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The German Classics of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries Novel Chapters
List of most recent chapters published for the The German Classics of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries novel. A total of 990 chapters have been translated and the release date of the last chapter is Apr 02, 2024
Latest Release: Chapter 1 : The German Cla.s.sics of The Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.Volume I.by Editor-in-Ch
The German Cla.s.sics of The Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.Volume I.by Editor-in-Chief: Kuno Francke.PREFACE It is surprising how little the English-speaking world knows of German literature of the nineteenth century. Goethe and Schiller found their
- 101 No vulgar fear beseems the daughter of high Zeus, And her no lightly-fleeting terror-hand may touch; But that dire horror which, from womb of ancient Night, In time primeval rising, still in divers shapes, Like lurid clouds, from out the mountain's f
- 102 To Orcus hence, away! Seek thou thy kindred there!THIRD CHORISTER Who yonder dwell, in sooth, for thee are far too young.PHORKYAS Tiresias, the h.o.a.ry, go, make love to him! FOURTH CHORISTER Orion's nurse of old, was thy great-grand-daughter.PHORKY
- 103 PHORKYAS Nathless 'tis said thou didst in two-fold shape appear; Seen within Ilion's walls, and seen in Egypt too.HELENA Confuse thou not my brain, distraught and desolate!Here even, who I am in sooth I cannot tell. PHORKYAS 'Tis also said,
- 104 CHORUS To these tones, so sweetly flowing, Dire one! dost incline thine ears, They in us, new health bestowing, Waken now the joy of tears.Vanish may the sun's clear s.h.i.+ning, In our soul if day arise, In our heart we, unrepining, Find what the wh
- 105 Us he pa.s.sed with glance scorn-laden; Hastily still onward springing, Bearing now the wildest maiden Of our troop, he draweth nigh.EUPHORION (_bearing a young maiden_) I this wilful maid and coy Carry to enforced caress; For my pleasure, for my joy Her
- 106 HELENA, FAUST _and_ CHORUS Rashness to peril brings, And deadly fate!EUPHORION Yet--see a pair of wings Unfoldeth straight!Thither--I must, I must-- Grudge not my flight! [_He casts himself into the air; his garments support him for a moment; his head fla
- 107 PHILEMON I trow, He of wonders so amazing Fain would hear; inform him thou.BAUCIS There was wrought a wonder truly, Yet no rest it leaves to me; Naught in the affair was duly Done, as honest things should be!PHILEMON Who as sinful can p.r.o.nounce it?�
- 108 From here too-- FAUST That accursed here!It weighs upon me! Lend thine ear;-- To thine experience I must tell, With thrust on thrust, what wounds my heart; To bear it is impossible-- Nor can I, without shame, impart: The old folk there above must yield; W
- 109 The ancient saw still rings today: Force with a willing mind obey; If boldly thou canst stand the test, Stake house, court, life, and all the rest! [_Exeunt._] FAUST The stars their glance and radiance veil; Smoulders the sinking fire, a gale Fans it with
- 110 My proper place is this.FAUST (_first angry, then appeased. Aside_) Take heed, and speak no word of sorcery.CARE Though by outward ear unheard, By my moan the heart is stirred; And in ever-changeful guise, Cruel force I exercise; On the sh.o.r.e and on th
- 111 Here.FAUST As many as you may, Bring crowds on crowds to labor here; Them by reward and rigor cheer; Persuade, entice, give ample pay!Each day be tidings brought me at what rate The moat extends which here we excavate.MEPHISTOPHELES (_half aloud_) They s
- 112 The German Cla.s.sics of The Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.Vol. II.by Editor-in-Chief: Kuno Francke.INTRODUCTION TO THE ELECTIVE AFFINITIES In the spring of the year 1807 Goethe began work on the second part of _Wilhelm Meister_. He had no very defin
- 113 Edward's keen glance saw into the whole thing, and he pictured it out in just, sharp lines."Can we endure to think of our friend in such a position?" he cried; "you cannot be so cruel, Charlotte.""That strange Mittler is righ
- 114 "To conclude generally, I should say she learns nothing like a person who is being educated, but she learns like one who is to educate--not like a pupil, but like a future teacher. Your ladys.h.i.+p may think it strange that I, as an educator and a t
- 115 They are of opposite natures; very likely their being of opposite natures is the secret of their inter-relational effect--each reaches out eagerly for its companion, they lay hold of each other, modify each other's character, and form in connection a
- 116 "Why such humility?" said Charlotte, a little embarra.s.sed, and endeavoring to raise her from the ground."It is not meant for humility," Ottilie answered, without moving from the position in which she had placed herself; "I am on
- 117 While they were occupied in this way, much of the business which the two friends had undertaken together had come to a standstill; so that they found it necessary to inspect how things were going on--to work up a few designs and get letters written. For t
- 118 "Three things," he began, "are to be looked to in a building--that it stand on the right spot; that it be securely founded; that it be successfully executed. The first is the business of the master of the house--his and his only. As in the
- 119 CHAPTER X The visitors were welcomed and brought in. They were delighted to find themselves again in the same house and in the same rooms where in early times they had pa.s.sed many happy days, but which they had not seen for a long time. Their friends to
- 120 CHAPTER XI Edward went with the Count to his room. They continued talking, and he was easily prevailed upon to stay a little time longer there. The Count lost himself in old times, spoke eagerly of Charlotte's beauty, which, as a critic, he dwelt upo
- 121 When Edward sprang on sh.o.r.e, and, pus.h.i.+ng off the boat, had himself committed his wife and his friend to the uncertain element, Charlotte found herself face to face with the man on whose account she had been already secretly suffering so bitterly,
- 122 THE long-wished-for morning dawned at last on Edward; and very soon a number of guests arrived. They had sent out a large number of invitations, and many who had missed the laying of the foundation-stone, which was reported to have been so charming, were
- 123 To escape only for a moment, Edward answered, "It is not yet clear to me what you want.""My intention," she replied, "was to talk over with you these two proposals--each of them has its advantages. The school would be best suited
- 124 Stirred and penetrated as Edward was with the bitterest feelings, words like these could but have a hollow, worthless sound."It is well," he cried, "for the man who is happy, who has all that he desires, to talk; but he would be ashamed of
- 125 It was impossible for him not at once to take this chapel into his plan; and he determined to bestow especial pains on the restoring of this little spot, as a memorial of old times and of their taste. He saw exactly how he would like to have the vacant su
- 126 Charlotte's daughter, Luciana, had scarcely left the school and gone out into the great world; scarcely had she found herself at her aunt's house in the midst of a large society, than her anxiety to please produced its effect in really pleasing;
- 127 "The man of understanding finds almost everything ridiculous; the man of thought scarcely anything.""Some one found fault with an elderly man for continuing to pay attention to young ladies. 'It is the only means,' he replied, �
- 128 And now they were to break up. But this could not be managed in an ordinary way. They were one day making fun of Charlotte aloud, declaring that they would soon have eaten out her winter stores, when the n.o.bleman who had represented Belisarius, being fo
- 129 "If you knew," he said, "how roughly even cultivated people allow themselves to handle the most valuable works of art, you would forgive me for not producing mine among the crowd. No one will take the trouble to hold a medal by the rim. The
- 130 It was not without a purpose that the young man had spoken of a helpmate--of a wife; for with all his diffidence, he could not refrain from thus remotely hinting at his own wishes. A number of circ.u.mstances and accidents, indeed, combined to induce him
- 131 To see thus side by side birth and death, the coffin and the cradle, to see them and to realize them, to comprehend not with the eye of imagination, but with the bodily eye, at one moment these fearful opposites, was a hard trial to the spectators; the ha
- 132 The state in which Edward was came before her in a light so piteous, so miserable, that she made up her mind, let it cost her what it would, that she would do everything in her power to unite him again with Charlotte, and she herself would go and hide her
- 133 CHAPTER XII The object of the campaign was attained, and Edward, with crosses and decorations, was honorably dismissed. He betook himself at once to the same little estate, where he found exact accounts of his family waiting for him, on whom all this time
- 134 CHAPTER XIV She hurried to the new house, and called the surgeon and gave the child into his hands. It was carried at once to Charlotte's sleeping-room.Cool and collected from a wide experience, he submitted the tender body to the usual process. Otti
- 135 "If your resolution to renounce Edward," returned Charlotte, "is so firm and unalterable, then you had better avoid the danger of seeing him again. At a distance from the object of our love, the warmer our affection, the stronger is the con
- 136 What habitually befalls any person repeats itself more often than one is apt to suppose, because his own nature gives the immediate occasion for it. Character, individuality, inclination, tendency, locality, circ.u.mstance, and habits, form together a who
- 137 But from time to time a sort of restlessness came over him; he would desire to eat and drink something, and would begin again to speak. "Ah!"he said, one day to the Major, who now seldom left his side, "how unhappy I am that all my efforts
- 138 It is in this sense that Shakespeare's productions are most dramatic; he wins the reader by his mode of treatment, of disclosing man's innermost life; the demands of the stage appear unessential to him, and thus he takes an easy course, and, in
- 139 On the other hand, the Greeks, with their moderation and clarity, are to him most precious models. He feels himself allied with them in taste; religion, customs, and legislation all give him opportunity to exercise his versatility, and since neither the G
- 140 "I understand you," said Wilhelm. "Why should we not also apply spiritually, what is so necessary in bodily matters? But perhaps in another respect you can satisfy my curiosity. I am surprised at the great variety in the cut and color of th
- 141 J. W. VON GOETHE.PREFACE The friends of art who have for several years been a.s.sociated at Weimar are surely privileged to speak of their relation to the general public, because (and this is the final test) they have always expressed similar convictions
- 142 However much Winckelmann wandered about in the fields of possible and profitable knowledge, guided partly by pleasure and inclination, partly by necessity, he always came back sooner or later to antiquity, especially to Greek antiquity, with which he felt
- 143 One would form this judgment even if he had designed nothing else than the Minerva of Athens or the Olympian Jupiter at Elis, the beauty of which was of great advantage, as has been said, to the established religion; so closely does the work approach the
- 144 He always labored most diligently to secure a competence for his old age. His means are n.o.ble; in his efforts to attain every end he shows himself honest, straightforward, even defiant, and at the same time clever and persevering. He never works after a
- 145 If a man is to achieve all that is asked of him, he must take himself for more than he is, and as long as he does not carry it to an absurd length, we willingly put up with it.People whip curds to see if they cannot make cream of them.Wisdom lies only in
- 146 As in Rome there is, apart from the Romans, a population of statues, so apart from this real world there is a world of illusion, almost more potent, in which most men live.Mankind is like the Red Sea; the staff has scarcely parted the waves asunder before
- 147 The real scholar learns how to evolve the unknown from the known, and draws near the master.In the smithy the iron is softened by blowing up the fire, and taking the dross from the bar. As soon as it is purified, it is beaten and pressed, and becomes firm
- 148 That is the reason why the Bible will never lose its power; because, as long as the world lasts, no one can stand up and say: I grasp it as a whole and understand all the parts of it. But we say humbly: as a whole it is worthy of respect, and in all its p
- 149 Nature lives in her children only, and the mother, where is she? She is the sole artist--out of the simplest materials the greatest diversity; attaining, with no trace of effort, the finest perfection, the closest precision, always softly veiled. Each of
- 150 "With a _given_ material, on the other hand, all goes easier and better.Facts and characters being provided, the poet has only the task of animating the whole. He preserves his own fulness, for he needs to part with but little of himself, and there i
- 151 The conversation now turned on _Werthe_. "That," said Goethe, "is a creation which I, like the pelican, fed with the blood of my own heart.It contains so much from the innermost recesses of my breast--so much feeling and thought, that it mi
- 152 _Tuesday, November 9_.--I pa.s.sed this evening with Goethe. We talked of Klopstock and Herder; and I liked to listen to him, as he explained to me the merits of those men."Without those powerful precursors," said Goethe, "our literature co
- 153 "All Upper Germany," said he, "is indebted to Wieland for its style. It has learned much from him; and the capability of expressing itself correctly is not the least."On mentioning the _Xenien_,[15] he especially praised those of Schil
- 154 "If Lord Byron," said Goethe, "had had an opportunity of working off all the opposition in his character, by a number of strong parliamentary speeches, he would have been much more pure as a poet. But, as he scarcely ever spoke in parliamen
- 155 "Mind, above all, you stick to words, Thus through the safe gate you will go Into the fane of certainty; For when ideas begin to fail A word will aptly serve your turn," etc.Goethe recited this pa.s.sage laughing, and seemed altogether in the be
- 156 Goethe read the scene quite to the end. I was pleased with his youthful productive strength, and with the closeness of the whole. "As the conception," said Goethe, "is so old--for I have had it in my mind for fifty years--the materials have
- 157 "And if it were only the narrow-minded ma.s.ses that persecuted n.o.ble men!But no! one gifted man and one genius persecutes another; Platen scandalizes Heine, and Heine Platen, and each seeks to make the other hateful; while the world is wide enough
- 158 2. For papal medals from Innocent XIII inclusive; I have very fine specimens of Hamerani's[25] medals of Clement XI.3. For a medal to be ordered from Mercandetti, a commission which I especially urge both on you and on Humboldt; for the enterprise is
- 159 You, however, my dearest friend, be and remain blessed for the benefaction which you have done us. This your _Agamemnon_ shall never again leave my side.I cannot judge the rhythmic merit, but I believe I feel it. Our admirable, talented, and original frie
- 160 Of my _Faust_ there is much and little to say; at a peculiarly happy time the apothegm occurred to me: "If bards ye are, as ye maintain; Now let your inspiration show it."And through a mysterious psychological turn, which probably deserves inves
- 161 Weimar, February 28, 1811.I have read somewhere that the celebrated first secretary of the London Society, Oldenburg, never opened a letter until he had placed pen, ink, and paper before him, and that he then and there, immediately after the first reading
- 162 [Footnote 12: The German phrase "Freund des Bestehenden," which, for want of a better expression, has been rendered above "friend of the powers that be," literally means "friend of the permanent," and was used by the detracto
- 163 The German Cla.s.sics of The Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.Vol. III.by Kuno Francke, Editor-in-Chief.THE LIFE OF SCHILLER BY CALVIN THOMAS, LL.D. Professor of Germanic Languages and Literatures, Columbia University He kept the faith. The ardent poet-
- 164 THE VEILED IMAGE AT SAS (1795) A youth, whom wisdom's warm desire had lured To learn the secret lore of Egypt's priests, To Sas came. And soon, from step to step Of upward mystery, swept his rapid soul!Still ever sped the glorious Hope along, No
- 165 But fly the boundary of the Senses--live The Ideal life free Thought can give; And, lo, the gulf shall vanish, and the chill Of the soul's impotent despair be gone!And with divinity thou sharest the throne, Let but divinity become thy will!Scorn not
- 166 THE DIVISION OF RANKS Yes, in the moral world, as ours, we see Divided grades--a Souls n.o.bility; By deeds their t.i.tles Commoners create-- The loftier order are by birthright great.[5] TO THE MYSTIC Spreads Lifes true mystery round us evermore, Seen by
- 167 (FREE TRANSLATION) The calm correctness, where no fault we see, Attests Art's loftiest or its least degree; Alike the smoothness of the surface shows The Pool's dull stagner--the great Sea's repose.THE MASTER The herd of scribes, by what th
- 168 Fair Cunigonde said, with a lip of scorn, To the knight DELORGES--"If the love you have sworn Were as gallant and leal as you boast it to be, I might ask you to bring back that glove to me!"The knight left the place where the lady sate; The knig
- 169 In his heart, as he listen'd, there leapt the wild joy-- And the hope and the love through his eyes spoke in fire, On that bloom, on that blush, gazed delighted the boy; The maiden-she faints at the feet of her sire!Here the guerdon divine, there the
- 170 And Virtue is more than a shade or a sound, And Man may her voice, in this being, obey; And though ever he slip on the stony ground, Yet, ever again to the G.o.dlike way, To the _science_ of Good though the Wise may be blind, Yet the _practice_ is plain t
- 171 Look--look--red as blood All on high!It is not the daylight that fills with its flood The sky!What a clamor awaking Roars up through the street!What a h.e.l.l-vapor breaking Rolls on through the street!And higher and higher Aloft moves the Column of Fire!
- 172 Where can Peace find a refuge? Whither, say, Can Freedom turn? Lo, friend, before our view The CENTURY rends itself in storm away, And, red with slaughter, dawns on earth the New!The girdle of the lands is loosen'd[16]--hurl'd To dust the forms
- 173 Swift with the fire the minstrel glow'd, And loud the music swept the ear:-- "Forth to the chase a Hero rode, To hunt the bounding chamois-deer; With shaft and horn the squire behind;-- Through greensward meads the riders wind-- A small sweet be
- 174 _The Piccolomini_, which could not be reprinted in this anthology, presents essentially what is called the "exposition" of the entire drama, together with a _part_ of the complication of the plot.Questenberg, the imperial commissioner, visits Wa
- 175 SENI.Your Highness must permit me Just to contemplate Venus. She's now rising; Like as a sun, so s.h.i.+nes she in the east.WALLENST.She is at present in her perigee, And now shoots down her strongest influences.[_Contemplating the figure on the tabl
- 176 He has heard it.ILLO (_to_ WALLENSTEIN).Thinkest thou still To make thy peace with the Emperor, to regain His confidence? E'en were it now thy wish To abandon all thy plans, yet still they know What thou hast wish'd: then forwards thou must pres
- 177 The first step to revolt's already taken.ILLO.Believe me, thou wilt find it far more easy To lead them over to the enemy Than to the Spaniard.WALLENSTEIN.I will hear, however, What the Swede has to say to me. ILLO (_eagerly to_ TERZKY).Go, call him H
- 178 [WALLENST.You pluck'd the Admiral's hat from off my head.WRANGEL.I come to place a diadem thereon.]WALLENSTEIN (_makes the motion for him to take a seat, and seats himself_). And where are your credentials?Come you provided with full powers, Sir
- 179 And this Bohemian land for which we fight-- [Loves not the master whom the chance of war, Not its own choice or will, hath given to it.Men murmur at the oppression of their conscience, And power hath only awed but not appeased them; A glowing and avenging
- 180 WALLENST. Surrender up to you my capital! Far liever would I face about, and step Back to my Emperor. WRANGEL. If time yet permits-- WALLENST. That lies with me, even now, at any hour. WRANGEL. Some days ago, perhaps. Today, no longer; No longer since S
- 181 The enmity of sects, the rage of parties, Long cherishd envy, jealousy, unite; And all the struggling elements of evil Suspend their conflict, and together league In one alliance gainst their common foe-- The savage beast that breaks into the fold, Where
- 182 If there were yet a choice! if yet some milder Way of escape were possible--I still Will choose it, and avoid the last extreme.COUNTESS.Desirest thou nothing further? Such a way Lies still before thee. Send this Wrangel off.Forget thou thy old hopes, cast
- 183 The zodiacs, the rolling orbs of heaven, Hast pictured on these walls, and all around thee In dumb, foreboding symbols hast thou placed These seven presiding Lords of Destiny-- For toys? Is all this preparation nothing?Is there no marrow in this hollow ar
- 184 [_He stops himself, expecting_ PICCOLOMINI's _answer_.]I have ta'en thee by surprise. Answer me not.I grant thee time to recollect thyself.[_He rises, retires at the back of the stage_. MAX _remains for a long time motionless, in a trance of exc
- 185 WALLENSTEIN, TERZKY TERZKY. Max Piccolomini just left you? WALLENSTEIN. Where is Wrangel? TERZKY. He is already gone. WALLENSTEIN. In such a hurry? TERZKY. It is as if the earth had swallowd him. He had scarce left thee when I went to seek him. I wishd
- 186 WALLENSTEIN.That's not true.ILLO.O thou art blind, With thy deep-seeing eyes!WALLENSTEIN. Thou wilt not shake My faith for me--my faith, which founds itself On the profoundest science. If 'tis false, Then the whole science of the stars is false;
- 187 ISOLANI. Here am I--Well! who comes yet of the others? OCTAVIO (_with an air of mystery_). But, first, a word with you, Count Isolani. ISOLANI (_a.s.suming the same air of mystery_). Will it explode, ha?--Is the Duke about To make the attempt? In me, fr
- 188 Plain and simple You must declare you, whether you determine To act a treason gainst your Lord and Sovereign, Or whether you will serve him faithfully. ISOLANI. Treason!--My G.o.d!--But who talks then of treason? OCTAVIO. That is the case. The Prince-duke
- 189 Tis only the like-minded can unite. OCTAVIO. True! and I name all honest men like-minded. I never charge a man but with those acts To which his character deliberately Impels him; for alas! the violence Of blind misunderstandings often thrusts The very bes
- 190 Your insolent scoff shall not go by unpunish'd.Draw!OCTAVIO.Nay! your sword to 'ts sheath! and tell me calmly, How all that happen'd. I will not refuse you Your satisfaction afterward. Calmly, Butler!BUTLER. Be the whole world acquainted wi
- 191 OCTAVIO. Receive it then anew, from my hands--and Wear it with honor for the right cause ever. BUTLER. Perjure myself to such a gracious Sovereign! OCTAVIO. Youll make amends. Quick! break off from the Duke! BUTLER. Break off from him! OCTAVIO. What now
- 192 MAX.I follow thee?Thy way is crooked--it is not my way.[OCTAVIO _drops his hand, and starts back_.]O, hadst thou been but simple and sincere, Ne'er had it come to this--all had stood otherwise. He had not done that foul and horrible deed, The virtuou
- 193 The hearts voice _thou_ hast not oerpowered--as little Will Wallenstein be able to oerpower it. OCTAVIO. O, Max! I see thee never more again! MAX. Unworthy of thee wilt thou never see me. OCTAVIO. I go to Frauenburg--the Pappenheimers I leave thee here,
- 194 Exactly at _this_ time? COUNTESS. He now knows all: Twere now the moment to declare himself. THEKLA. If Im to understand you, speak less darkly. COUNTESS. Twas for that purpose that I bade her leave us. Thekla, you are no more a child. Your heart Is now
- 195 The son secures the father to our interests-- You've much in your hands at this moment.THEKLA.Ah!My miserable mother! what a death-stroke Awaits thee!--No! she never will survive it.COUNTESS. She will accommodate her soul to that Which is and must be
- 196 THEKLA.O let us supplicate him, dearest mother!Quick! quick! here's no abiding place for us.Here every coming hour broods into life Some new affrightful monster.d.u.c.h.eSS. Thou wilt share An easier, calmer lot, my child! We too, I and thy father, w
- 197 ILLO. And doubt not That his example will win over to you The best men in the army. WALLENSTEIN. Go and send Isolani hither. Send him immediately; He is under recent obligations to me: With him will I commence the trial. Go. [_Exit_ ILLO.] WALLENSTEIN (
- 198 Hast thou neer noticed it? Nor yet my sister? d.u.c.h.eSS. Was it this that lay so heavy on her heart? G.o.ds blessing on thee, my sweet child! Thou needst Never take shame upon thee for thy choice. COUNTESS. This journey, if twere not thy aim, ascribe
- 199 d.u.c.h.eSS. And to no other of your lands or seats? WALLENST. You would not be secure there. d.u.c.h.eSS. Not secure In the Emperors realms, beneath the Emperors Protection? WALLENSTEIN. Friedlands wife may be permitted No longer to hope _that_. d.u.c.
- 200 SCENE VI _To them enter_ ILLO. ILLO. Has Terzky told thee? TERZKY. He knows all. ILLO. And likewise That Esterhatzy, Goetz, Maradas, Kaunitz, Kolalto, Palfi, have forsaken thee. TERZKY. d.a.m.nation! WALLENSTEIN (_winks at them_). Hus.h.!.+ COUNTESS (_w