Der abenteuerliche Simplicissimus
Encyclopedia
Simplicius Simplicissimus is a picaresque novel
of the Baroque
style, written in 1668 by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen
and published the subsequent year. Inspired by the events and horrors of the Thirty Years' War
which had devastated Germany from 1618 to 1648, it is regarded as the first adventure novel
in the German language and the first German novel masterpiece.
The full subtitle is "The life of an odd vagrant named Melchior Sternfels von Fuchsheim: namely where and in what manner he came into this world, what he saw, learned, experienced, and endured therein; also why he again left it of his own free will."
named Simplicius in the Holy Roman Empire
during the 30 Years War as he grows up in the depraved environment and joins the armies of both warring sides, switching allegiances several times. Born to an illiterate peasant family, he is separated from his home by foraging dragoons and is eventually adopted by a forest hermit. He is conscripted at a young age into service, and from there embarks on years of foraging, military triumph, wealth, prostitution, disease, travels to Russia, and countless other adventures.
wrote the anti-war opera
Simplicius Simplicissimus for chamber orchestra in the mid-1930s, with contributions to the libretto
by his teacher Hermann Scherchen
. It opens:
It was first performed in 1948; Hartmann scored it for full orchestra in 1956. The chamber version (properly Der Simplicius Simplicissimus jugend) was revived by the Stuttgart State Opera in 2004.
Picaresque novel
The picaresque novel is a popular sub-genre of prose fiction which is usually satirical and depicts, in realistic and often humorous detail, the adventures of a roguish hero of low social class who lives by his wits in a corrupt society...
of the Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
style, written in 1668 by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen
Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen
Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen was a German author.-Biography:Grimmelshausen was born at Gelnhausen. At the age of ten he was kidnapped by Hessian soldiery, and in their midst tasted the adventures of military life in the Thirty Years' War...
and published the subsequent year. Inspired by the events and horrors of the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
which had devastated Germany from 1618 to 1648, it is regarded as the first adventure novel
Adventure novel
The adventure novel is a genre of novels that has adventure, an exciting undertaking involving risk and physical danger, as its main theme.-History:...
in the German language and the first German novel masterpiece.
The full subtitle is "The life of an odd vagrant named Melchior Sternfels von Fuchsheim: namely where and in what manner he came into this world, what he saw, learned, experienced, and endured therein; also why he again left it of his own free will."
Plot synopsis
The novel follows a boy from the SpessartSpessart
The Spessart is a low mountain range in northwestern Bavaria and southern Hesse, Germany. It is bordered on three sides by the Main River. The two most important towns located at the foot of the Spessart are Aschaffenburg and Würzburg....
named Simplicius in the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
during the 30 Years War as he grows up in the depraved environment and joins the armies of both warring sides, switching allegiances several times. Born to an illiterate peasant family, he is separated from his home by foraging dragoons and is eventually adopted by a forest hermit. He is conscripted at a young age into service, and from there embarks on years of foraging, military triumph, wealth, prostitution, disease, travels to Russia, and countless other adventures.
Literary history
The novel is considered by some to contain autobiographic elements, inspired by Grimmelshausen's experience in the war. The historian Robert Ergang, however, draws upon Gustav Könnecke's Quellen und Forschungen zur Lebensgeschichte Grimmelshausens to assert that "the events related in the novel Simplicissimus could hardly have been autobiographical since [Grimmelshausen] lived a peaceful existence in quiet towns and villages on the fringe of the Black Forest and that the material he incorporated in his work was not taken from actual experience, but was either borrowed from the past, collected from hearsay, or created by a vivid imagination."Opera adaptation
20th century composer Karl Amadeus HartmannKarl Amadeus Hartmann
Karl Amadeus Hartmann was a German composer. Some have lauded him as the greatest German symphonist of the 20th century, although he is now largely overlooked, particularly in English-speaking countries.-Life:...
wrote the anti-war opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
Simplicius Simplicissimus for chamber orchestra in the mid-1930s, with contributions to the libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by his teacher Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen was a German conductor.-Life:Scherchen was originally a violist and played among the violas of the Bluthner Orchestra of Berlin while still in his teens...
. It opens:
It was first performed in 1948; Hartmann scored it for full orchestra in 1956. The chamber version (properly Der Simplicius Simplicissimus jugend) was revived by the Stuttgart State Opera in 2004.
Editions
English translations include:- Simplicissimus, The German Adventurer, trans. John C. Osborne, Newfound Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0979729256
- The Simplicissimus Project, the 1912 trans. by A.T.S. Goodrick with additional material added by students at The College of William and Mary during Spring 2002.
- Simplicius Simplicissimus, trans. Monte Adair, 1986. Free download. ISBN 978-0819153494
- The Adventurous Simplicissimus, trans. Alfred Thomas Scrope Goodrick, London: William Heinemann, 1912. See also Project Gutenberg copy and later edition with new intro.