeben, sondern von dem Subjekt selbst hervorgebracht wird. (FA 8: 334). In aligning herself with the ideas of

Menschenglück, which Marquis Posa represents, Elizabeth’s amiable conduct wins

Carlos over to perform the royal duties he ought to do. Most importantly, the queen embodies a balancing force between the conflicting imperatives that sense and reason dictate:

KÖNIGIN: Nein!-Nein, Marquis. Auch nicht einmal im Scherze möchte ich dieser Unreifen Einbildung Sie zeihn. Sie sind Der Träumer nicht, der etwas unternähme, Was nicht geendigt werden kann. (4.3, 3394-98)

However, the marquis is not a dreamer. He is a human being with high- minded ideals whose judgment is swayed by his error of judgment. His downfall is partially due to not being well-versed in the political and courtly intrigues of Philipp’s court. Marquis chooses, however, rather death than the act of subjugation to the despotic power of

Philipp and the inquisition. The manner in which this act confirms of human dignity

Würde (dignitiy) contrasts with idea of Anmut (grace) requires, however, “die

Begeisterung eines gebildeten Geistes,” as Buchwald puts it (521).624 For, it was during the compositional process Schiller shaped his poetic ideas with respect to the

624 Max Kommerell, 1944,“Schiller als Gestalter des Handelnden Menschen.” Geist und Buchstabe der Dichtung. “Wenn Schiller von Idee handelt, handelt er von Tat, wenn er von Tat handelt, wird er von Idee nicht los. […] Die Idee, die sich verschiedenen Denkern verschieden geoffenbart hat, offenbarte sich ihm als Entwurf zur Tat. Diese Erfahrung ist tragisch” (136). 307

aesthetic education of the whole human being. In many instances, only after clothing his poetic ideas into poetic form was Schiller able to write them discursively.625

According to Buchwald, as a compositional masterpiece of dramatic verse,

Schiller’s Don Carlos fits well into the category of the “dramatisches Gedicht” that G.

E. Lessing defined: “Poesie des Ausdrucks, Bilder, Tiraden, kühne Gessinungen,

HLQHQIHXULJHQKLQUHLȕHQGHQ'LDORJ´  6FKLOOHU¶VIRXUWKSOD\DOVRVKRZVD number of innovative techniques. According to his friend, Andreas Streicher, during the compositional process the poet did not only talk about the plan but, also, about the necessity of using a new kind of poetic language for delivering the subject matter

(Streicher 214). Luca Zenobi understands Schiller’s new kind of poetic language on the grounds of aesthetic principles (46),626 and John Guthrie proposes considering

Schiller’s characters as human beings within the context of the Empfindsamkeit.

Schiller’s Don Carlos is a fine example of how feelings and ‘spiritual sympathy’627 come alive as sensuous corporeal expressions.628 In view of the importance the poet- dramaturge placed on the cultivation and expression of feelings, I contend that already in his early phase of writing dramas, what mattered to Schiller most was to depict his characters in such a way that they appeared to be alive?629 Most importantly, Schiller

625 Compare Über Anmut und Würde. „[…], dass sich die philosophierende Vernunft weniger Entdeckungen rühmen kann, die der Sinn nicht schon dunkel geahndet, und die Poesie nicht geoffenbart hätte“ (FA 8: 335). 626 Luca Zenobi, „Schillers Tragödie Von der Nachahmung der Natur zum Theater des Ideals.“ 46-58. 627 H. Emmel, 1972, “Empfindsamkeit,” in Historisches Wörterbuch der Philosophie. According to Guthrie, “die Fähigkeit, sinnlichen Eindrücken durch seelische Anteilnahme eine besondere Bedeutsamkeit zu geben” (the ability to give sensual impression particular significance through spiritual sympathy, 22). 628 Compare Ernst Casssierer. „Das körperliche und das geistige Geschehen der Gestalten kommen zum Ausdruck in ihrem Wirken als bildende Energie“ (129). 629 See Schiller’s letter to Fichte on 4. August 1795. As indicated, roughly ten years later Schiller writes about the problem of representation. Representationan strategies might change, but it is impossible to 308

also shaped his thought with a particular dramatic effect in mind (Albrecht, 349).

Albrecht provides substantial evidence that he frequently employs enjambments. At moments of heightened dramatic tension, enjambments mark the conflict that exists between Schiller’s pursuit of the aesthetic education of humankind and the realities of human struggles. In bringing to attention the tension between the thought content and the expression of Empfindungen (sensations, emotions), the dramatic verse as a form of poetic utterance aims at inspiring the kind of resolution in the audience that has the potential of preventing barbaric savagery.

A. STAGING THE DRAMATIC SITUATION

The story of Don Carlos centers on the relationship among key significant characters: the crown prince Don Carlos, Marquis Posa, Queen Elizabeth and Philipp II, Princess

Eboli, Domingo and Duke Alba. At the onset of Act One, Schiller offers an insight into the dysfunctional family matters by problematizing his characters’ situation with a political undertone. Philipp II distrusts his only son, the Crown Prince Don Carlos, and is jealous of him. Carlos is constantly being watched. As a result, he spends his days withdrawn in a gloomy state of mind at the court. When Domingo, the monarch’s confidant, interrogates the prince in order to spy out the real reason behind his troubled countenance, Carlos is careful not to open his heart to him. The prince is well aware, Dass König Philipp seinen einzigen Sohn / an seine Knechte schlechtesten verkaufte, (that Philipp sold his only son to his own servants, 111-112). Since

falsify the nature of human being. „Der ästhetische Teil eines Menschen ist das Resultat seiner Natur, und durch Räsonnement lassen sich wohl einzelne Vorstellungsarten ändern aber nie die Natur umkehren“ (NA 28: 19-22). 309

Domingo is a spy, he cannot be trusted as a true friend.630 His purpose is to know all the forbidden thoughts that Philipp’s subjects hide in their most inner self.631 The prince is well aware that Domingo is a Heuchler (I.1, 76-77). He responds emphatically: Beweinenswerter Philipp, wie dein Sohn/ Beweinenswert ist! (1.1).

Staging the platform of hypocrisy and distrust at the court of Philipp II, the first dialogue between the crown prince and Philipp’s confessor introduces how their private family affairs are at conflicting imperatives with public struggles and self- interest. On top of the jealousy, the young prince is secretly in love with the queen.

Due to wishing to turn the matters of love to her own advantages, Eboli skillfully manipulates the situation. While she does not refrain from disgracing the royal chamber, in co-opting with such dishonest and cruel characters as Domingo and Alba, she causes not only her own downfall but, to the tragedy of the crown prince and the queen.

B. PROBLEMATIZING THE CHARACTER OF PHILIPP II According to John Lothian, the type of writing that defines the portrayal ofacharacter is hard to define (6). “Character we take as a literary kind of variety of formand content, of which a particular mode may be the fashion of the moment.”632 While character might make a deep impression upon us, evoke a picture in us, function as a metaphor, or be a bearer of a message or claim, character is a special kind of

630 Compare „Zur aufgeklärten bürgerlichen Erziehung gehört es, dass vor dem‘falschen’ Freund gewarnt wird, welchen man besonders im höfischen Umfeld vermutet, weil dort die Schmeichler anzutreffen sind, die jedem nach dem Munde reden, um so ihrem eigenen Nutzen zu dienen“ (Thiel 19). 631 Walter Müller-Seidel, “Gegenaufklärerisch sind solche Blickwendungen in das Innere anderer, wenn es, wie in der Inquisition, darum geht, verbotene Gedanken auszuforschen, wie es der Pater Domingo in Schillers Don Karlos tut“ (426). 632 John M. Lothian, Shakespeare’s Charactery, 6. 310

communication that does more than inform. It conveys a sense of life that is interdependent with the dramaturge’s purpose. Particularly from the standpoint of the drama, character matters because it is associated with a message and, as in our case with the conflict that motivates the action. As Aristotle had put it: “character, along with thought [is] that aspect of plot from which the action arises.”633

What kind of picture does Schiller intend to evoke in us through his characterization of Philipp? What kind of message does Schiller wrap into his masterful characterization of the king ? Shortly after introducing the distrustful mood persisting at the court, in Act I, Scene 6, we encounter the absolutist monarch for the first time (I. 6). He is a dreaded oppressive ruler, who has enough servants at his disposal to keep a watch on all of his subjects, in particular Queen Elizabeth. At the onset of the drama, Philipp II is portrayed as a proud and mighty ruler, who had not yet in his life chanced to shed tears. As the mighty man thinks, tears abase a man.

Vollends Tränen? Unwürdiger Anblick! (2.1, 1067-68). His principles of conduct are ruled by maxims. In slighting his own son as Knabe (boy), Philipp reveals his callous fatherly heart. Philipp didn’t care to know his son on a personal level.

In reflecting on the traumatic account on his first encounter with his father,

Carlos relates to Marquis Posa that he was six years old when he first met him. Albeit the monarch was too busy to take a glance at his son due to signing death penalties.

Despite of the image of the fearless and mighty ruler, Philipp fears to lose his kingdom to his son. The crown prince could force away the kingdom from him and

633 Jonnie Patricia Mobley, NTC’s Dictionary of Theatre and Drama Terms, 23. 311

act in a disgraceful manner similar to what as Philipp II did to his own father, Charles

V. Alba alludes to Philipp’s brutal crime as following:

[…] Philipp der Zweite Zwang Ihren Ältervater, von dem Thron Zu steigen—Dieser Philipp zittert heute Vor seinem eignen Sohn! (5.7, 4951-4954).

Not surprisingly, Philipp’s brutality surfaces when he commands his own son to the watchful eyes of his military officer Alba whose heart turned rigid and cruel under a political system that victimizes his subjects. Solange mein Herz an diesen Panzer schlägt (1.6). Astounded by his own father’s cruelty of disregarding human pain and suffering, Carlos exclaims: Durch welchen Missverstand hat dieser Fremdling / Zu

Menschen sich verirrt? (How is it that such stranger lost his ways in mingling himself among human beings? 2.1, 1077-78). Dominated only by the passion to rule, Philipp’s corrupt purposes show that he has misconceived ideas about the human being.

In the absence of total empathy, Phillip II punishes the offences that his subjects commit quickly and on the spot. Wenn ich einmal zu fürchten angefangen, /

Hab ich zu fürchten aufgehört (1.6). In their confrontation with the unbearable tension that Philipp‘s subjects experience, they frequently break out in tears striving to assert themselves as human beings in their ‘right to feel.’634 Such is the case when the monarch banishes Mondekar from Madrid, as a punishment for withdrawing herself from the queen. In order to counteract the monarch’s bluntness, Elizabeth displays her sympathies.635 by handing the weeping Mondekar her own belt (“Gürtel,” 1.6, 838) as

634 Rolf-Peter Janz. 635 Compare Immanuel Kant, 1996, „Ich habe Empfindungsvermögen d.h. Sinn“ (75). 312

a farewell present. In noting that such tears are gladly wiped away at home in France, she displays her grace and dignity before her ladies. In alluding to the poetic phantasy of Greek fable in which the belt (“Gürtel”) symbolizes the transferability of the attributes of grace Elizabeth infers that the person who wears the “Gürtel der Anmut” is an amiable person (Anmut und Würde, FA 8: 332). Furthermore, as Schiller implies,

“Gürtel” can be understood as a visual representation of a graceful mental disposition

(Gemütsbewegung). Wo Anmut stattfindet, da ist die Seele das bewegende Prinzip

(FA 8: 334). By her discretionary move, the queen expresses that she is not only sensitive, but also a morally responsible person.

Dieser zärtliche Sinn der Griechen […] weiȕ von keiner willkürlichen Bewegung am Menschen, die nur der Sinnlichkeit allein angehörte, ohne zugleich ein Ausdruck des moralisch empfindenden Geistes zu sein. (Über Anmut und Würde, FA 8: 334).

In an effort to portray Elizabeth’s character as complete, Schiller borrows the idea, i.e. form636 of her representation from nobler times. On the one hand, her form was a product of the poetic imagination of the Greek mythology. At the same time, it was the expression of an amiable human being: “Inbegriff einer durch Lebensfülle,

Schönheit und Empfindung beseelten Schöpfung.” 637 The manner in which the queen comes alive in front of our eyes allows us to grasp the truth that the monarch could care less about the ethical value of the human being.

636 Compare Walter Muschg, […] der Sinn seines [Schiller’s] Schaffens […] heißt Ringen um die Form immer auch Ringen mit der Idee […]“ (225). 637 Benno von Wiese, 1957, „Die Götter Griechenlands.“ Die deutsche Lyrik, 328. In: Klaus L. Berghahn, 1986, 17. 313

In addition to displaying her grace and dignity, Elisabeth openly confronts the monarch’s absolutist values. The queen disapproves of Philipp’s treatment of her and her maid and openly criticizes the monarch for his indifference to human sufferings and pain: Bloß Zwang bewacht die Frauen Spaniens? […] In meinem Frankreich wars doch anders (1.6, 834, 845). Due to being subjected to the unworthy and corrupt purposes that Philipp’s subjects experience, many tears are shed. By their tears,

Carlos, Mondekar, Flanders, the queen, and even the monarch himself and Eboli engage with the challenges that these characters face as ein empfindendes Wesen.638

Most importantly, Elizabeth’s first encounter with the monarch represents the tension that exists between his attitude of rigid hatred and her noble-minded ideas confessing that she is a sensitive and morally responsible person.

C. PROBLEMATIZING THE CHARACTER OF MARQUIS POSA Before encountering the dreadful monarch, we meet Philipp’s opponent Marquis

Posa. When Posa arrives in Madrid unexpectedly, his daring spirit and courageous appearance symbolize qualities that seem to be out of place at the court of Philipp II.

Right upon his first entrance, he quickly realizes that Carlos is in a condition that threatens his rescue plans for Flanders. Marquis Posa came as Ein Abgeordneter der ganzen Menschheit (1.9, 197). The prince, who is Kaiser Karls glorwürd’gem Enkel

(1.9, 164) welcomes, him, however, in such a tumultuous and fierce fashion that dismays Posa. For, his fried’s heart has forgotten to beat for the noble-minded ideas of

638 Compare Über das Pathetische, „Nirgends such der Grieche in der Abstumpfung und Gelichgültigkeit gegen das Leiden seinen Ruhm, sondern in Ertragung desselben bei allem Gefühl für dasselbe. […] Diese zarte Empfindlichkeit für das Leiden, diese warme, aufrichtige wahr und offen liegen Natur, welche uns in den griechischen Kunstwerken so tief und lebendig berührt, ist ein Muster der Nachahmung für alle Künstler“ (NA 22: 198-199). 314

humankind, i.e. sein erhabenes Herz / vergessen hat, für Menschlichkeit zu schlagen

(1.2). Whereupon, Carlos does not hesitate to confess his horrible secret to his friend.

In alluding to their past alliance as unsrer Seelen zartes Seitenspiel (the alliance of their souls expressed as a metaphor of fine string music, 1.2, 199), Carlos asks Posa, begging him as his soulmate, to advance his chance of coming before Queen

Elizabeth. Zerreiȕen konntest du mein Herz, doch nie / Von dir entfernen (1.2, 229-

230). After diagnosing Carlos’ heart as lovesick and forlorn, Posa is righttobe concerned about the success of his mission. Nevertheless, he fails as a friend when he is not able to connect with Carlos at the personal level. Moreover, in entering boldly before the queen under the pretense of bringing letters from the queen’s mother in

France, Posa’s venture is dangerous. On the account of the high minded task at hand, the most that matters to the Marquis is to successfully enlist Elizabeth in support of

Flanders’ struggle of freedom. When, however, right after that, he boldly advances the sudden entrance of the prince, the Marquis disregards the grave consequences of such headless action. And indeed, the queen is unprepared for this unexpected sudden event, loaded with tension before the conversation is in full swing.

D. QUEEN AND PRINCE: GRACE TEMPERS PASSION639 To many scholars, the theme of the Carlos-Dichtung deals with the task of how to prepare the crown prince to assume his royal duties. Schiller himself hinted at this purpose: “Die Erziehung des Prinzen zum Idealen Herrscher, ‚zum künftigen Schiller

639 The exchange take place in Act 1, scene 5; Compare, Pikulik calls to attention the attempts to differentiate emotions in 18th century German letters. “[…] wenn die Gefühlskultur des 18. Jahrhunderts das Seelische vom Sinnlichen genauso emanzipiert wie vom Rationalen, so hinkte die Undifferenziertheit des Begriffs der Differenziertheit der Sache einstweilen nach” (225). 315

des Menschenglücks, ‘ und zwar eine Erziehung durch das Leid und im Kampfe mit der Leidenschaft“ (Buchwald 424).640 The pursuit of breeding the ideal emperor is, however, tied to a condition that is only intuitively comprehensible to us—and only if we were able to understand the characteristic make-up of the crown prince such as it was intended in the purest sense of the drama (Buchwald 424). Given the temperament of the prince, it is unlikely that Schiller believed that the prince was the right candidate for such a prospect. The question surfaces, why then does Schiller invest so much effort into winning Carlos for the cause of Flanders?

In his review of Bürger, Schiller advocates that poesy as ein poetisches

Empfinden is almost the only form of expression that enables the harmonious cooperation between the physical and rational matter. In reality, such harmonious or simple existence was available to us merely as an idea: jenes harmonische

Zusammenwirken seiner Natur bloß eine Idee ist (NSD, FA 8: 734). At the same time,

Schiller discloses the imaginative-intellectual qualities of his poetic pursuits when he proposes that there is an intimate bond between body and mind. Tuned by poetry, these faculties can sound together sympathetically like as zwei gleichgestimmte

Saitensinstrumente (two string instrument tuned to the same pitch, NA 20: 63, para

18). Contemplating the production of beautiful sounds, Martinson has advocated that the central symbol of the musical stringed instrument (e.g. =lute) suggests that

“tension and harmony are interrelated” (HT 28).641 According to Martinson, while

640 Briefe über Don Karlos. Letter 8. „Unter beiden Freunden bildet sich also ein enthusiastischer Entwurf, […] wie er nämlich in Konflikt mit der Leidenschaft erscheint, handelt das gegenwärtige Drama“ (NA 22: 164). 641 Compare Martinson, 1996. “A closer analysis of the language of Schiller’s writing reveals that the metaphor of the stringed instrument assumes symbolic significance as a sign of Nature’s operation 316

“the metaphor of the stringed instrument assumes symbolic significance as a sign of

Nature’s operation”642 in Schiller’s work, “the harmonious tension between mind and body” is a sign of an ennobled human character.643 Since the dramatic verse is characterized by tension and high intensity, I examine here how Schiller’s employment of dramatic verse inspires the formation of human character. While research remains undecided as to why Schiller chose the blank verse as a form of expression is his fourth play, Schiller’s models of dramatic poem were Shakespeare,

Lessing’s Nathan, der Weise (1779), and Goethe’s Iphigenie auf Tauris (1784). As

Rolf Albrecht points out, on the one hand, Schiller used the form of blank verse with latitude, especially in the last two acts (Albrecht 3), and, on the other hand, it is beyond doubt, “,dass der Dichter von Anfang an in Versen dachte” (72). According to

David Chisholm, the major feature of the dramatic poem is ‘increased tension.’644 As he states:

One of the most significant features distinguishing lyric and dramatic verse is the increased tension that characterized the latter. On the semantic level, this tension is generated in the dialog by violent arguments as well as other types of verbal exchanges among characters, and in the action by sudden unexpected events, and suspense that is built up by keeping the audience in a state of uncertainty as to how events will unfold. In blank verse drama such emotional tension is underscored by conflicts between the metrical abstraction and its linguistic realization.”645

(24). “Schiller method of argumentation suggests that, as long as the human being is a physiological being, the tension between mind and body cannot cease. […] the more harmonious the tension, the more between mind and body, the healthier the human being.” (38). 642 HT 24. 643 See ÄE 13, HT 176. 644 David Chisholm, 2011, “Prosodic and Dramatic Tension in the Blank-Verse Dramas of Heinrich von Kleist.” Heinrich von Kleist and Modernity, 167-183, here 167. 645 David Chisholm, 2011, 167. 317

When the prince suddenly appears in the chamber of the queen in Act 1, Scene

5, the moment is loaded with tension. Since it is hard to know how the conversation between the queen and the prince will unfold, this event suspends the dramatic action.

Schiller uses this short suspense for a double purpose: on the one hand, he stages the aesthetic moment with the purpose of taming passion (Spiel der Kräfte) through performing Anmut (grace) and Würde (dignity).646 On the other hand, Schiller skillfully employs the dramatic verse. Via generating heightened moments of tension not only on the semantic, but also on the metric level, Schiller portrays the battle that humankind experiences between sense and reason before deciding on a courseof action.

It is not unusual that research explores Schiller’s personal life in order to find connection between the events that motivated his writings and the manner in which he sketches his characters. In the “Ankündigung der Rheinischen Thalia” on 11.

November 1784, Schiller declares that after successfully having distanced himself from the despotic rule of Karl Eugen, from now on he wishes “an keinen andereren

Thron mehr zu appellieren, als an die menschliche Seele” (to appeal to none other throne, but to the human mind and heart). At the same time, Joseph Kiermeier-Debre suggests that it is possible that Schiller’s developing attachment to Charlotte von Kalb had also some bearing upon the form of his versification (119). Similarly to Elizabeth,

Charlotte married out of convenience. Upon his entrance, Carlos, who is passionately

646 Dirk Oschmann, 2009, “Immer steht das ästhetische Moment der Darstellung im Vordergrund, von dem das Dargestellte unmittelbar geprägt wird. […] eine Wahrheit der Darstellung macht sich in jedem einzelnen seiner theoretischen Texte geltend“ (85). 318

in love with the queen, has a hard time arriving at a rational explanation of how is it possible marrying against one’s will. “Hier befragt einer unverkennbar im Gewande der Verse eine prosaische Situation, das Verhältnis zweier Zwangsverheiratete aus

Gründen der Räson; und er nicht glauben, dass es so etwas gibt“ (Kiermeier-Debre,

120).647 As implied in the next passage Schiller entertains the power struggle between reason and emotions. Though the moment is emotionally charged, during their exchange Elizabeth’s amiable nature wins Carlos over to enlisting himself in support of Flanders.648 The occurrence of this aesthetic moment takes place as follows.

The appearance of Carlos in the chamber of the queen is rash as well as irrational. In his overcharged mental state of mind, Carlos sets all his hopes on this brief moment of encounter. Listening only to the dictates of his own heart, he never deliberates the threat that his “tollkühne Überraschung” presents to Elizabeth. Instead, the prince breaks out in rash accusations, whereupon his emotional outbursts evoke responses from Elizabeth that increases the tension with each turn.

CARLOS. Sie waren mein—im Angesicht der Welt Mir zugesprochen von zwei großen Thronen, Mir zuerkannt von Himmel und Natur, Und Philipp, Philipp hat mir Sie geraubt. KÖNIGIN. Er ist Ihr Vater. CARLOS. Ihr Gemahl. KÖNIGIN. Der Ihnen¬ Das gröȕte Reich zum Erbe gibt. (1.5, 671-676). As this example proves, the poetic device of enjambment (¬) underscores the tension that manifests itself on the semantic level. At the moment, however, when

647 Joseph Kiermeier-Debre, “Königin Elisabeth von Valois Dom Karlos,” Schillers Frauen. 42 Porträts aus Leben und Dichtung, 115-122. 648 Martinson, 1996, HT 15. 319

irrationality threatens to overwhelm the two participants, the queen attempts to rationalize the situation by emphatically placing the stress upon “Ihnen” (You). Benno von Wiese suggests that such unrestrained outpourings reminds us of the elements of the Storm and Stress period: “Wir spüren noch die jugendliche Flugkraft, den kühnen

Griff über alle Hindernisse hinweg. “649 More importantly, Rolf Albrecht provides substantial examples claiming that the poet Schiller employs enjambment pursuant of showcasing the speaker’s emotions (“die Gemütsbewegung des Redenden zur

Geltung zu bringen”, 344). As Schiller reminds here, poesy should touch the heart in a manner that inspires noble resolutions. Sie soll das Herz treffen, weil sie aus dem

Herzen floss […] auf den Menschen (FA 8: 449). In placing the emphasis on Ihnen, the queen’s ability to empathize with Carlos allows the participants for the opportunity to direct their mental powers toward mutual cooperation. Here we are reminded that Poesy’s purpose is to cultivate and [re]shape feelings and thoughts, the intellect and the imagination. The goal is to enact the harmonious alliance between these powers and thereby create the beauty which is the complete (whole) human being.

On account of Kant’s intellectual legacy, Schiller searched for the energizing principle that would allow humankind’s transition from his ailing powerless condition to an operatively thinking state of mind. „[…] das energische Prinzip, das den Stoff beleben muss, um das wahrhaft schöne zu erzeugen, […um] das Herz zu erquicken und den Geist zu beschäftigen (NSD, FA 8: 761). In Chapter 3, I proposed to understand das Dichterische as a distinct poetic idea. In Schiller’s view it was the

649 Benno von Wiese, 1969, “Einführung,“ 27. 320

poetic idea that assumed the role of engaging our mental faculties in a free play of imagination. According to Schiller’s poetic pursuit, only after establishing equilibrium between sense and intellect was poesy able to tune our disposition to such an extent that we could perceive the right course of action. The imaginative intellectual quality of Schiller’s poetic pursuit, das Dichterische, becomes intuitively comprehensible to us through the conceptions and creative productions of form in his Don Carlos.

In Schiller’s conception of his play, tension functions as an energizing principle that enables Carlos to take action. By engaging the very conflict between

Herz and Kopf, the verbal exchange between the prince and the queen is charged with emotional tension. In Schiller’s view, the form of poetic composition should aim at emotional effect, similar to what music does (Form der Empfindungen). In underscoring the significance of the nature of the poetic utterance, Chisholm contends: “In blank verse drama, such emotional tension is underscored by conflicts between the metrical abstraction and its linguistic realization.”650 The passage beneath portrays the emotionally charged moment between Elizabeth and Carlos. Schiller employs enjambments to emphasize the heightened moments of tension both on the semantic and the prosodic levels.

CARLOS. Sie haben nie geliebt? KÖNIGIN. Seltsame Frage! CARLOS. Sie haben nie geliebt? KÖNIGIN. -Ich liebe nicht mehr. ¬CARLOS. Weil es Ihr Herz? Weil es Ihr Eid verbietet? KÖNIGIN. Verlassen Sie mich, Prinz, und kommen Sie¬ Zu keiner solchen Unterredung wieder. CARLOS. Weil es Ihr Eid? Weil es Ihr Herz verbietet? KÖNIGIN. Weil meine Pflicht --- Unglücklicher, wozu ¬

650 David Chisholm, 2011, 167. 321

Die traurige Zergliederung des Schicksals, Dem Sie und ich gehorchen müssen? CARLOS. Müssen? Gehorchen müssen? KÖNIGIN. Wie? Was wollen Sie¬ Mit diesem feierlichen Ton? CARLOS. So viel, Dass Carlos nichts gesonnen ist, zu müssen, Wo er zu wollen hat; dass Carlos nicht ¬ Gesonnen ist, der Unglückseligste In diesem Reich zu bleiben, wenn es ihn ¬ Nichts als den Umsturz der Gesetze kostet, Der Glücklischste zu sein. KÖNIGIN. Versteh ich Sie? Sie hoffen noch? Sie wagen es, zu hoffen, Wo alles, alles schon verloren ist? CARLOS. Ich gebe nichts verloren als die Toten. (I.5, 714-732)

As the passage above indicates, Schiller generates tension via enjambments in order to move the participants toward the resolution of conflict.

Iambic pentameter refers to five iamb in a row, containing in each iamb an unstressed and a stressed syllable: o x / o x / o x / o x / o x.651 In the passage above, however, Schiller uses the pattern of unstressed and stressed syllables in variation. For example, the following line alters the regulative principles of the iambic pentameter by inversion: “Ich liebe nicht mehr.” After the first regular iamb of unstressed and stressed syllables, the next iamb is inversed, pushing the stressed syllable to the end of the line. The word “mehr” at the end of the line underscores the tension both linguistically and metrically. By employing this irregular metrical pattern, Schiller

651 Following Chisholm, 2011, I use the symbol “x” for prominent and the symbol “o” for nonprominent positions (168). 322

portrays the conflict that exists between Elizabeth’s realization of her strong desire to love and the circumstances that will not allow her to do so.

The irrationality of talking about something that cannot be changed is stressed by the low vowels in the statement: “Seltsame Frage.” In order to speed up the resolution of this conflict, Schiller employs enjambment at three consecutive times.

At each occasion, the speaker, first Elizabeth and then Carlos, continues talking without pausing at the end of the line. By speeding up the flow of mutual exchange in such a manner, a sense of urgency is created, inviting the participants to mutually cooperate with each other in pursuit of a higher purpose. Rolf Albrecht, however, reads Schiller’s enjambments differently. As he contends, due to starting the next line with a capital letter, the enjambment calls a halt to the purposes of emphasizing the turn of thought, i.e. “Wendung”.652 Employing enjambment in his unique manner,

Schiller creates a surprising effect,653 as the following example here suggests:

Wie? Was wollen Sie¬ Mit diesem feierlichen Ton? (1.5, 722)

In our reading, the above passage represents some of those powerful moments in which Schiller wrestles with the idea of how to move his titular character from his ailing powerless condition to an active thinking state of mind. His employment of

652 Rolf Albrecht, 1966. „Es liegt auf der Hand, dass bei all diesen kühnen Enjambements nichts gewonnen wäre, wenn einfach über das Versende hinweggelesen würde. Dass Schiller hier in der Tat einen Einhalt verlangt, beweisen auch Großschreibung und Sperrdruck einiger in die Versfuge gestellter Wörter“ (347-48). „[…] Eine andere Erscheinung ist ebenfalls charakteristisch: in einigen Fällen war es dem Dichter offenbar um einen Überraschungseffekt zu tun, den jedes Mal beginnt die unvorhergesehene Wendung einer Rede unmittelbar hinter der Versfuge“ (347). 653 Rhetorical Tradition, 2002. “According to Cicero’s conception of the three offices of rhetoric, it was suggested to teach “small things” in a “subdued” style, delighting with “moderate things” in a “temperate” style, a moving to action with “great things” in a “grand” style (454). 323

dramatic verse lends a sense of urgency to the matter as well as inspires audience and hearers to comprehend intuitively why is it necessary to recollect our powers before taking decisive action.

E. THE POETIC MOMENT: “Im Zeichen der Dichtung“654

As the next passages illustrate, Schiller has chosen an unusual early moment for staging the aesthetic experience as an impetus for human actions. John Guthrie argues: “Schiller assumes that feelings and mental states are representedexternally.

[Nevertheless,] Shiller is more interested in physical symptoms that originate in the mind” (34). Guthrie points to the complexity that the portrayal of feelings present, for

Schiller perceives them as a neurological process of corporeal sensations and mental activities (seelische Empfindungen). The prince in his ailing and idle state of mind cannot accomplish anything. In order to stir him to action, Schiller creates an aesthetic space letting the queen’s gracious manner work out the details. Elizabeth shows the prince how irrational it is to wish for something that is impossible. Whereupon,

Carlos loses his courage and becomes hopeless. “Ja, es ist aus. Jetzt ist / Es aus. […] –

O, in diesem / Gefühl liege Hölle“ (1.5, 745-750). In empathizing with the inexpressible pain of the prince, the queen compassionately notes. „Wie Ihre Liebe, ist Ihr Schmerz. Unendlich“(1.5, 756). But Elizabeth does not allow, however, the

654 In Part 1, we concluded that the idea of the beautiful wholeness of the human being, the harmonious alliance between thought and feelings is available to us merely as a poetic moment (ein poetisches Emfpinden, FA 8:733-34). Moreover, it is interesting that in his treatment of the various characteristics of Schiller’s diverse writings, Dirk Oschmann concludes. “Dies sind die diskursiven Ränder eines Oeuvres, das dennoch ganz im Zeichen der Dichtung steht” (2009, 119). Zeichen: a) etw. Sichtbares, Hörbares (bes. eine Geste, Gebärde, ein Laut .o.Ä.), das als Hinweis dient, etw, deutlich macht, mit dem jmd. auf etw. aufmerksam gemacht, zu etw. veranlasst o.Ä.), […] um erkennen zu lassen, […] zur Begeisterung, Verdeutlichung“ (Duden, 2001, 1843). 324

conversation to end on this unsettling moment. Instead, she insists that Carlos needs to keep his unruly emotions under control. In an effort to free herself from the constraints of the moment, Elizabeth takes several short pauses, after which, in a solemn address (grand style), she invites the prince to assume his royal duties as a grown man.

KÖNIGIN. Ein Mann¬ Zu sein? O Karl! Wie groȕ ist unsre Tugend, o x x x x x o x o x o Wenn unser Herz bei ihrer Übung bricht! Hoch stellte Sie die Vorsicht – hoher, Prinz, Als Millionen Ihrer andern Brüder. Parteilich gab sie ihrem Liebling, was Sie andern nahm, und Millionen fragen: Verdiente er im Mutterleibe schon Mehr als wir andern Sterblichen zu gelten? Auf, retten Sie der Himmels Billigkeit! Verdienen Sie der Welt voranzugehn, Und opfern Sie, was keiner opferte! (1.5, 767-777)

Though the queen has plenty of reasons to dwell on the deprived state of her affairs, her purpose is to discreetly impart to Carlos that he needs to take courage and moral responsibility for his future empire. In reminding the prince of his privileged position, she places the emphasis on the high sense of his royal calling:

Hoch stellte Sie die Vorsicht – hoher, Prinz, x x o x o x o x o x

By evoking the picture of multitudes of people, among whom only Carlos is the only one who is entitled to be the future king of the Spanish Empire, Elizabeth displays her imaginative faculties, allowing us also to witness her intelligence and sensitivity. 325

Next, Elizabeth aims for motivating Carlos beyond the limitations of his own mindset. Though the emphasis is on Spanien, as the künftigen (future) empire, the metric irregularities register with tension interrupting the flow of the queen’s utterance.

KÖNIGIN -- Bringen Sie O, bringen Sie sie Ihren künftigen Reichen (künft’gen) Und fühlen Sie, statt Dolchen des Gewissens, Die Wollust Gott zu sein. Elisabeth¬ War Ihre erste Liebe. Ihre zweite¬ Sei Spanien! Wie gerne, guter Karl, x x o x x x o x o x Will ich der besseren Geliebten weichen! (1.5, 787-794)

On ending her appeal to high-minded ideals, the queen plans to win Carlos over to the cause of Flanders’ independence. In an amiable manner in Elizabeth sympathizes with

Carlos reveals her compassion for the crown prince.

Following Schiller’s third medical dissertation, the “Versuch,” on account of the “close correspondence between the two natures, [the neural connection] forms the basis of the communication of feelings.”655 Die geheimsten Rührungen der Seele auf der Außenseite des Körpers geoffenbart (NA 20: 68). This passage leads us to grasp the idea that the expression of emotions and mental states are closely aligned with certain physical manifestations of the body. Körperliche Phänomene verraten die

Bewegungen des Geistes (NA 20: 68, para 22). For example, the dramaturge

655 Compare, „Physiognomik der Empfindungen.“ Versuch über den Zusammenhang der tierischen Natur des Menschen mit seiner Geistigen. „Eben diese innige Korrespondenz der beiden Naturen stürzt auf die ganze Lehre der Physiognomik. Durch eben diesen Nervenzusammenhang, welcher, wie wir hören, bei der Mitteilung der Empfindungen zum Grunde liegt, werden die geheimsten Rührungen der Seele auf der Außenseite des Körpers geoffenbart“ (NA 20: 68). Translation in D/R, 279. 326

emphasizes the lively expressions of mental states that originates in the mind of the queen.656 In proposing that “noble and loving emotion enhances the beauty of the body” (D/R 279; NA 20: 68), the manner in which the queen displays her grace

(Anmut, i.e. bewegende Schönheit) allows us to comprehend intuitively that exemplifies the qualities of a beautiful soul. Wo Anmut stattfindet, da ist die Seele das bewegende Prinzip (FA 8: 334).

My thesis here is that Schiller advances his cause as a poet-dramaturge by highlighting the distinctive qualities of beautiful forms and that he does so in the light of the practice of life. Hence, he can champion the idea that a beautiful object appears to be free, i.e. durch sich selbst bestimmt (FA 8: 297) because it is determined by its own distinctive inner quality. And, Wo Anmut stattfindet, da ist die Seele das bewegende Prinzip (FA 8: 334).

While freedom is the key to the working of the creative intellect657--it sets the power of imagination in motion--the expression of Empfindungen that deeply touch us was the challenging task. By looking first for empirical evidence in real life situations, the dramaturge considered gestures, body signals, facial expressions, sounds, and gesticulations as signs expressing internal feelings. Schiller also studied how human beings displayed their emotions and thoughts externally (sich ein Individium lebend abdrückt, NA 28: 22). In matters of literary representation, Homer served as a role model: “Die leidende Natur spricht wahr und aufrichtig zu unseren Herzen in der

656 Vergl. Schiller. Anmut und Würde. “Dieser zärtliche Sinn der Griechen nun, der das Materielle immer nur unter der Begleitung des Geistigen duldet, weiß vom keiner willkürlichen Bewegung am Menschen, die nur der Sinnlichkeit allein angehörte, ohne zugleich ein Ausdruck des moralisch empfindenden Geistes zu sein“ (FA 8: 334). 657 See Philosophie der Physiologie (NA 20: 25, para. 9). 327

homerischen Dichtung“ (NA 20: 198). And his knowledge of human physiology guided him in recognizing that certain emotions presented themselves as sensations in the body before the mind was able to process them.658 Such emotions are expressions of our animate nature, which are sparked by corporeal sensation. Schiller also looked to Shakespeare who employed symbols when the dreadful operations of the soul could not be represented on the stage. Shakespeare also modeled how his characters could voice their most inner thoughts and feelings in the form of a soliloquy. Concerning dramatic modes of representations, in borderline situations, Schiller allowed his own

“Empfindung” to be his pilot. As he later admitted to Fichte, instead of depicting emotions, he let the body speak for itself (NA 28: 22).

My point here is that Schiller was never able to reconcile the disparity between his lofty theoretical ideas and poetic creativity.659 Schiller knew that, when defining an abstract concept, the intelligence demands agreement between thought and its representation of form. In the case of intuitive comprehension, the mind is caught by surprise when sensing agreement between sense and reason. By explaining the difference between intuitive and logical comprehension, Schiller comes closest to

658 Friedrich Schiller. Physiognomik der Empfindungen. „ Eben diese innige Korrespondenz der beiden Naturen stützt auch die ganze Lehre der Physiognomik. Durch eben diesen Nervenzusammenhang, welcher, wie wir hören, bei der Mitteilungen der Empfindungen zum Grunde liegt, werden die JHKHLPVWHQ5KUXQJHQGHU6HHOHDXIGHU$XȕHQVHLWHGHV.|USHUVJHRIIHQEDUW³ 1$  659 See Schiller’s pivotal letter to Körner on 8. Februar 1793 (NA 26: 177-188). Schiller was driven between the logical and teleological (functional) understanding of the nature of an object. “Die theoretische Vernunft wendet ihre Form auf Vorstellung an, und diese lassen sich in unmittelbare (Anschauungen) und in mittelbare (Begriffe) einteilen. Jene sind durch den Sinn, diese durch die Vernunft (obschon nicht ohne Zutun des Sinnes) gegeben. In den ersten, den Anschauungen, ist es zufällig, ob sie mit der Form der Vernunft übereinstimmen, […] dort wird sie überrascht, wenn sie es findet. […] In den Begriffen ist es [die Übereinstimmung] notwendig, wenn sie sich nicht aufheben will. […] Das Objekt des logischen ist Vernunftmäßigkeit, das Objekt des teleologischen ist Vernunftähnlichkeit” (NA 26: 179-180). 328

comprehending why it was at first difficult to overcome the seeming contradiction between his theoretical pursuits and poetic creativity.

Throughout Schiller’s career as a dramatist, Empfindung remained uppermost.

The mind and the soul is not only an entity of thinking but of feeling as well. John

Guthrie argues that “Schiller assumed that feelings and mental states are represented externally, every emotion has a specific form of expression” (34). Since, however, we process our inner feelings in our mind, Schiller appears to suggest that our own

Empfindungsvermögen660 is the guide to intuitively comprehend the difference between mental states of mind and the processes of sensory impressions.661 Darin also von der Vorstellung unterschieden, dass sie hier nur den Zustand eines äuȕeren

Wesens, dort aber ihren eigenen empfindet (NA 20: 28). For example, Marquis Posa submits that nobody could figure out yet the state of affairs of the queen’s heart.

Although the queen never gave a reasonable explanation, Schiller is interested in the manner in which the poetic truth the internal connection between Posa’s sensation and thinking is intuitively comprehensible to us.

In the light of Schiller’s representational strategies, we now examine how the dramatist stages the poetic moment in the concluding scene between Elizabeth and

Carlos. Being reminded here that similarly to nature’s harmony in which all forces sound jointly as a single beauteous melody, Elizabeth’s radiant display of grace

660 Compare „Empfindungen des geistigen Lebens.“ Philosophie der Physiologie. “Empfinden ist derjenige Zustand meiner Seele, wo sie sich einer Verbesserung oder Verschlechterung bewusst ist“ (NA 20:28). 661 Cassierer, 1961. „Das wirklich seelische Geschehen, […] keine absolute Scheidenwand.Selbst der DEVWUDNWH*HGDQNHEHGDUIQRFKGLH%H]LHKXQJDXIVLQQOLFK=HLFKHQGLHLKQLQVHLQHP%HZXȕWVHLQ repräsentieren (76). 329

greatly impacts Carlos in a poetic moment that stirs his soul into action. 662 First, his bodily movements show signs of changes in his disposition:

CARLOS (wirft sich von Empfindungen überwältigt, zu ihren Füßen). Wie groß sind Sie, o Himmlische! —Ja, alles, ¬ Was Sie verlangen, will ich tun! —Es sei! (Er steht auf.) (1.5, 794-797)

Then, a brief poetic moment occurs, in which the intellectual-spiritual network of the mind joins forces with the sensuous system of the body. This poetisches Empfinden quiets Carlos’ disposition. By cultivating and [re]shaping feelings and thoughts, the intellect and the imagination, das Dichterische enacts the harmonious alliance between these powers. For a brief moment, the queen and the prince were able to join their efforts expressing their agreement. In terms of human physiology, the “close correspondence (the neural connection) between the two natures, […] forms the basis of the communication of feelings.”663 We derive pleasure from this momentary sensation of perfection. Touched by Elizabeth’s discreet, sympathetic manner, Carlos responds to her under the impact of his emotions, under the Mitteilung der

Empfindungen (NA 20:68). Such poetic sensibility links the prince with the naïve disposition of Goethe’s Egmont. Nevertheless, due to his traumatic childhood,

Schiller’s naïve figure Don Carlos never had a chance to enjoy the prodigious state of

662 Über Bürgers Gedichte. “Der Dichter soll uns in eine wohltätige harmonische Stimmung versetzen“ (NA 22: 256). „Die Poesie in ihrer vollkommensten Ausbildung muss uns, wie die Tonkunst, mächtig fassen, zugleich aber, wie die Plastik, mit ruhiger Klarheit umgeben.“ In Hans Knudsen, 19. 663 Vergl. Friedrich Schiller, „Physiognomik der Empfindungen.“ Versuch über den Zusammenhang der tierischen Natur des Menschen mit seiner Geistigen. „Eben diese innige Korrespondenz der beiden Naturen stürzt auf die ganze Lehre der Physiognomik. Durch eben diesen Nervenzusammenhand, welcher, wie wir hören, bei der Mitteilung der Empfindungen zum Grunde liegt, werden die geheimsten Rührungen der Seele auf der Außenseite des Körpers geoffenbart“ (NA 20:68). Also, Translation originates in D/R, 279. 330

a child. The prince never knew what it meant to be loved by a father or a mother. As a result of this injury, Carlos is desperately yearning for an emotional bond, whether to his father, to the queen, or to the Marquis. In his vain longing for love and cure, Don

Carlos is worthy of our sympathies.

Does not Schiller say with respect to the pastoral tradition (Idylle) that each of us can remember of the prodigious state of childhood? Ja, jeder einzelne Mensch hat sein Paradies, sein goldenes Alter, dessen er sich, […] mit mehr oder weniger

Begeisterung erinnert (NSD, FA 8: 771). Schiller’s titular figure Don Carlos is, however, an exception. In his longing for love, he never experienced das verlorene

Glück der Natur (NSD, FA 8: 724). Schiller suggests that Carlos needs not to return to the simplicity of childhood. He labels such desire a state of Bedürftigkeit

(“beggarliness”; FA 8: 775). Such attitudes would mean playing seriously with the heart while disregarding the work of intelligence. In alluding to the traumatic memories of prince’s childhood, Schiller appears to suggest that under the impact of his magnificent encounter with the queen, Carlos should seize the moment in order to labor towards a höhere Harmonie (“a higher / elevated harmony” FA 8: 775). As the tragedy of the crown price unfolds, however, we learn that the opposite is true. Carlos is not up to the task at hand. Even before his final tragedy sets in, under the burdens of despotism, Carlos is unable to recollect all his mental powers that would be necessary to insure the success of his undertaking in support of Flanders. His inability to do so thus amounts to an indictment of the status quo such that the poetic becomes political. 331

5.6 MARQUIS POSA, THE PROUD AMBASSADOR OF HUMANKIND664

Question: How does Schiller show that both the beautiful and the sublime are necessary to ennoble human character?

Inspite of all his thwarted efforts, Carlos earns our respect as a conscious and sensitive human being. Shortly, after the significant encounter with the queen, Carlos and Posa join forces. During their exchange, the prince acknowledges to Posa that on his way to becoming a king of highest integrity, his deepest need was to know that his friend believed in him. Posa hesitates. Did the prince have the necessary valor to adhere to the highest degree of moral integrity? Könnt ich / Sie innig lieben Karl, wenn ich Sie / fürchten müsste? (1.8, 977-79). As the passage bellow demonstrates, in

Posa’s view there was always a possibility that the prince could turn out as a corrupt emperor. Guided by his noble-minded ideas, Posa insists that the actions of the ideal emperor must show character.665

MARQUIS. Der Traum ist göttlich Doch wird es nie verfliegen? Ist mein Karl Auch seiner so gewiss, den Reizungen Der unumschränkten Majestät tu trotzen? (1.9, 943-46) […] --Die Freundschaft Ist wahr und kühn—die kranke Majestät Hält ihren fürchterlichen Strahl nicht aus. Den Trotz des Bürgers würden Sie nicht dulden Ich den S t o l z des Bürgers. (1.9, 965-69)

664 Compare Schiller, Über den Grund des Vergnügens an tragischen Gegenständen. „Das Gefühl des Erhabenen besteht einerseits aus dem Gefühl unsrer Ohnmacht und Begrenzung, einen Gegenstand zu umfassen, anderseits aber aus dem Gefühl unsrer Übermacht, welche vor keinen Grenzen erschrickt, und dasjenige sich geistig unterwirft, dem unsere sinnliche Kräfte unterliegen“ (NA 20: 137). 665 See Alt, II, 91. „Schillers […] den Begriff des Erhabenen von seiner rhetorischen bzw. naturästhetischer Bedeutung […] entschieden löst und auf menschliche Geisteshaltung überträgt. [Wie Longinus rechtfertigt,] dem Individuum selbst gegeben sei, durch eine „groȕe Gesinnung“, Charakter zu zeigen“ (89). 332

Whereupon, Carlos asks his friend to devote himself to the task of “schreckenloser

Hüter meiner Tugend” (“fearless protector” of his royal virtue, 1.8, 999). By renewing their vows as equals, the friends renounce the forces that might corrupt their pursuit of establishing the ideal emperor on Philipp’s throne. Posa represents noble minded ideals with respect to human freedom. Soon, however, his pride gets in the way of his own rescue efforts on behalf of Flanders’ war of independence. The irony of the situation is that, while Posa’s pride was founded upon the highest moral standing, as a consequence of it he entangles himself in courtly intrigues. As Alt submits, „ the hero brings upon himself his misfortune as a result of his consequent ethical conviction“ (

“aufgrund seiner konsequenten sittlichen Überzeugung, in ein sensible durchlebtes

Unglück gerät,“ Alt II, 91).666 Furthermore, Posa is brought low because of his error in judgment. He fails to share the details of his plans with the prince. As a result, his rescue plans for Flanders fail.

Schiller stages the main point of conflict (punctum saliens) in a very subtle manner. As subsequent events reveal, Philipp’s counselors accuse the queen and prince of adulterous intimacy. Philipp is in desperate need of a trustworthy human being who could tell him the truth about the queen’s affairs. Searching for a man of upright conduct, Posa’s impressive figure catches Philipp’s attention. The Marquis

666 See “Das Ziel der Tragödie beruht folglich auch bei Schiller, ähnlich wie bei Lessing, in der moralischen Wirkung; ihr Anspruchsprofil aber ist deutlich breiter gefasst, das ihr eingeräumte geistige Potential ausgeweitet worden. Den ersten Schritt zur moralischen Erkenntnis bildet in Schillers Tragödienkonzept die sinnliche Anregung des Publikums. [Schiller folgt] der schon von Aristoteles geforderten Festlegung des tragischen Helden auf einen mittleren Typus, der weder Märtyrer (die „reine Intelligenz“)[…] noch Weichling (als nur sinnlich disponierte Figur) sein darf, sondern die Doppelnatur des Zuschauers gerade deshalb anspricht, weil er im Zeichen moralischer Überlegenheit, womöglich erst aufgrund seiner konsequenten sittlichen Überzeugung, in ein sensibel durchlebtes Unglück gerät „ (NA 20: 168). 333

responds with amazement: Mich will er haben? Mich? — Das kann nicht sein. / Sie irren sich im Namen—Und was will / Er denn von mir (3.8)? The meeting in the audience chamber between these two central figures features the longest speech in

Schiller’s play (3.10). Posa’s passionate plea for Flanders’ freedom and change of governance is determined by the ardor of his heart. Geben Sie / Die unnatürliche

Vergöttrung auf / Die uns vernichtet. Werden Sie uns Muster /Des Ewigen und

Wahren. […] Geben Sie / Was Sie uns nahmen, wieder. […] – […] Geben Sie /

Gedankenfreiheit (3.10, 3198- 3214). Posa’s frank and unselfish speech667 visibly moves Philipp.668 During the course of this scene, Philipp’s contemplative and thoughtful posture shows that he is paying attention. Neu zum wenigsten ist dieser

Ton! (3084). Etwas Wahres / Find ich in diesen Worten (3.10, 3108). At the pinnacle of his speech, Posa fervently asks: Wer teilt mit Ihnen Harmonie? (3.10, 3121)—Such unexpected evocation of harmony takes the king by surprise: Bei Gott, / Er greift in meine Seele! (3.10, 3120). Enhanced by this dramatic effect, Schiller delivers a strike by revealing that Philipp refuses to embrace the ideals of Menschenrechte.

In classical rhetoric, the purpose of a speech delivered in grand style rendered passionate by the heart’s desires, was to please the hearer in order to persuade him.

By the means of his fervent plea, it Posa’s pride pleases Philipp and not his noble- minded ideas. Again, Posa’s pride is what impresses Philipp.

667 Alt, II. Die aus dem ersten nahchristlichen Jahrhundert stammende (fälschlich Longin zugeordnete) Schrift Peri hypsous (Über das Erhabene) erörtert ihn unter Bezug auf Rhetorik und Naturästhetik. „Erhaben“ ist ein besonderer Stile, der – dem Genus Grande zugehörig –bildreich und getragen ausfällt, das Ziel der Gemütserregung verfolgt, in hohem Maße die Leidenschaften der Zuhörer mobilisieren möchte“ (88). 668 Orator ought to speak in such a way as to instruct, to please, and to persuade. […] The listener must be pleased if his attention is to be held. So he must be persuaded if he is to be moved to action. (466) 334

KÖNIG. Diesen Stolz Ertrag ich nicht. Ihr seid von heute an In meinen Diensten – Keine Einwendung! Ich will es haben. (1. Akt, 10. Auftritt, 3299-3330).

As I contend, it was Posa’s bold and spirited pride that attracted Philipp.

Marquis Posa’s courageous and upright disposition fueled Philipp’s confidence: Ihr werdet Gerecht sein. […] Erforschrt das Herz der Königin (3.10, 3345-47). Without further ado, Philipp wooed Posa into his service. Although Posa never sought this honor, he was delayed in realizing that he had been manipulated into playing a part in

Philipp’s scheme, as if he were the mighty ruler’s string instrument: Zu Ihrem

Saitenspiel herunterstürzen (3.10, 3118). The problem was that the cavalier’s

Empfindungsvermögen was not able to hear the discordant tone in Phillips’ manipulative proposal.669

Schiller reveals here as well that his poetic calling was to ennoble human character. In the attention he devotes to reflect on the characters of Posa and Philipp, he shows that the urgent need of his age was to refine human beings’ capacity of feeling through training, i.e. Ausbildung des Empfindungsvermögens. Not merely by training our heart to be sensitive, we might gain better insights into how life functions, but also for the very reason that higher level of insight, i.e. Einsicht would inspire

669 According to Martinson, Schiller’s first medical dissertation “recaptures some of the arguments presents by Moses Mendelssohn in his Letters Concerning the Sensations. For the philosophical physiologist, however, the analogy between music and physiology is much stronger than in Mendelssohn’s work. […] The clavier plays and essential role in Schiller’s description of the nature of human physiology” (HT 23). By the analogy of two pianos, Schiller establishes that first the sensuous organ “nerve spirit” (Nervengeist”) registers the material idea, whereupon the brain (“Denkorgan”) responses to the stimulus, nevertheless, in the form of an echo. The softer response of Posa’s brain to the discordant sound of Philipp’s manipulative actions did not register with the cavalier right the way. Only later is he able to register his displeasure in the manner in which Philipp made him a handwork of his own tricks (my emphasis]. 335

“improvement.”670 By counteracting the one-sided rational development of human beings, Schiller asserts that poesy’s aim was to form the entire human character.

In his first medical dissertation titled Philosophie der Physiologie (1779),

Schiller employs the metaphor of the string instrument („Saitenspiel“, NA 20: 29).

The medical student claims that sensations are distinct. By reflecting upon the operation of the mind and soul, Schiller holds that it is through feelings that our soul registers the improvement of the deterioration of our own state of being. By envisioning nature’s powers as many strings sounding together (“zusammenlautend”), i.e., sounding as a beautiful string instrument, “alle Kräfte wirken, ineinander wirken, gleich Saiten eines Instruments” (NA 20: 10), Schiller suggests that the experience of harmony is a pleasurable experience. At the same time discordant sounds evoke displeasure. :DVPLFKHUJ|W]WQHQQLFKPHORGLVFKXQGVFK|QKlȕOLFKXQG unmelodisch, was mich verdrieȕW(“What I enjoy, I call melodic and beautiful; what I dislike, ugly and discordant“(D/R 164; NA 20: 29). Hearing harmony not only makes us feel good but, by its magnificent effect we improve ourselves. Schiller asserts that our pleasure at hearing the beautiful sounds of a string music is a sign of an harmonious alliance between “Denken und Empfinden” (NA 20: 28). In this sense,

“the metaphor of the string instrument assumes symbolic significance as nature’s operation” (HT 24).671 With respect to the king’s assignment, to be sure, the Marquis

670 Reginald Snell, 50. 671 In reference to Friedrich Schiller, Rede über Güte. „Schiller exhibits his love of happiness („Liebe zur Glückseeligkeit”) and enthusiasm for endless, Magnificent Nature (³XQHQGOLFKHJURȕH1DWXU´ +HUHhe considers nature as masterfully knitted together (“so meisterhaft zusammengefüget”) through divine wisdom. […] Through wisdom, God’s thousand vibrating strings sound melodiously ( “Durch sie [Gottes Weisheit] klingen melodisch zusammen seine tausend zitternde Saiten!”) (NA 20: 8). The eternal,unchanging laws („ewige unwandelbare Gesetze“) 336

had certain reservations about the positive outcome of his undertakings: Kann ich es mit einer / Erfüllten Hoffnung?—Dann ist dieser Tag /Der schönste meines Lebens

(3.10, 3350-3351). Nevertheless, it takes a while for Posa to register his displeasure at having to play Philipp’s string instrument for a capricious purpose.

By social standing, Posa was a cavalier.672 By asking Posa to warrant

Elizabeth’s weibliche Tugend (3.10, 3333), Philipp challenged the honor of the cavalier.673 The king acted “aufgrund seiner [Posa’s] sittlichen Überzeugung,” as Alt proposes (II, 91). Elizabeth takes also a note of Posa’s “Stolz.” First, she misunderstands Posa’s motives with respect to his final act. Mögen tausend Herzen brechen, / Was kümmert Sie es, wenn sich Ihr Stolz nur weidet (What matters to you that thousands of human hearts break, as long as you are able to nurture your own pride, 5.22, 4383-84). Soon, however, Elizabeth senses the urgency of the moment.

Whereupon, Posa confesses that he has been manipulated. He acknowledges that in his rapture, he had sold his most beautiful dreams to the mightiest despot of the world.

Philipp was a tricky player who knew how to manipulate the Marquis in support of his own agenda. As Posa exclaims: Denn wer, / Wer hieß auf einen zweifelhaften Wurf

/ mich alles setzen? Alles? (5.21, 4218-21). The Marquis also acknowledges that his vanity was flattered by his chances to present his ardent cause:

MARQUIS: --Wer ist von Eitelkeit so frei Um nicht für seien Glauben gern zu werben?- Gesetzt, ich ginge damit um, den meinen / Auf einen Thron zu setzen?

(NA 20: 4) not only establish order but also melody, or harmony (“Wohlklang”) (HT 22). 672 Der kühne Maltaser, (a member of the Order of the Knights of Malta), in Don Carlos, 3.7, 2898-99. 673 Maria Carolina Foi, 2013. 337

(4.3, 3394-97).

At his last meeting with Elizabeth, Posa realizes that it was a mistake to compete for the king’s favor in support of his mission for Flanders. In the meantime, the absolutist monarch turned into a slaying insect, a blasphemer of freedom—all in the name of a better wisdom i.e. des Staubes Weisheit (inquisitor).

In the course of his confession, we observe a turning point in Posa’s disposition. Now, it is Posa’s turn to show Philipp that, in spite of all his manipulations, he is able to warrant Elizabeth’s weibliche Tugend in a much more splendid manner than Philipp ever could have imagined (3.10, 3333). Posa delivers a profoundly moving speech, perhaps one of the most heart-rending in the history of

German drama.674 Dieter Borchmeyer observes that a ‚pathetic‘ address represents an appeal to the emotions, its purpose is to enable the audience to identify with the hero’s misfortune. However, by cultivating and [re]shaping Posa’s feelings and thoughts, Schiller moves beyond the Aristotelian tradition. While the indispensable power of the theater rests in its Darstellungscharakter, the question is, how the

German dramaturge portrays that Posa’s moving speech ennobles his character.

Posa starts out in a sad elegiac tone. Ich wollt’ ihn führen zum Vortrefflichen, /

Zur höchsten Schönheit wollt’ ich ihn erheben: (4.21, 4338-39). „My purpose was to lead him to achieve virtuous excellence and a beauteous character, but my mortality denies me to live for this goal.” In placing importance on the cultivation of Posa’s

674 Compare Dieter Borchmeyer, 2001, “[…] die Pathosszenen des Abschieds von der Königin und von Carlos, […] welche offenkundig auf die effektive Identifikation des Publikums mit Posa zielt, auf die tragische Rührung (356). The question is, how Schiller shapes this scene in order to ennoble Posa’s character. 338

feelings, what matters to the dramaturge Schiller is that his tragic hero earns our respect as a sensitive and compassionate human being. Under the burden of caring for

Carlos, the Marquis entrusts Elizabeth with his most fervent concerns:

MARQUIS: (Here, Here—here—on this holy altar Into the heart of his queen lay I Down my last precious and valuable legacy, Here will he find it if I am not any more—) (He turns away, his tears suffocate his voice.)

MARQUIS: Hier, Hier—hier—auf diesem heiligen Altare, Im Herzen seiner Königin leg ich Mein letztes kostbares Wemächtnis nieder, Hier find er’s wenn ich nicht mehr bin— (Er wendet sich ab, Tränen ersticken seine Stimme.) (4.21, 4265-68).

As an allied partner, Elizabeth should preserve the ideals of Menschenglück (human happiness). Marquis begins with a solemn address: “Tell him!”

MARQUIS. […] Sagen Sie Ihm, dass er für die Träume seiner Jugend Soll Achtung tragen, wenn er Mann sein wird, Nicht öffnen soll dem tötenden Insekte Gerühmter besserer Vernunft das Herz. Der zarten Götterblume—dass er nicht Soll irre werden, wenn des Staubes Weisheit Begeisterung, die Himmelstochter, lästert. Ich hab es ihm zuvor gesagt – (2.21, 4289-4297)

Entreating to nurture his sense of beauty and harmony through the sweet sounding melodious instrument, Posa cautions the prince to take care of the most beautiful dreams of his youth and not to easily turn them over to the slaying insect (“dem tötenden Insekte” 4290). If his deepest desire is to prevent barbarism, he must 339

preserve the purity of his dreams in his heart. Exhibiting his love of human happiness, the Marquis exclaims:

MARQUIS. Und sagen Sie ihm, dass Ich Menschenglück auf seine Seele lege, Dass ich es sterbend von ihm fordre—fordre! […] Der König schenkte mir sein Herz er nannte Mich seinen Sohn—Ich führe seine Siegel Und seine Alba sind nicht mehr. (5.21, 4296—34)

After establishing himself as the message bearer of human freedom, the Marquis majestically delivers his message: “The king adopted me and gave me his heart.

Therefore, I am the bearer of his royal signet” (4302-03). In reminding the prince not to wander away from the sweet harmony that slumbers in the string instrument,675 the

Marquis magnificently pronounces that the fountain of the arts is freedom. […] denn die Kunst ist die Tochter der Freiheit.676 Alt interprets this poetic dictum as follows:

When Schiller claims that the art is the daughter of freedom, he makes „the experience of the beautiful perceptable to our mind’s eye as the innerworld of freedom. („Schiller [erklärt] die Erfahrung des Schönen zum Medium einer innerweltlichen Freiheit des Menschen […] (Alt, II, 101). In nurturing in the heart the desire for the excellent character, the pulsating truth of poetry, the sweet harmony slumbers in the melodious string music.

MARQUIS. Gehört die süȕe Harmonie, die in Dem Saitenspiele schlummert, seinem Käufer, Der er mit taubem Ohr bewacht? Er hat

675 As we are reminded here, the beauteous sounds of a string music is a sign of harmonious alliance between “Denken und Empfinden” (NA 20:28) 676 ÄE 2, FA 8: 559. 340

Das Recht erkauft, in Trümmern es zu schlagen, Doch nicht die Kunst, dem Silberton zu rufen Und in des Liedes Wonne zu zerschmelzen. Die Wahrheit ist vorhanden für den Weisen, Die Schönheit für ein fühlend Herz. Sie beide Gehören füreinander. Diesen Glauben Soll mir kein feiges Vorurteil zerstören. (5.21, 4355-65)

In leaving behind for the prince his legacy, Posa reminds that the task of art was to nurture our sense of beauty and truth by the sweet sounding melodious string music

(die süße Harmonie, die in / Dem Saitenspiele schlummert) that Goethe recalls in his

Faust, II, as “ein reizendes, reinmelodisches Saitenspiel” (Faust, II, Act 3, 18.1,

271).677 Posa’s love of freedom, refined by the sweet harmony of music, ennobles his character, thereby creating the beauty which is of the complete (whole) human being, in spite of his tragic flaws. Queen Elizabeth’s amiable character represents grace

(Anmut). Significantly, the truth of human potential may be known and beauty revealed in spite of or, rather, in the very face of the realities of human struggle.

By giving humankind the idea of das Schöne, the symbol of the alliance between Geist and Sinn, Schiller represents that sensation is bound to thought. By affording the imaginative experience of freedom, beauty is a guide to one’s higher nature.

So wie die Anmut der Ausdruck einer schönen Seele ist, so ist Würde der Ausdruck einer erhabenen Gesinnung? (Über Anmut und Würde, FA 8: 373). The scene between Elizabeth and Posa is reminiscent of the purpose of

Schiller’s poetry. By cultivating and [re]shaping feelings and thoughts, the

677 Quoted in “Münchner Ausgabe,“ --- volume and page number. Also in Dieter Borchmeyer, 2002, „Zustand des Gemüts.“ 265. 341

intellect and the imagination, Schiller’s “proud poem” wants to affect the human heart and the powers of human will.678 Sagen Sie ihm, […] dass er nicht / Soll irre werden, wenn des Staubes Weisheit / Begeisterung, die

Himmelstochter, lästert (4292-94). In Schiller’s view, it was through the experience of the beautiful that a sensitive heart was able to discern the innere

Wahrheit at the heart of a work of art.679 “Die Wahrheit ist vorhanden für den

Weisen, / Die Schönheit für ein fühlend Herz“ (4362-63). By enacting the harmonious alliance between one’s mental powers, Schiller’s Don Carlos guides humankind to find one’s sublime nature. Schiller’s artistic posture is inevitably tied to the mental activity [Geistestäigkeit] that his experience of the beautiful encouraged, nevertheless. He thereby sought to build a bridge between actuality and the pursuit of the ideal human character.

When Elizabeth comprehends the manner in which the Marquis seeks to warrant her female virtues, her first reaction is to resist his request. “Did you think that I could deny my womanhood? Did you think that it was possible to objectify me in a manner whereupon my virtue would conceal the prince’s weapon? Did you ever consider how much our hearts would benefit if our virtue was ennobled by passion?”

678 ÄE 9, „[…] gib der Welt, auf die du wirkst, die Richtung zum Guten. […] wenn du ihre Gedanken zum Notwendigen und Ewigen erhebst, […] handelnd und bildend, indem inneren, nicht bloȕ in dem äuȕern Menschen[…], dass nicht nur der Gedanke sondern auch der Sinn ihre Erscheinung […] von der Wahrheit liebend ergreife“ (FA: 8: 586). 679 See Schiller’s letter to Caroline von Beulwitz of 10 December 1788. “[…] die innere Wahrheit, die ich die philosophische und Kunstfreiheit nennen will, welche in ihrer ganzen Fülle im Roman oder in einer poetischen Darstellung herrschen muss, […] Die innere Übereinstimmung, die Wahrheit wird gefühlt und eingestanden, ohne dass die Begebenheit wirklich vorgefallen sein muss“ (NA 25:154). 342

(5.21, 4345-6). And indeed, Elizabeth rightly observes that there is an enormous gap between human experience and the ideals that the Marquis represents.

MARQUIS. Für all Weiber, nur für eines nicht. Auf eines schwöre ich—Oder sollten Sie, Sie der Begierden edelster sich schämen, Der Heldentugend Schöpferin zu sein? (4.21, 4349-52)

Stamped by his sublime purpose, the Marquis will not fall for Elizabeth’s appeal to self-interest. While the queen’s proposition could be most true for all women, Elizabeth is an exception. Die Wahrheit ist vorhanden für den Weisen, / Die

Schönheit für ein fühlend[es] Herz. Sie beide / Gehören füreinander. Since

Elizabeth’s heart is fine-tuned by the sweet harmony of the beauteous string instrument of Nature, she will know the truth. By listening to nature’s harmony within and without, Elizabeth will know how to keep her physical and intellectual-spiritual faculties finely tuned.

As Schiller suggest through his poem Die Künstler, truth is accessible to a heart that is sensitive and alive. In highly esteeming Elizabeth, whose strength is her inner freedom, Marquis holds that Elizabeth will be rewarded by the pleasures of fostering the desire for excellence of character in the heart of the prince. According to

Buchwald, in the Carlos-Dichtung, the queen represents Schiller’s ideal human character. She expresses nature. On account of the harmonious alliance between her thoughts and feelings, she is free to follow the dictates of her heart.“680 Schiller

680 See Buchwald „In der Carlos=Dichtung wird sein [Schiller’s] Ideal von der Königin verkörpert. Sie ist gut und makellos von Natur und darf unbedingt der Stimme ihres Herzens folgen” (444). 343

explains: Ohne das Schöne würde zwischen unsrer Naturbestimmung und unsrer

Vernunftbestimmung ein immerwährender Streit sein (Über das Erhabene, FA 8:

838). By winning the queen over to excellence, Posa receives the promise that he desperately needs in order to quiet his concerns about advancing the prince as the glorious successor to the throne.

The scene is reminiscent of John Donne’s proud poem “Valediction:

Forbidding Morning,”681 in which two lovers say farewell. Unlike carnal lovers whose desires are communicated through their senses alone, Donne’s lovers are refined by the kind of love that is inner-connected by their minds. As the result of the reciprocity of their souls and the harmonious tone of their spiritual and intellectual natures, the lovers are able to endure physical separation, as well as experience growth, i.e. expansion, as a consequence of their valediction.

But we by a love so much refined, That our selves know not what it is, Inter-assured of the mind, Care less, eyes, lips, and hands to miss.

Our two souls therefore, which are one, Though I must go, endure not yet A breach, but an expansion, Like gold to airy thinness beat.

As her valediction to the man whom she highly esteemed for the nobility of his mindset, Elizabeth promises that her heart will be the only guide of her love for

Carlos.

KÖNIGIN. Mein Herz, Versprech ich Ihnen, soll allein und ewig

681John Donne, 38. 344

Der Richter meiner Liebe sein. (5.21, 4371-74)

Beauty symbolizes the interconnectedness of Geist and Sinn and the interior world of freedom. The experience of beauty refines the inclinations of our heart and ensures the interplay of our spiritual and physical networks.

Borchmeyer proposes that Schiller’s melodious string instrument influenced the development of romantic music. As he argues, we are often told that the fundamental roots of Western visual arts and the music aesthetic of Goethe and

Schiller are grounded in the ancient world. However, when, in Faust II,Goethe references the music of the ancient Greece, he describes it as a cosmic, all- encompassing experience of sounds. „Da […] „All Alle“ anstimmen. (Faust II, 18.1,

232). While Goethe conjures sounds that are foreign to the western preconceptions of music, recent research attempts to reconstruct the music of ancient Greece.682 For his part, however, Schiller read the moving stories of Plutarch and Homer that also incorporated passages that described the effect of music. As Borchmeyer advocates, the music of the Western World stirs the soul and is heartfelt. For example, as

Borchmeyer illustrates, in Faust II, the stage instruction requires a music that sounds like a beautiful and charming melodious string music. ‚Ein reizendes, rein melodisches Saitenspiel‘ (Faust, II, Act 3, 18.1, 271). Music must flow from the heart and affect the heart. „Denn es muss von Herzen gehen, /Was auf Herzen wirken soll“

(Faust, II, 3. Apell der Phorkyas). Music passes from one heart to the other, from the heart of the composer [dramatist] to the heart of the listener [audience]. Beethoven

682 Armand D'Angour. 345

expressed similar sentiments in an autograph of his Missa solemnis, when he wrote

„Von Herzen! Möge es wieder zu Herzen gehen.“683 All these references echo

Schiller’s melodious string instrument that produces sweet harmony in the heart,

“VȕH+DUPRQLHGLHLQ'HP6DLWHQVSLHOHVFKOXPPHUW” (5.21). Goethe reminds his audience and readers in his final work Faust that poetic truth lies in the sweet harmony of the melodious string music.684

Schiller’s Don Carlos is foundational to our understanding of how romantic music affects the heart and the intellect. With respect to the play, however, it is necessary to reemphasize that in Schiller’s view, poesy that flows from the heart to the heart has the power to influence human actions. Sie soll das Herz treffen, weil sie aus dem Herzen floss […] auf den Menschen (Über das Pathetische, FA 8: 449). In developing his ideas of the Gesamtkunstwerk, Wagner observes that, similar to music and the sublime, poesy affects our disposition as an outer source, “die das Gemüt von

DXȕHQQDFKLQQHQZHLVW´685 and, from there, further develops our intellectual-spiritual faculties.

683 Borchmeyer, 2002, 266. 684 See 1) Adolf Bernhard Marx, 1979, Ludwig van Beethoven: Leben und Schaffen. Marx records that Beethoven had three sources in mind before he decided for Schiller’s poem “Ode to Joy” for his Ninth Symphony. Beethovern wrote: “Seit einiger Zeit bring’ ich mich nicht mehr leicht zum Schreiben. Ich sitze und sinne und sinne, ich hab’s lange, aber es will nicht auf’s Papier” (263). In Beethoven’s sketchbook was later written: “Lasst uns das Lied des unsterblichen Schiller singen” (264). Similarly to Schiller, Beethoven grand chorus haralds the ideal of humane humanity. 2) Franz Liszt’s artistic posture was guided by the conviction that „Musik […sowohl] als eine Sprache als auch die höchste bXȕerungsform der Poesie anzusehen sei […] Musik sei als Sprache des Gefühls die einzige universale Sprache der Menschheit“(Detlef Altenburg, 1989, 1). During his Weimar years (1849-1861), Liszt’s compositions herald the magnificient force of poesy (der „seltene Reiz“ der Poesie). Among other poems, Schiller’s Ideale found its musical expression in Liszt' twelfth Symphonic Poem. The symphonic poem premiered under Liszt’s directon in the Hoftheater on 5 August 1857. This was a dedicational concert for the statues of Goethe- und Schiller and Wieland in Weimar. 685 Wagner. Gesammelte Schriften und Dichtungen, 110. 346

5.6 STAGING OF THE SUBLIME686

At their parting, Elizabeth wants to understand the spiritual-emotional motives behind the Marquis actions. She asks again and again, “Marquis, is there a possibility to save your life? Not even with my help? You understand that I have courage” (4.21,

4388-4394). Again and again Posa’s answer is no. Keine Rettung sei möglich—

Elizabeth explains that she cannot bear witnessing this sublime moment.687 In shying away from the Marquis, the proud ambassador of human dignity, Elizabeth covers her face and asks him to leave. Grace and dignity denote two very different mental dispositions. On the one hand, as Schiller comments here, without the experience of the beautiful, humankind would experience constant struggle between sense and reason. On the other hand, without the sublime, the beautiful would keep us under such spell that we would forget about our human dignity.688 Our experience of beauty creates harmonious alliance between our mental powers. However, our sensation of completeness in the sensuous world would make us forget about the dignity of our calling to a sensitive and intellectual person guided by high moral standards.

KÖNIGIN (verlässt ihn und verhüllt das Gesicht). Gehen Sie! Ich schätze keinen Mann mehr. MARQUIS (in der heftigsten Bewegung von ihr niedergeworfen).

686 Compare Alt, II, „Die erhabene Wirkung der Tragödie bezeichnet nicht nur die unter den Bedingungen des Leidens gegebene Möglichkeit der sittlichen Autonomie, sondern zugleich die besondere Funktions des künstlerischen Mediums, das Freiheit in ihrer konkreten Erscheinung vor Augen führt. Die darin sich offenbarende Hochschätzung der ästhetischen Erfahrung bildet die eigene Signatur der klassischen Kunstlehre Schillers“ (95). 687 Über das Erhabene. Die Fähigkeit, das Erhabene zu empfinden, ist also eine der herrlichsten Anlagen in der Menschennatur, die sowohl wegen ihres Ursprunges aus dem selbstständigen Denk-und Willens-Vermögen unsre Achtung, als wegen ihres Einflusses auf den moralischen Menschen die vollkommenste Entwicklung verdient“ (FA 8: 838). 688 Über das Erhabene. „Ohne das Schöne würde zwischen unsrer Naturbesimmung und unsrer Vernunftbestimmung ein immerwährender Streit sein. […] Ohne das Erhabene würde uns die Schönheit unsrer Würde vergessen machen (FA 8: 838-39). 347

Königin! --O Gott! das Leben ist doch schön. (Er springt auf und geht schnell fort. Die Königin in ihr Kabinett). (4.21, 4394-97)

By her words and physical expressions, Elizabeth expresses her sorrow and disappointment in the final actions of the Marquis (die Sie / Erhaben nennen, 4.21,

4383-4),689 whom she immensely admired. First she abandons him. Then, she veils her face. “Go! No male can I regard anymore.” At this sublime moment, the Marquis is moved to pay his last tribute to the beautiful, and thereby to life itself. Overcome by mixed feelings of violent defeat and awe,690 the Marquis is provoked to bow down before the queen, whereupon he vehemently exclaims, “O, after all, life is immensely beautiful!” Finally, after quickly jumping to his feet, the Marquis leaves one way and the queen goes to the other direction. Schiller uses here poetic utterance and description of bodily movements as artistic medium in order to allow us to comprehend both visually and intuitively Posa’s Würde (moral self-reliance), as well as Elizabeth’s Anmut (grace, beauty). As an additional point of significance, the way

Elizabeth and the Marquis move away from each other at the climactic moment also

689 Compare Alt, II, Der Terminus des Erhabenen gerät im 18. Jahrhundert Zug um Zug zum Komplementärbegriff des Schönen. Er bezeichnet jene Erscheinungen der Natur, die im Gemüt des Menschen wechselvolle Empfindungen freisetzen. Die Majestät der Gebirgswelt, die Schatten der Nacht, die bedrohlichen Wirkungen von Weite und Gröȕe des Horizonts wecken das gemischte Gefühlt des ‚delightful horror‘, […] Derart avanciert das Erhabene in Ergänzung des Schönen zur zweiten bedeutenden Kategorie der modernen Ästhetik, deren systematische Begründung die Kunsttheorie der Aufklärung geleistet hat“ (88-89). 690Über das Erhabene. Das Gefühl des Erhabenen ist ein gemischtes Gefühl. Es ist eine Zusammensetzung von Wehsein (Schauer), […] und von Frohsein (Entzücken) steigen kann. Diese Verbindung zweier widersprechender Empfindungen in einem einzigen Gefühl bewiest unsere moralische Selbstständigkeit auf eine unwiderlegliche Weise“ (FA 8: 826). 348

shows that, due to experiencing antithetic tension,691 a chasm opens between Anmut und Würde, i.e. that of grace and moral freedom.692 The moral precepts of the

Marquis exceed the physical capabilities that Anmut represents. Schiller’s artistic posture is inevitably tied to the mental activity [Geistestätigkeit] that his experience of the beautiful encouraged. By giving to humankind the idea of das Schöne, the poet- dramaturge sought to build a bridge between actuality and his pursuit of the ideal human character. Such artistic posture goes beyond the limitation of the sensuous reality of the beautiful.

Evoked by the magnitude of greatness, sublime emotions are boundless and hard to contain. Nevertheless, as Immanuel Kant submitted, our bodily movements and verbal interjections reveal changes taking place in our mental disposition: “das

Gefühl des Erhabenen [führt] eine mit der Beurteilung des Gegenstandes verbundene

Bewegung des Gemüts als seinen Charakter bei sich.”693 Even though the farewell scene between Elizabeth and the Marquis Posa offers various interpretational possibilities, the evocation of the sublime appeals to both our senses and moral consciousness. “Sinnliche Empfindungen und moralisches Bewußtsein finden sich, so

Schillers Überzeugung, durch die Tragödie gleichermassen angesprochen“ (Alt, II,

691 See “In der Würde nehmlich wird uns ein Beispiel der Unterordnung des Sinnlichen unter das Sittliche vorgehalten, welchem nachzuahmen für uns Gesetz, zugleich für unser physisches Vermmögen übersteigend ist” (FA 8: 387). 692 Compare Alt, II. „Der Schrift Über das Erhabene folgend „das Erhabene müsse im Programm der ästhetischen Erziehung des Menschen als dem Schönen komplementäres Element seinen festen Platz erhalten. […] Die entscheidende Differenz beider Bereiche kommt, wie die Schrift ausführt, anhand der Verhältnisse zwischen Sinnlichkeit und Vernunft zutage, dass beim Schönen harmonisch ausfällt, beim Erhabenen jedoch durch eine deutliche Gegensatzspannung geprägt scheint, unter deren Einfluss Erfahrung und moralische Freiheit auseinandertreten“ (96). 693 Immanuel Kant, 1924, “Von der Einteilung einer Untersuchung des Gefühls des Erhabenen.” Kritik der Urteilskraft, 91. 349

90). In order to be able to implement the aesthetic education of the whole human being by means of the drama, Schiller understood that it was necessary to expand the experience of the beautiful with the sublime, the sublime being a sentiment that strikes the whole magnitude of the human character [“die Empfindungsfähigkeit des menschlichen Herzens nach dem ganzen Umfang unsrer Bestimmung”, FA 8: 838].694

By evoking the sublime, the dramaturge appeals to the moral consciousness of the audience. In the end, Schiller is interested in the manner in which an art form appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom that is observable.

In my discussion of Schiller’s representation of grace (Anmut) and dignity

(Würde), my purpose was to show how Schiller advances his cause as a poet- dramaturge. By highlighting the distinctive qualities of beautiful forms in the light of the practice of life, I demonstrated that, for Schiller, the beautiful form complies both with the inner necessity of the object (self-determining) and at the same time is selbsbestimmt (self-legislative). By setting the powers of imagination free, beautiful form governs the beholder’s attention to contemplate the subject matter (Inhalt), regardless of how seductive the material (Stoff) might be.695

694 Alt, II. Schillers letzte größere Abhandlung zur Tragödietheorie, die den Titel Über das Erhabene trägt, entstand vermutlich zwischen 1793 und 1796, wurde jedoch erst 1801 im dritten Band der Kleineren prosaischen Schriften publiziert. Die entscheidende Differenz beider Bereiche (das Schöne und das Erhabene) kommt wie die Schrift ausführt, anhand der Verhältnisse zwischen Sinnlichkeit und Vernunft zutage, dass beim Schönen harmonisch ausfällt, beim Erhabenen jedoch durch eine deutliche Gegensatzspannung geprägt scheint, unter deren Einfluss, Erfahrung und moralische Freiheit auseinandertreten. Erst am Schluss sucht der Essay die Möglichkeit einer Vermittlung beider Bereiche, wenn es betonnt, auch das Erhabene müsse im Programm der ästhetischen Erziehung des Menschen als dem Schönen komplementäres Element seinen festen Platz erhalten (96). Compare Über das Erhabene, FA 8: 838. 695 See: Schillers ÄE 22, “Darin also besteht das Kunstgeheimnis des Meisters, dass er den Stoff durch die Form vertilgt; und je imposanter, anmaßender, verführerischer der Stoff an sich selbst ist, […] desto triumphierender ist die Kunst. […] Das Gemüt des Zuschauers und Zuhörers muss völlig frei und unverletzt bleiben […] (FA 8: 641). 350

According to Kant’s Kritik der Urteilskraft, our faculty of understanding governs our relations in the empirical world. In aesthetic judgment, we are able to enjoy pure ‘representation, or form’ because it engages our cognitive powers

(understanding and reason) in free play.696 At variance from Kant, Schiller is interested in the manner in which an art form appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom that is observable: Freiheit in der Erscheinung ist als nichts anders, als die Selbstbestimmung an einem Dinge, insofern sie sich in der

Anschauung offenbart (FA 8: 288-289). By setting the imaginative faculties into free play, Schiller proposes that the distinctive quality of the beautiful form provides an occasion for contemplation. Because the intellect is only able to contemplate form,

Schiller must demonstrate the connection between the beautiful form and the power of the sublime.

Der Verstand muss veranlasst werden über die Form des Objekts zu reflektieren: über die Form, denn der Verstand hat nur mit der Form zu tun.697

By becoming mindful of a beautiful object, our imaginative and mental faculties interact with each other actively (tätig).698 As a result, the poetic truth becomes available to us by an intuitively comprehensible imaginative experience that the artist makes perceptible to our mind and soul by the internal connection between sensation

696 David Simpson, 1988, “Introduction“, 1-22. 697 Kallias, oder die Schönheit, (Schiller’s letter to Körner on 23 Februar 1793, FA 8: 299). 698 See Über die notwendigen Grenzen beim Gebrauch schönen Formen. “Wenn wir erkennen, so erhalten wir uns tätig und unsere Aufmerksamkeit ist auf einen Gegenstand, auf ein Verhältnis zwischen Vorstellungen und Vorstellungen gerichtet. Wenn wir empfinden, so verhalten wir uns leidend und unsre Aufmerksamkeit […] ist bloß auf unsern Zustand gerichtet, insoferne derselbe durch einen empfangegen Eindruck verändert wird” (FA 8: 678). 351

and thinking, i.e., the artistic or the philosophical truth that is discernible in the intricate fabric of a given literary work.

5.7 PHILIPP UNDER THE “AWESOME BURDEN OF THE SUBLIME”699

Er [der Mensch] muss lernen edler zu begehren, damit er nicht nötig habe erhaben zu wollen (ÄE 23. Brief, FA 8:648)

No other character of Schiller’s fourth play has been debated than the figure of Marquis Posa. Some scholarly opinions blame Schiller’s Briefe über Don Carlos for this situation.700 Others, such as Borchmeyer, declare that, though Schiller’s letters are fascinating, they have little to do with the dramatic figure of Posa, whose purpose is to evoke our compassion (unser Mitleid zu erregen, NA 20: 164).701 As Alt reiterates, Schiller championed the idea that the tragedy’s main purpose consists in evoking the sympathies of the audience by inspiring strong emotions and appealing to moral consciousness.702 Roger Paulin “stresses the effect on the reader, the moral and aesthetic satisfaction engendered by the great tragic subject” (233). Nevertheless, the education of the whole human being cannot be achieved otherwise than to train reason and sensuousness to interact with each other and mediate via the Spieltrieb while keeping the other within its bounds (ÄE 13, FA 8: 605-607).

What is most striking is that while many scholars demonstrate moral outrage over Posa’s manipulative behavior with respect with the crown prince and Elizabeth

699 Ellis Finger, 1980, 172. 700 Helmut Koopmann, 2009, 317 701 Compare Dieter Borchmeyer. Posas “’Anspruch auf unsere Tränen’ ist nun einmal der Anspruch der Tragödie als ’poetischer Nachahmung einer mitleidswürdigen Handlung’” (357). 702 Compare Alt, II. In Über die Tragische Kunst, Schiller argumentiert wirkungsästhetisch. Die Tragödie hat zur Absicht, unser Mitleid zu erregen. Sinnliche Empfindungen und moralisches Bewusststein finden sich, so Schiller, durch die Tragödie angesprochen“ (90). 352

(Malsch, 1990, 69),703 they might easily sympathize with the tyrannical figure of

Philipp II (Ellis Finger, 1980, 172). To a certain degree, Schiller is to be blamed for such a mishap. In his configuration, Philipp is an impressive figure, who is the mightiest emperor in the world. Ich heiße / Der reichste Mann in der getauften Welt, /

Die Sonne geht in meinem Staat nicht unter —(1.6). Within the impressive portrayal of Philipp, Schiller demonstrates that Philipp is a good observer of human behavior.

By showing that Philipp’s deepest need was truth, Schiller brings this absolutist monarch closer to us as a human being. For example, one of the most famous moments in the play is when the king is weeps. (“Der König hat / Geweint”, 4.23,

4472). This earth shattering occurrence horrifies the members of his cabinet. After the execution of the Marquis, the king views himself as the victim of his own corrupt regime. “Er dachte klein von mir und starb. Ich muss / Ihn wiederhaben. Er muss anders von / Mir denken” (5014-15).This is an important realization, for the death of the Marquis (re)shapes his thoughts and cultivates his feelings, the purpose of which is to drive his mental faculties toward cooperation. Once again, we observe Schiller’s calling as a poet-dramaturge was to pursue the ennoblment of human character: „[…] was die Menschheit innerhalb ihres Wesens veredelt, verdient das höchste Augenmerk

(NA 20: 88).

Schiller’s rich compositional skills and powers of imagination are most effective in his construction of Philipp’s tyrannical figure. As Walter Müller- Seidel cautions, Schiller’s manner of representing this tyrant makes it hard for us not to

703 Wilfried Malsch, 1990. “Roberspierre ad Portas? Zur Deutungsgeschichte der Brief über Don Karlos von Schiller,“ 69-103. 353

sympathize with him as a human being. ”Schiller hat im Fortgang seiner Arbeit am

Drama nichts unversucht gelassen, uns diese Gestalt menschlich näher zu bringen – so sehr, dass er zeitweilig eine tragische Person zu werden scheint” (434). Nevertheless, while we get the impression that Philipp is “the great tragic subject,” at the end of the play, Schiller strikes a nerve by revealing that the richest emperor of the world voluntarily denied himself his humanity. We must therefore ask, why did Schiller invest so much effort in sketching Philipp’s character? What was his purpose when, in the end, all that we can get out of this mighty figure is that he willfully sacrifices his beautiful bride and his only son? Is it possible that by showing Philipp’s conclusive degeneration, rather than his attainment of regeneration, Schiller strove to overcome barbaric savagery in the world?

I propose that Schiller characterized Philipp in a manner that would further educate the moral consciousness of his audience. For, by ways of portraying the capricious figures at the court of Philipp, Schiller’s purpose is not only to stimulate the mind of his beholders and move their passions, but also to drive these faculties to cooperate mutually in critiquing the values these characters represent, with special regard for the ones that Philipp stands for. The individual events of the tragedy should mutually work together for the final purpose of lifting our spirit and touching our heart, never to debase the human spirit to the point that he succumbs to barbaric instincts.704

704„Erhaben ist alles, was dieses Vermögen in uns zum Bewuȕtsein bringt“ (Vom Erhabenen, FA 8: 421). 354

Aber die Tragödie hat einen poetischen Zweck, d.i. sie stellt eine Handlung dar, um zu rühren, und durch rühren zu ergötzen (NA 20: 166).

With respect to the purpose and form of the tragedy Schiller reasserts that the tragedy’s main purpose to appeal to the moral consciousness of the audience:

Wenn der Zweck der Tragödie ist, den mitleidigen Affekt zu erregen, ihre Form aber das Mittel ist, durch welches sie diesen Zweck erreicht, so muss Nachahmung einer rührenden Handlung der Inbegriff aller Bedingungen sein, unter welchen der mitleidige Affekt am stärksten erregt wird. Die Form der Tragödie ist als die günstige, um den mitleidigen Affekt zu erregen. (Über die Tragische Kunst, NA 20: 169).

As Schiller proposes, the tragedy’s purpose is to not only evoke strong emotional responses in the audience but also to appeal to the moral consciousness of the viewers. Taking up his professional identity as a poet-dramaturge, Schiller is interested in the ways in which an art form appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom that is observable, thus further educating the moral and intellectual- spiritual of his audiences.705

From the beginning, Philipp is represented as a mighty absolutist ruler. While he wishes to be feared not only by his subjects and provinces but also by the prince and the queen, the greatest delineator of his passion and character is his hunger for dominance and sovereignty. Anxiously watching over maintaining his power, Philipp lives constantly in fear and restlessness. While Philipp’s Machtpolitik determines all his actions, Schiller introduces him as a pitiful monarch who in his shuddering

705 As Alt understands the matter, „Das Ziel der Tragödie beruht folglich auch bei Schiller, ähnlich wie bei Lessing in der moralischen Wirkung; ihr Anspruchsprofils aber ist deutlich breiter gefasst, das ihr eingeräumte geistige Potential ausgeweitet worden“ (II, 91).

355

mindset seeks only retaliation, instead of peaceful settlement. “Ein schauerndes

Exempel soll die Irrenden bekehren“(1.6, 894). Admittedly, Posa is also ruled by the desire for dominance. In his ardent commitment to the ideals of Menschenglück and human freedom, he cannot do anything other than constantly challenging himself to be a worthy ambassador of human rights in support of Flanders. In his newly-won power, Posa commits the principle mistake that he does not take Carlos into his confidence in time, “[…] to insure his cooperation” (Witte 143). Through this error of insight, Posa cannot conceal that, to a certain degree, his actions were guided by his desire for dominance. Unlike Philipp, however, Posa’s actions are motivated by his noble minded ideals of Menschenglück. By this, Schiller advances his cause as a poet- dramaturge. In his Schaubühne-Rede (1784) he contends that if we follow the fine clues in the whole fabric of human actions, through the pleasure in discovering the coherence between the particulars of the plot, we would learn that the downfall of a hero is often the result of a seemingly insignificant human failure.706

Most importantly, Philipp’s actions are motivated by distrust and fear.

According to Aristotle, “pity and fear are the greatest delineator of character” (Rogers

73). In Schiller’s modelling, Philipp’s impressive figure arouses pity and fear in such a way that effects relief in the audience. How does he shape the tyrant in such manner? Schiller demonstrates by numerous examples that Philipp’s low mindset

706 See Die Schaubühne-Rede, “Das Glück der Gesellschaft wird ebenso sehr durch Torheit als durch Verbrechen und Laster gestört. Erfahrung lehrt es, dass im Gewebe menschlicher Dinge oft die größten Gewichte an den kleinsten und zärtesten Fädern hängen (NA 20: 94). 356

calls for his urgent need of moral regeneration. As the richest emperor of the whole world, Philipp is ambitious to secure his sovereign power. While Philipp’s actions are motivated politically, he never recoils from using immoral methods such as taking the throne away from his own father or marrying Elizabeth.

While his relationship with Carlos and Elizabeth is impoverished, Philipp demonstrates that his sense and reason were never trained to cooperate. Philipp married the loveliest woman in the whole world: Ganz Spanien / Vergöttert seine

Königin (1.1, 41-42), but the king never wooed the heart of his queen. He never even tried loving her. Nie konnte ich ihr Liebe geben (3.1, 2472). At the same time, the king turned to an undeserving woman. As Eboli voices the act: Melden Sie / Dem

König, dass ich ihn erwarte (2.11, 2087-88). It is no surprise that Philipp lived among constant fears and restlessness. Though the king’s advisors call into question

Elizabeth’s virtue, there is nothing to prove, for she is blameless. Nevertheless, the slanderous accusations alarm Philipp, and out of fear of his queen’s infidelity, he rises in the middle of the night. In his restlessness, he suspects to see signs of life in the part of the castle which his queen occupies. “Im linken / Pavillon war Feuer. Hörtet

Ihr / Den Lärmen nicht?” (3.2, 2483-84).

By portraying Philipp in perpetual inner and outer struggle, 707 Schiller encourages the view that the real reason behind his mental anxiety was his own corrupt moral standing. While Philipps’ heart never knew how to appreciate beauty in terms of inner freedom as well as experience the harmonious alliance between Geist

707 Über das Erhabene. “Ohne das Schöne würde zwischen unsrer Naturbestimmung und unsrer Vernunftbestimmung ein immerwährender Streit sein” (FA 8: 838). 357

und Sinn, John Guthrie rightly perceives that “Schiller is more interested in physical symptoms that originates in the mind” (34). Guthrie’s point is that Philipp’s evil intentions are a sign of his moral degradation, and this disturbing mental state is represented by his bodily reactions and anxieties. As we learn next, while questioning his wife’s virtue, Philipp confesses his misogynistic mindset:

--War es nicht ein Weibe, Ein Weib, das mir es flüsterte? Der Name Des Weibes heißt Verleumdung. Das Berbrechen Ist nicht gewiss, bis mirs ein Mann bekräftigt. (3.2, 2503-06)

To a certain degree, Philipp’s constant fear and restlessness had to do with his concern for his monarchy. Nevertheless, Philipp lived in constant inner struggle also because he neglected to cherish beauty that he could have enjoyed in the presence of his queen. Schiller reminds that, by culting and reshaping feelings and thought, beauty expresses the whole human being: Ohne das Schöne würde zwischen unsrer

Naturbestimmung und unsrer Vernunftbestimmung ein immerwährender Streit sein

(Über das Erhabene, FA 8: 838). Because Philipp’s most desperate need is the cultivation of his heart, of “sensibility,”708 Schiller prompts us to wonder about his moral standing.

Philipp fares no better in his treatment of his only son, Carlos. His depravity as a father emerges when his son petitions the command of the Spanish army which was about to leave for Flanders. This is the moment, when overjoyed by his renewed

708 Lesley Sharpe, Companion, 151. See also High, who shows, „dass es nicht die Idee der Rebellion und seine Beweggründe an sich waren, was Schiller fürchtete […], sondern vielmehr die ‚barbarische Wildheit“ (36) 358

friendship with Posa, Carlos enters fearlessly into the chamber of Philipp presenting him his plans for Flanders.

Ich fürchte nichts mehr—Arm in Arm mit dir, So fordre ich mein Jahrhundert in die Schranken. (1.9).

But Philipp dashes his son’s hopes for becoming the captain of the Spanish army. For a brief moment, however, Philipp seems to be moved: O, mein Sohn, / Mein Sohn! Du brichst dir selbst den Stab (2.2, 1130). But he scolds him for being a dreamer and an intellectually disabled man. He pronounces the verdict: Alba will go, because he will be dreaded. Dies Amt will einen Mann und keinen Jüngling (1174-75). […] Deine

Seele mein Sohn ist weich, der Herzog wird gefürchtet (1179-80). Although the king understands that a strong leader is needed for this job, he will not listen to his son’s valid counter argument: Will / Nur einen Menschen, Vater, und das ist / Das einzige, was Alba nie gewesen (2.1, 1175-76). The tears that Carlos sheds turn Philipp against his son. Vollends Tränen? […] Weg / Aus meinen Augen. […] So / Verwerf ich dich!

(2.1, 1065-1073). No matter how hard Carlos tries, Philipp will not change his mind.

During the course of this exchange, Philipp uses such derogatory language that he wounds his son’s pride, Carlos. Beschämen Sie mich nicht! So tödlich, Vater, /

Verwunden Sie mich nicht (1.2). The audience could well ask: Who is this man whose heart turned cold?

Upon Posa’s death, a point of conflict similar to a Punctum saliens erupts between Carlos and Philipp. Wedged between two conflicting imperatives, the desires of the heart and the dictates of the mind,709 Carlos and Philipp try to make sense out

709 Klaus L. Berghahn, 1986, 42. 359

of Posa’s death. Under the impact of the tragic occurrence, Carlos believes truly that his friend sacrificed himself for him.

CARLOS Der Tote war mein Freund—Und wollt ihr wissen Warum er starb? Für mich ist er gestorben. […] Ja, Sire! Wir waren Brüder! Brüder durch Ein edler Band, als die Nature es schmiedet. Sein schöner Lebenslauf war Liebe. Liebe Für mich sein großer schöner Tod. […] Dies feine Saitenspiel zerbrach in Ihrer Metallnen Hand.710 (5.4, 4791-94; 4819-20)

Opposed to Carlos, Philipp decides to follow the dictates of his mastermind. From this point of view, nothing could be more foolish than to think that the great Posa would die for boy. In Philipp’s assessment the great Posa’s heart passionately stirred for human freedom, whereas, Carlos in his heartfelt sorrow believes that Posa died for him. Schiller stages the main point of conflict (punctum saliens) in a very subtle manner. In order to give humanity’s fullest possible expression, he requires from his hero to choose between the desires of his heart and the dictates of his intellect. The purpose of which is to cultivate and (re)shape Posa’s emotions and thoughts in a manner that portrayed that he was a sensitive human being as well as a morally responsible person.711 Slowly it dawns on Philipp that Posa died in full confidence of

710 “Yes, sire. We were brothers of a noble alliance. His curriculum vitae was made up of love. Nevertheless, your metal hand shattered his beautiful melodious string music.” (5.4, 4791-94, 4819- 20). 711 Klaus L. Berghahn, 1986, Schiller. Ansichten eines Idealisten. „Vor allem Schillers Szenarien und Skizzenblätter veranschaulichen, wie er sich bei der Organisation des Stoffes bemühte, eine einfache Handlung zu entwerfen, die den dramatischen Konflikt eindeutig und mit großer Klarheit heraushebt. Die zentrale Konfliktsituation, die vom Helden eine Entscheidung verlangt, bildet den Kristallisationspunkt seiner Dramen, und von diesem dramatischen Höhepunkt aus organisiert er die Handlung. Dieses dramatische und ideelle (42). 360

his moral identity, capable of winning over his pupil, the king’s son Carlos, for

Flanders’ cause of freedom.

KÖNIG […] Für einen Knaben stirbt Ein Posa nicht. Der Freundschaft arme Flamme Füllt eines Posa Herz nicht aus. Das schlug Der ganzen Menschheit. […] Nein. Ich kenn ihn besser. Nicht Den Philipp opfert er dem Carlos, nur Den alten Mann dem Jüngling, seinem Schüler. […] Er könnte sich verrechnet haben. Noch, noch bin ich. […] Seine Tugend Sei eines Träumers Hirngespinst gewesen. Er sei gestorben als ein Tor. (5057-5077)

Schiller took great pride in his dramatic construction of Philipp. We find the most stirring portrayal of the character of Philipp when he acknowledges Posa’s moral superiority. Schiller contends that at this inexpressible moment, the human being offers such melancholic appeal that his expression could rival with the sublime.712

Immanuel Kant reiterates here that bodily movements and verbal interjections could reveal a sublime mental disposition.713 In act 5, scene 9, the stage direction describes the change in Philipp’s appearance and his bodily movements at the moment when he becomes aware of his own unworthy physical existence. By depicting Philipp’s bodily movements as he sternly examines his subjects, Schiller effectively demonstrates that he has the skills of the dramaturge able to express internal feelings through performance.

712 Über das Erhabene. „Diese Entdeckung des absoluten moralischen Vermögens, welches an keine Natur-Bedingung gebunden ist, gibt dem wehmütigen Gefühl, wovon wir beim Anblick eines solchen Menschen ergriffen werden, den ganz eignen unaussprechlichen Reiz, den keine Lust der Sinne, so veredelt sie auch seien, dem Erhabenen streitig machen kann“ (FA 8: 830). 713 Immanuel Kant, 1924, “Von der Einteilung einer Untersuchung des Gefühls des Erhabenen,” 91. 361

König zu den Vorigen (Alle erschrecken über seinen Anblick, weichen zurück und lassen ihm ehrerbietig mitten durch. Er kommt in einem wachen Traume, wie eines Nachtwandlers.—Sein Anzug und seine Gestalt zeigen noch die Unordnung, worein ihn die gehabte Ohnmacht versetzt hat. Mit langsamen Schritten geht er an den anwesenden Granden vorbei, sieht jeden starr an, ohne einen einzigen wahrzunehmen. Endlich bleibt er gedankenvoll stehen, die Augen zur Erde gesenkt, bis seine Gemütsbewegung nach und nach laut wird).

Posa’s execution had an enormous impact on the king. Philipp’s subjects are waiting for him to step out of his cabinet. Upon his entrance, Philipp appears as a sleepwalker. In passing by the people, he offers a shuddering sight transporting his viewers with wonder as they reverently back off. His attire shows signs of disorder.

Proceeding with slow steps as he passes by his grandees, Philipp looks at each sternly but without noticing any of them. Finally, he pauses with his eyes lowered to the ground till his emotions gradually voice themselves. This is the way Schiller communicates through Philipp’s performance the awakening of his consciousness. A sublime moment is a great moment of theatrical performance. […] durch eine

Erschütterung reißt es [das Erhaben] den selbständigen Geist aus dem Netze [der sinnlichen Welt] los (Über das Erhabene, FA 8: 830). Schiller determined that the indispensable power of theater relies on the mode of expression, i.e. Ausdruck. His employment of dramatic effect is the most powerful when he succeeds to show that as

Philipp’s emotions start speaking, his consciousness comes alive.

KÖNIG. — Wie er Auf mich heruntersah! So stolz sieht man Von Thronen nicht herunter. (5028-29). […] Ein freier Mann stand auf in diesem ganzen Jahrhundert—Einer—Er verachtet mich Und stirbt. 362

(5042-43)

Under the impact of this sublime-like moment, Philipp voices his agitation, as the lines above read: “By his glance he told me that he despised me! Such proud posture! A free man has risen and decided to show off his contempt for me and finally he died.” In spite of this earth shattering discovery of Posa’s moral act, Philipp’s agony and pain pass quickly. Philipp’s mental disposition changes. Philipp could esteem a free man for a brief moment, only to plunge himself into a state of degeneration. After witnessing Philipp’s agony at losing Posa, the king turns around and defiantly thwarts his rescue plans for Flanders. Philipp could not have imagined anything worthier than ruling the world. To maintain his power as the as the mightiest emperor of the world, he must prove that the Marquis died a fool.714 Schiller’s skill of characterization agitates both the mind and the heart. After witnessing the many turns and changes taking place in Philipp’s disposition, in the end the mighty monarch powerfully proves that nothing could cultivate and reshape his feelings and thoughts in a manner that allowed him to outgrow his limited mindset.

Ellis Finger has observed that “Many of the concerns raised by Schiller in connection with the sublime come into play in Don Carlos.”715 Explaining Philipp’s sublimity on the central arguments of Schiller’s essay Über das Erhabene, she asserts that when “confronted by forces which threaten to destroy us, we are able to maintain

714 As Max Kommerell had first seen, So wird Philipp reif—zur Gegenverschwörung“ (145) 715 Ellis Finger, 1980, “Schiller’s Concept of the Sublime and Its Pertinence to ‘Don Carlos’ and ‘Maria Stuart,’ 169. 363

our dignity and independence only by willfully subjugating ourselves to these forces”

(166).

Kann er also den physischen Kräften keine verhältnismässige physische Kraft mehr entgegen setzen, so bleibt ihm, um keine Gewalt zu erleiden, nichts anders übrig, als: ein Verhältnis, welches ihm so nachteilig ist, ganz und gar aufzuheben, und eine Gewalt, die er der Tat nach erleiden muss, dem Begriff nach zu vernichten. Eine Gewalt dem Begriffe nach vernichten, heiȕt aber nichts anders, als sich derselben freiwillig unterwerfen (FA 8:823).

In arguing that “certain figures whose flawed and comprised actions also bear sublime features” (167), Finger favors Philipp’s “voluntary submission” to the authority of the

Grand Inquisitor over Posa’s act of “willfully subjugating himself to forces he cannot overcome” (170).

By portraying Philipp in perpetual inner and outer struggle, Schiller encourages the view that the real reason behind Philipp’s mental anxiety is his corrupt moral standing. While Philipp’s heart never knew inner freedom, he never regarded the beauty of the soul. The education of the whole human being cannot be achieved otherwise than by training reason and sensuousness to interact harmoniously with each other. In spite to this, Finger never questions the nature and power of authority to which Philipp submits himself. In Schiller’s portrayal, the Grand Inquisitor represents a „blind, decrepict, and motionless “(Guthrie 123) and cruel enemy of humanity. In this light, Finger’s reading of Philipp’s voluntary submission to the Grand Inquisitor as a sublime feature is not beyond challenge. For Schiller had stated in Über das

Erhabene, Der Mensch ist das Wesen, welches will. […] Der Mensch soll aber ohne

Ausnahme Mensch sein, als in keinem Fall etwas gegen seinen Willen erleiden (823).

Though Philipp was under the control of the inquisitor, his will was his own. In face 364

of his challenges, the king did not aim for a higher level of existence. The self-willed sacrifice of his son and his queen demonstrates that Philipp was a morally weak person. In his arrogance, Philipp asks the Grand Inquisitor: Kannst du einen neuen

Glauben gründen / Der eines Kindes blutigen Mord verteidigt? (5.9, 5265). Schiller uses poetic effects to cultivate and [re]shape Philipp’s feelings and thoughts and appeal to his moral consciousness. However, by sacrificing his son, the king relinquished his humanity.

While tragedy’s main purpose in Schiller’s view is to evoke the sympathies of the audience, the king’s characterization may well evoke strong emotions of resistance. According to Schiller, while beauty is the symbol of perfection, a beautiful form is governed by artistic principles that comply with the inner necessity of the object to determine the self freely, as well as appears free on its own (Kallias, oder

über die Schönheit, FA 8:290). Our thesis here is that Schiller advances his cause as a poet-dramaturge by highlighting the distinctive qualities of his drama, and that he does so in the light of the practice of life. While our experience of freedom gives occasion for reflection, Schiller is interested in the manner in which the art form of his first “classical” drama appeals to us as an imaginative experience of freedom that is observable. In the end, Schiller proposes that a work of art should have such a form that allows the idea of Bildung operate with the appearance of freedom.

Bei einem Kunstwerk also muss sich der Stoff (die Nature des Nachahmenden) in der Form (des Nachgeahmten), der Körper in der Idee, die Wirklichkeit in der Erscheinung verlieren. […das wäre] reine Objektivität der Darstellung, das Wesen des guten Stils: der höchste Grundsatz der Künste (FA 8:324-325). 365

CONCLUSION: REFLECTIONS ON SCHILLER’S PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY

My dissertation „Ich bin und bleibe bloß Poet und als Poet werde ich auch sterben. Friedrich Schiller’s Sense of Poetic Calling and the Role of the Poetic Idea in his Emerging Professional Identity as a Dramaturge,” examined how Friedrich

Schiller’s deep sense of poetic calling informed his literary works. I demonstrated that

Schiller’s early conceptions of drama and dramatic practice and the exogenesis of his later aesthetic theories crystallized his understanding of what it meant to be a poet.

While foregrounding Schiller’s writings, two major considerations guided my thoughts on this topic: first, the author’s conceptions of the theoretical aesthetic education of human beings and, second, the dynamic relationships that Schiller’s creative acts that shaped his dramas, Die Räuber and Don Carlos. By focusing on the nature of Schiller’s pursuit of das Dichterische, I have shown that the task of ennobling human character remained central to his dramatic and theoretical pursuits.

In an effort to counteract the one-sided rational development of human beings,

Schiller portrayed and evoked emotions in order to refine human beings’ capacity of feelings. By presenting poetic moments, Schiller’s early dramatic works attest that poesy’s key function was to create harmonious alliance between thought and feelings and develop the sensation of the complete human being within us (den ganzen

Menschen in uns; NA 20: 245).

Throughout this project, I engaged Schiller’s seminal theoretical writings in the light of his early medical writings, dramas, and correspondence. While the dramatist’s Schiller’s main material was the human being, I showed that his early dramas 366

portray that the serious play of creating poetic form—therewith cultivating the beautiful—was to bridge the gap between actuality and the pursuit of ideal humane humanity. On the one hand, the imaginative intellectual quality of Schiller’s poetic pursuit was sparked by the joyous youthful inspiration of the Greek art. In observing that the Greeks gave “equal respect to mental and physical prowess,”716 Schiller seemed to believe that these people were ‘happy’ and ‘beautiful’717 because they didn’t allow their nature to be ‘victimized’ by their life style.718 On the other hand,

Schiller’s study of human nature greatly informed his poetic impulse of capturing human beings’ best possible expressions through developing whole characters on the stage as models of humane behavior. As Schiller’s claim demonstrates-- Der Mensch, wenn er vereinigt wirkt, ist LPPHUHLQJURȕHV:HVHQ719—his highest priority was found in the pursuit of ennobling human character: was die Menschheit innerhalb ihres Wesens veredelt, verdient das höchste Augenmerk (NA 20:88). While das

Dichterische in Schiller’s oeuvre discloses the imaginative-intellectual quality of his poetic pursuit, I argued that it was guided by the artistic principle of capturing human beings’ best possible expression, i.e. der Menschheit ihren möglichst vollständigen

Ausdruck zu geben (NA 20:437).720 After having accounted for the sources that fed

Schiller’s poetic imagination and the forces that determined the forms of his creative

716 C.M. Bowra, 27. 717 See: ÄE 6. “Durch gymnastische Übungen bilden sich zwar athletische Körper aus, aber nur durch das freie und gleichförmige Spiel der Glieder die Schönheit. […] und glückliche vollkommene Menschen erzeugen“ (FA 8: 576). 718 6. ÄE, trans. Reginald Snell, 37. 719 The human being that conjoins his faculties makes a strong impression, (NA 25: 146). 720 „In einem wahrhaft schönen Kunstwerk soll der Inhalt nicht, die Form aber alles tun; denn durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des Menschen [und nicht] auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt“ (ÄE 22, FA 8: 641). 367

activities, we may conclude that the beautiful and the sublime exposed new interpretive perspectives. We did not have to wait for the later theoretical writings to become aware of the importance of education (“Erziehung”) in Schiller’s early dramas. Championing the purpose of the theatre as an aesthetic institution, Schiller sought to recreate the sensation of the complete human being in the recipients of his art. “Die Schaubühne ist die Stiftung, wo sich Vergnügen mit Unterricht, […] wo

Kurzweil mit Bildung gattet. Wir werden uns selbst wieder gegeben, [… unsere]

Brust gibt einer Empfindung Raum—es ist diese; ein Mensch zu sein“ (NA 20: 100).

The characteristic element of Schiller’s creative thinking consists in the consciousness of form: [D]enn durch die Form allein wird auf das Ganze des

Menschen [und nicht] auf einzelne Kräfte gewirkt.721 In the essay, Über naive und sentimentalische Dichtung, Schiller presented the idea that in regards to poetic renderig, his intuition was to behold observable lively and spirited gestalts i.e. “für die

Anschauung bestimmte Formen” (FA 8: 757). Schiller was interested in the manner in which an art form appealed to us as an imaginative experience of freedom that was also observable. For, Freiheit in der Erscheinung ist als nichts anders, als die

Selbstbestimmung an einem Dinge, insofern sie sich in der Anschauung offenbart (FA

8: 288-289). Through his inquiries into the nature of beauty [die Schönheit] and the formation of the beautiful [das Schöne], Schiller advanced his cause as a poet- dramaturge by highlighting the distinctive qualities of beautiful forms. Importantly, he

721 See 1) Friedrich Schiller, Über die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von Briefen, (NA 20: 382). 2) Dirk Oschmann, 2017, “Zwischen Theorie and Performanz. Schillers Begriff der ‚Form.‘“ 368

did so in the light of the practice of life. While underscoring the fact that the distinctive inner quality of the beautiful object sparks our intellect and that our experience of freedom challenges reflection, Schiller’s personality as an artist

(Künstlerpersönlichkeit) emerged.

In particular, the present dissertation demonstrated the development of

Schiller’s response to his own calling as a poet-dramaturge. His sense of mission called him to point the world in the direction of the good, and elevate the thinking to those values that nurtured in the heart the desire for the excellence of character. In the ninth letter of his Über die ästhetische Erziehung des Menschen in einer Reihe von

Briefen Schiller formulated his artistic mission of shaping the world as follows:

[…] gib der Welt, auf die du wirkst, die Richtung zum Guten […] wenn du ihre Gedanken zum Notwendigen und Ewigen erhebst […] handelnd und bildend, in dem innern, nicht bloß in dem äußern Menschen […], daȕ nicht nur der Gedanke sondern auch der Sinn ihre Erscheinung (von der Wahrheit) liebend ergreife (FA 8: 586).

The decisive point of my argument is that Schiller’s artistic posture was inevitably tied to the activity of the mind [Geistestätigkeit] that was triggered by his experience of the beautiful. By giving to humankind the idea of das Schöne as a guide to activating one’s sublime nature, the dramaturge sought to portray the ideal human character in a comprehensible artistic form. For it is through the experience of the beautiful that a sensitive heart is able to discern the inner truth (innere Wahrheit) at the heart of a work of art.722 As I determined his artistic creed is expressed in Don

722 “[…] die innere Wahrheit, die ich die philosophische und Kunstfreiheit nennen will, welche in ihrer ganzen Fülle im Roman oder in einer poetischen Darstellung herrschen muss, […] Die innere Übereinstimmung, die Wahrheit wird gefühlt und eingestanden, ohne dass die Begebenheit wirklich vorgefallen sein muss“ (An Caroline von Beulwitz, 10.Dez. 1788, NA 25:154). 369

Carlos for the first time. In depicting that the task of art was to nurture a sense of beauty and truth in humankind, I showed that beauty and truth resonate a sweet harmony, as do the melodious sounds of a stringed instrument (süße Harmonie, die in

/ Dem Saitenspiele schlummert).723

While contemplating how to attract the attention of the audience or reader, Schiller represented his figures with a life force. Reiterating that it was the poet and not the philosopher who possessed the artistic skills to portray emotions, we submit that the task of re-shaping and cultivating human faculties remained central to him throughout his dramatic career. For, it was his desire to be a poet and to follow his heart that shaped Schiller’s works of art.

In sum, the following constitute the main points of my argument. As much as

Schiller was indebted to the achievements of the theoretical culture of the

Enlightenment, both in his theoretical works and on the tribunal of the stage, the poet worked through the inherent complications of his age by showing that progress is not a natural human process nor a phenomenon of history. In part, it was a matter of cultivating the interaction between mind and body and body and mind.724 In ÄE 6,

Schiller focused his attention on the disposition of his present age (die

Aufmerksamkeit auf den Zeitcharakter).725 It was a decisive moment in his intellectual development. The stark contrast between the ideals and reality, between order and

723 Schiller, Don Carlos, Akt IV, 21. 4356-57 (Marquis) 724 Unlike Kant, Schiller didn’t believe that it was sufficient to theorize about the question of progress. Through trying to work out the problem of the englightened culture on the tribunal on the stage, for Schiller it was more of matter of Bildung. 725 ÄE 6, FA 8: 570. 370

violence had shown that ‘intellectual enlightenment’ alone could not exert sufficient influence upon the character of the human being. The problem was that the majority of people had developed their character only in part.726 As Schiller ascertained early in his career, poesy has no other aim than to school, i.e. form the whole human being, in which process his or her true character is determined. Instead of the progressive enlightenment theorized by Immanuel Kant, Schiller proposed that the mind must be educated through the heart. For human beings interact with the world not only through thought but also through sensation. Knowledge is first attained when the mind and the body operate together.

In Chapter 1, we discussed the German poet’s artistic and intellectual development in the context of the intellectual and literary climate of the German

Enlightenment. Schiller’s critical and creative engagement with the body-mind problem of his age initiated his poetic pursuit of ennobling human character which he then understood to be the primary purpose of his calling as a poet. In his preoccupation with the philosophy of the mind, the young medical student refrained from separating the mind (Geist) from the body (Körper) and the soul (Psyche).727

Throughout his career, he strove for being about a harmonious balance between thinking and feeling.728 Moreover, by calling attention to the ability of the faculties of soul and mind to train states of mind through the faculty of sensation, Schiller showed

726 ÄE 6, FA 8: 570-571. 727 Hereafter, Schiller’s concept of mind and soul is referred to as „Geist.“ 728 Peter-André Alt, Schiller Leben-Werk-Zeit. I. (München, 2000), „ […] verzichtet Schiller auf eine nähere Unterscheidung zwischen Geist und Psyche; beide Bereiche werden von ihm auch in späteren medizinischen Studien als immaterielle Zonen menschlichen Denkens und Empfindens aufgefaßt […]“ (158),—hereafter cited Alt. 371

that the Nervengeist and Denkorgan could be co-operative. By demonstrating the reciprocity between these faculties via Mittelkraft--the prototype of the Spieltrieb--

Schiller’s later theory of art emerged.

Chapter 2 delineated how Schiller began to devote himself to his profession as a poet and actualized his sense of purpose. I argued that Schiller’s pursuit of the harmonious relationship between the powers of his mind and his personal happiness reflects his schooling in the works of the eighteenth-century philosophical doctors, especially Schiller’s instructor in philosophy, Jakob Friedrich Abel, and, equally as strongly, the work of Moses Mendelssohn. In tracing the sources that fed Schiller’s poetic imagination and the forces that determined the forms of his creative activities, I showed that by examining great works of art, Schiller was observant of the manner in which art evoked aesthetic effects. As a result, Schiller worked out the idea that beauty, as symbol of harmonious alliance between Geist and Sinn, was the foundation of modern poesy.

Schiller understood the universe as an excellent design in which all powers actively work together tautly but harmoniously, similarly to a thousand voiced string instrument that creates one beautiful melody (NA 20:10). Based on the empirical evidence of harmony demonstrated by the Grand Design of the universe, Schiller claimed that nature was the only flame that could nourish the creative energies of the modern poet.729 In contending that the “principal concern of all genuine artists is to

729 Natur, in Schiller’s view represents the quality, die dem Gesetze der Übereinstimmung ungehindert folgt (FA 8:714). 372

express Nature,”730 Schiller argued that poets in his age dealt with a very different cultural condition than the Greeks had experienced. In the naïve condition, sense and intelligence, as receptive and self-acting faculties, acted as harmonizing entities. In modern cultural condition of fragmentation, the mental faculties had begun to separate in practice, thus, das schöne Ganze der menschlichen Natur (FA 8:798) needed to be recaptured.

In Auseinandersetzung with the work of numerous cultures, Schiller learned to expand and refine the faculties of reason and understanding and the sensibilities of the heart through form. Reading the works of Milton, Shakespeare, and many others,

Schiller paid close attention to forms of musical composition. As I have shown,

Schiller learned from Milton that modern poetry needed poetic moments that generate motion. His critical analysis of the Laocoon statue inspired him to write the essay,

Über das Pathetische (1793).731 In the final analysis, the characteristic elements of

Schiller’s creative thinking consists in his consciousness of form.

In Chapter 3, I provided evidence of how Schiller developed the theoretical- practical foundation of his poetic pursuit, i.e. das Dichterische. I argued that, by establishing beauty as the symbol of alliance between Geist and Sinn, Schiller schooled himself in ways that men and women can experience as complete, i.e., whole human beings through the medium of art. I have demonstrated that Schiller’s critical analysis of modern cultural conditions in the treatise Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung builds on the premise that modern poet did not have a

730 See Roland Marleyn. 731 NA 20: 198-221. 373

chance to imitate simple nature naively. As Schiller reasoned, nature itself in all of its component parts, was the only flame that nourished the creative energies of the modern poet. Nevertheless, under modern cultural conditions, the sentimental poet could merely create an experience within his or her audience that encouraged us to strive for moral unity (moralische Einheit, d. h. als nach Einheit strebend; FA 8:733).

By incorporating “the playful, creative quality” into his poetic expression, Schiller discovered that poesy’s key function was neither fusion nor reconciliation. Rather, poesy’s purpose was to cultivate and [re]shape feelings and thoughts, and, in part, via the imagination (Einbildungskraft) create the beautiful forms that would capture the attention of his audience and serve to drive the individual in the direction of wholeness.

Chapter 4 addresses how Schiller’s debut play, Die Räuber, engaged the sensations in and between his dramatic characters and his dramatic characters and the audience in his endeavor to ennoble human character. By considering seriously the tragic flaw of his characters, we claimed that Schiller’s purpose was to educate human beings how to negotiate either the improvement or deterioration of their state of affairs. Reconsidering the nature of his medical writings in the light of the author’s poetic impulse, the Philosophie der Physiologie, by reflecting upon the operations of the mind, body, and soul, Schiller’s debut drama shows that the interaction between body and mind was critical for an understanding of his later theoretical works. If tyrannized by the impulsiveness of passion, humankind resembles a “sinking ship.”

To be sure, then, the realm of reason bears the mark of freedom: Das Reich der

Vernunft ist ein Reich der Freiheit und keine Knechtschaft (NA 26: 258). In 374

underscoring the magnitude of greatness and strength of a Karl Moor and his great moments of mental exhilaration, I defended the thesis that the poet-dramaturge called attention to the ways in which the events themselves elicit from the protagonist mental responses, thereby performing the task of educating the faculty of reason.

In Chapter 5, I analyzed key elements that helped to construct Schiller’s first polished (“classical”) drama, Don Carlos. I showed that during the play’s long gestation period, aesthetic problems challenged Schiller’s creative energies, such as, the interdependent, but tension-filled relationship between grace and dignity and the idea of freedom and the limitations of the body. As I have shown, Schiller’s Don

Carlos, understood as ein dramatisches Gedicht, was also dependent on the aesthetic experience of harmony and disharmony. On the example of the amiable figure of

Queen Elizabeth, Schiller demonstrated that beauty was a creative power. From the vantage point of poetry, Elizabeth’s beauty symbolizes the alliance between Geist and

Sinn which, however, was cultivated with courage when facing and coming to terms with the realities of her struggles.732 The task of how to express Empfindungen challenged Schiller. By looking first for empirical evidence in real life situations, he considered gestures, body signals, facial expressions, sounds, gesticulation as signs that expressed internal feelings. Most remarkably, the pulsating truth of Schiller’s first

“classical” play is that of the sweet harmony that resonates in melodious music which nurtures in the heart the desire for excellence of character.

732 Compare “Wir fühlen uns frei bei der Schönheit, weil die sinnliche Triebe mit dem Gesetz der Vernunt harmoniern” (Über das Erhabene, FA 8: 826). 375

I have shown that Posa’s love of freedom ennobled his character in spite of his tragic flaws. While beauty symbolizes the interconnectedness between Geist and Sinn, it ensures the interplay of our spiritual and physical networks. In portraying the manner in which Schiller staged the sublime, I contended that Grace and Dignity represent two very different mental dispositions. In Schiller’s skillful hands, the artistic medium of poetic utterance and the portrayal of bodily movements aid us in comprehending intuitively the distinction between Posa’s Würde (moral self-reliance) and Elizabeth’s Anmut (grace,/beauty.) As I demonstrated, the exceptional conception of Schiller’s fourth play portrays that it was necessary to expand the sensitivity of the human heart with the consciousness of the sublime and the beautiful (FA 8: 838).

Hence, by evoking the sublime (das Erhabene), which includes not only the spiritual but also the sensible sides of humankind, the dramaturge appeals to the moral consciousness of the audience. For as Schiller perceived, without the sublime, the beautiful would keep us under such spell that we would forget about human dignity.

By responding to the body-mind problem of his age, throughout my project I have argued that, by problematizing the relationship between the rational and the physical, Schiller’s material (Stoff) was the human being (der Mensch, von welchem die Rede ist; FA 7:563) which served as the poetic impulse behind the formation of the beautiful (das Schöne). In his treatise, Über naïve und sentimentalische Dichtung,

Schiller contends that the tragedy of modern man is that, unless he learns to direct his physical and intellectual faculties towards cooperation, he is threatened to regress either to the deplorable state of barbarism or to the overwhelming mastery of reason which instrumentalizes human beings. 376

Out of his sense of attunement with the poetic vocation, Friedrich Schiller became one of the greatest dramaturges of the German language. It has been my task in this dissertation to show how Schiller recognized, appreciated, and fulfilled his poetic calling and why we can take his declaration literally: Ich bin und bleibe bloß

Poet und als Poet werde ich auch sterben (8 December 1782 in Bauerbach). His love for, and commitment to the art of poetry resonated deeply within his heart and mind.

Neigung für Poesie [und] Leidenschaft für die Dichtkunst ist feurig und stark, wie die erste Liebe (NA 22: 93). From Schiller’s works there emerges a beautiful “law:” under the condition of living in close proximity to their purpose (NA 20: 11)--which is greater than the conditions of the present moment would seem to allow—men and women are happiest and, unlike those who do not adhere to it, most fortunate

(“glücklich). 377

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