© 2013 Devin John O'neal ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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© 2013 Devin John O’Neal ALL RIGHTS RESERVED REWRITING ORTHODOXY: GERMAN ROMANTIC MYTHOLOGY AND THE AESTHETICS OF A PANTHEISTIC EDUCATION by DEVIN JOHN O’NEAL A dissertation submitted to the Graduate School-New Brunswick Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Program in German Written under the direction of Martha B. Helfer And approved by New Brunswick, New Jersey October 2013 ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION Rewriting Orthodoxy: German Romantic Mythology and the Aesthetics of a Pantheistic Education By DEVIN JOHN O’NEAL Dissertation Director: Martha B. Helfer In my dissertation I investigate literary representations of mythological and religious tropes in select prose German-language texts of Classicism and Early Romanticism dating from 1787-1812, and explore their use in questioning the prevailing religious views of the time. My overarching analysis has three goals: (1) to extract certain mythological traits and tropes from these texts and compare them to the original stories or figures on which they are based; (2) to explain the function of these mythological and religious rewritings within each narrative; and (3) to explain the function these rewritings have in relation to the Romantic concept of religious Bildung, especially concerning the standard Judeo-Christian monotheistic and patriarchal view of spirituality. The presence of rewritten myth has led me to focus on four prose texts in particular – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre (1795/96), Friedrich Schiller’s Der Geisterseher (1787-89), Johann Ludwig Tieck’s Der Runenberg (1804), and Ludwig Achim von Arnim’s Isabella von ii Ägypten (1812). I argue that these texts, to varying degrees, recognize the possibility that spirituality and religion may have qualities beyond the monotheistic framework set by standard religious belief. My readings of these texts as literary forms of religious enquiry stem from the developing Romantic aesthetic theory of the period, which not only began to challenge the artistic limitations imposed by Classic aesthetic ideals, but also attempted to call into question the reason-based arguments for standard monotheistic beliefs that were prominent in the Enlightenment period. iii Acknowledgements First and foremost, my thanks go to Martha Helfer. Through my years as both an undergraduate and graduate student, she has been a strong educator and a tireless supporter. Her encouragement, guidance, and continuous patience were always appreciated. She remains the role model I can only hope to imitate. I am very grateful to Charlotte and Bob Craig, whose generous support to both the department and its students has allowed me to complete this project. Thanks also go the faculty of the Rutgers Department of Germanic, Russian, and East European Languages and Literatures for the vibrant and encouraging atmosphere they have created; thanks to my fellow graduate students in the department, for all the years of camaraderie; and final thanks to Simon Warburton-Pitt for his support and patience over the course of this project. iv Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………...……………………………ii Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………..iv Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………..v Introduction………………………………………………………………………………1 Chapter 1……………………………………………………………………………….29 Chapter 2……………………………………………………………………………….56 Chapter 3……………………………………………………………………………….89 Chapter 4……………………………………………………………………………...117 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….154 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………..157 Curriculum Vitae……………………………………………………………………...170 v 1 Introduction Ich denke eine neue Religion zu stiften, oder vielmehr sie verkündigen zu helfen [...]. (Friedrich Schlegel, Letter to Novalis, December 2, 1798) Der romantische Imperativ fordert die Mischung aller Dichtarten. Alle Natur und alle Wiss[enschaft] soll Kunst werden – Kunst soll Natur werden und Wissenschaft. (Friedrich Schlegel’s Literary Notebooks, Fragment 582) In my dissertation I investigate literary representations of mythological and religious tropes in select prose German-language texts of Classicism and Early Romanticism dating from 1787-1812, and explore their use in questioning the prevailing religious views of the time. My overarching analysis has three goals: (1) to extract certain mythological traits and tropes from these texts and compare them to the original stories or figures on which they are based; (2) to explain the function of these mythological and religious rewritings within each narrative; and (3) to explain the function these rewritings have in relation to the Romantic concept of religious Bildung, especially concerning the standard Judeo-Christian monotheistic and patriarchal view of spirituality. The presence of rewritten myth has led me to focus on four prose texts in particular – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre (1795/96), Friedrich Schiller’s Der Geisterseher (1787-89), Johann Ludwig Tieck’s Der Runenberg (1804), and Ludwig Achim von Arnim’s Isabella von Ägypten (1812). I argue that these texts, to varying degrees, recognize the possibility that spirituality and religion may have qualities beyond the monotheistic framework set by standard religious belief. My readings of these texts as literary forms of religious enquiry stem from the developing Romantic 2 aesthetic theory of the period, which not only began to challenge the artistic limitations imposed by Classic aesthetic ideals, but also attempted to call into question the reason-based arguments for standard monotheistic beliefs that were prominent in the Enlightenment period (Beiser 2). Definitions and Traditional Uses of Religious Myth It is within this monotheistic Judeo-Christian tradition that German- language writers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, including those connected to the Romantic Movement, were producing their works. Although the eighteenth-century is often associated with the rise of secularism, it was a culture saturated with the Judeo-Christian religious traditions, and consequently familiar with the myths and folklore of these faiths. In fact, the Enlightenment philosophies that dominated the latter part of the eighteenth century partially grew out of a pious desire to “justify morality, religion, and the state” (Beiser 1, see also Mauthner 161). Philosophers, critics, and writers of this period sought to prove – through the use of reason – that the beliefs and traditions that had defined much of their culture for centuries were, in fact, true facts and not merely statements of faith. It was a devotion to the Judeo-Christian religious tradition, along with its respective beliefs concerning God, humankind, and eternal life that compelled the thinkers of this time to seek out supporting reasons for the validity of these beliefs. 3 However, for most of religious history, understanding of spirituality was not achieved through reason and argument. Instead, the nature of the spiritual realm and of religious dogma was presented through the use of myth. Since the presence and alterations of religious myth play such an important role in my analysis of these texts and of Romantic theory itself, a review on the definitions and uses of myth is needed. Admittedly, this is a difficult task, as many scholars and folklorist find it difficult to pin down any definite meaning to the term myth and its function in various historical periods and cultures (Dundes 2, Honko 41, Kirk 58). Other critics, such as Roland Barthes, have attempted to reevaluate myth and identify its usage in contemporary times, often separate from the religious aspect.1 However, Honko notes that although “myth can cover an extremely wide field,” traditionally a “myth expresses and confirms society’s religious values and norms” (Honko 41, 49). Bascom notes that these religious myths are typically prose narratives (Bascom 9). Karen Armstrong develops this definition, noting that historically, mythological stories have played a vital role in both demonstrating and preserving various social, institutional, and spiritual standards. Stories and parables within religious traditions often exist as fictional representations of a group’s or society’s respective religious beliefs and social standards. Armstrong writes: [A]ll mythology speaks of another plane that exists alongside our own world, and that in some sense supports it. Belief in this invisible but more powerful reality, sometimes called the world of the gods, is a basic theme of mythology […]. The myths gave explicit shape and form to a reality that people sensed intuitively. (A Short History of Myth Chapter 1) 1 See Roland Barthes Mythologies. 4 Myth allows the listener or reader to relate to this other plane of existence or reality – a reality that is distinctly separate from our own. By re-presenting the unfamiliar in familiar terms, myth functions as a tool in the education of a human subject in relation to the spiritual realm beyond the borders of our current physical universe. But a further point to consider is that by depicting this separate dimension through fictionalized portrayals of human experiences, myth becomes a specifically aesthetic tool in this spiritual education of the human subject: stories and themes must be crafted by a storyteller.2 As a religion, standard monotheistic Christianity is no different from the vast array of spiritualities in the world in that it has also used mythology and parables to demonstrate and legitimize its teachings