Die Gedanken sind frei
Encyclopedia
"Die Gedanken sind frei" is a German
song about the freedom of thought
. The text and the melody can be found in Lieder der Brienzer Mädchen, printed in Bern, Switzerland
between 1810 and 1820. The original lyricist and the composer are unknown, though the most popular version Aus Neukirch bei Schönau (Nowy Kościół) was rendered by Hoffmann von Fallersleben
in his 1842 collection Schlesische Volkslieder mit Melodien.
and became prominent again in the Middle Ages
, when Walther von der Vogelweide
(c.1170-1230) wrote: joch sint iedoch gedanke frî ("yet still thoughts are free"). In the 12th century, Austrian
minnesinger Dietmar von Aist
(presumably) had composed the song Gedanke die sint ledic vrî ("only thoughts are free"). About 1229, Freidank
wrote: diu bant mac nieman vinden, diu mîne gedanke binden. ("this band may no one twine, that will my thoughts confine").
The text as it first occurred on leaflets about 1780 originally had four strophe
s, to which a fifth was later added. Today, their order may vary. An early version in the shape of a dialogue between a captive and his beloved can be found under the title Lied des Verfolgten im Thurm. Nach Schweizerliedern ("Song of the persecuted in the tower. After Swiss songs") in Achim von Arnim and Clemens Brentano
's circa 1805 folk poetry collection Des Knaben Wunderhorn
, Vol. III. This version was given a new musical setting by Gustav Mahler
in his 1898 Lieder aus "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" for voice and orchestra.
The rhyme scheme of the lyrics is a - b/ a - b/ c - c/ d - d.
and the Age of Metternich Die Gedanken sind frei was a popular protest song
against political repression
and censorship
, especially among the banned Burschenschaft
en student fraternities.
In the aftermath of the 1848 German Revolution the song was proscribed.
The song was important to certain anti-Nazi resistance
movements in Germany. In 1942, Sophie Scholl
, a member of the White Rose
resistance group, played the song on her flute outside the walls of Ulm
prison, where her father Robert had been detained for calling the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler
a "scourge of God". Earlier, in 1935, the guards at the Lichtenburg concentration camp
had ordered prisoners to stage a performance in celebration of Hitler's 46th birthday; the imprisoned Jewish lawyer Hans Litten
recited Die Gedanken sind frei in response.
Pete Seeger
recorded the song in 1966 on his Dangerous Songs!?
album. Norwegian composer Alf Cranner translated and recorded it as Din tanke er fri in 1985. Parts of the poem were also taken as the basis of a song on the 2005 album
of the band Brazilian Girls
.
Die Gedanken sind frei was used as the theme and was sung by the Allied prisoners of war in the 1971 TV movie The Birdmen, which was a fictionalized dramatization of an attempt to escape from the German Oflag IV-C
camp at Colditz Castle
in World War II. It was also featured in the 1998 German movie 23
about the hacker Karl Koch.
In Canadian author Jean Little's
1972 book From Anna
the song is used to represent the freedom the titular character's father craves for his children, and as such figures predominantly into the plot at the beginning of the novel.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
song about the freedom of thought
Freedom of thought
Freedom of thought is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints....
. The text and the melody can be found in Lieder der Brienzer Mädchen, printed in Bern, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
between 1810 and 1820. The original lyricist and the composer are unknown, though the most popular version Aus Neukirch bei Schönau (Nowy Kościół) was rendered by Hoffmann von Fallersleben
August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben
' , who used Hoffmann von Fallersleben as his pen name, was a German poet. He is best known for writing "Das Lied der Deutschen", its third stanza now being the national anthem of Germany, and a number of popular children's songs.- Biography :Hoffmann was born in Fallersleben , Brunswick-Lüneburg,...
in his 1842 collection Schlesische Volkslieder mit Melodien.
Text
The idea represented in the title — that thoughts are free — was expressed as early as in AntiquityClassical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
and became prominent again in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, when Walther von der Vogelweide
Walther von der Vogelweide
Walther von der Vogelweide is the most celebrated of the Middle High German lyric poets.-Life history:For all his fame, Walther's name is not found in contemporary records, with the exception of a solitary mention in the travelling accounts of Bishop Wolfger of Erla of the Passau diocese:...
(c.1170-1230) wrote: joch sint iedoch gedanke frî ("yet still thoughts are free"). In the 12th century, Austrian
Archduchy of Austria
The Archduchy of Austria , one of the most important states within the Holy Roman Empire, was the nucleus of the Habsburg Monarchy and the predecessor of the Austrian Empire...
minnesinger Dietmar von Aist
Dietmar von Aist
Dietmar von Aist was a Minnesinger from a baronial family of Upper Austria, documented between 1140 and 1171,whose work is representative of the lyric poetry of the Danube region.-Life:...
(presumably) had composed the song Gedanke die sint ledic vrî ("only thoughts are free"). About 1229, Freidank
Freidank
Freidank was a Middle High German lyric poet of the early 13th century.-Life:He presumed to be of Swabian origin and was probably born at the end of the 12th century in the Alemannic linguistic region...
wrote: diu bant mac nieman vinden, diu mîne gedanke binden. ("this band may no one twine, that will my thoughts confine").
The text as it first occurred on leaflets about 1780 originally had four strophe
Strophe
A strophe forms the first part of the ode in Ancient Greek tragedy, followed by the antistrophe and epode. In its original Greek setting, "strophe, antistrophe and epode were a kind of stanza framed only for the music," as John Milton wrote in the preface to Samson Agonistes, with the strophe...
s, to which a fifth was later added. Today, their order may vary. An early version in the shape of a dialogue between a captive and his beloved can be found under the title Lied des Verfolgten im Thurm. Nach Schweizerliedern ("Song of the persecuted in the tower. After Swiss songs") in Achim von Arnim and Clemens Brentano
Clemens Brentano
Clemens Brentano, or Klemens Brentano was a German poet and novelist.-Overview:He was born in Ehrenbreitstein, near Koblenz, Germany. His sister was Bettina von Arnim, Goethe's correspondent. His father's family was of Italian descent. He studied in Halle and Jena, afterwards residing at...
's circa 1805 folk poetry collection Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Des Knaben Wunderhorn is a collection of German folk poems edited by Achim von Arnim and Clemens Brentano, and published in Heidelberg, in the Grand Duchy of Baden, between 1805 and 1808...
, Vol. III. This version was given a new musical setting by Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler was a late-Romantic Austrian composer and one of the leading conductors of his generation. He was born in the village of Kalischt, Bohemia, in what was then Austria-Hungary, now Kaliště in the Czech Republic...
in his 1898 Lieder aus "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" for voice and orchestra.
The lyrics
Die Gedanken sind frei, wer kann sie erraten, sie fliegen vorbei wie nächtliche Schatten. Kein Mensch kann sie wissen, kein Jäger erschießen mit Pulver und Blei: Die Gedanken sind frei! Ich denke was ich will und was mich beglücket, doch alles in der Still', und wie es sich schicket. Mein Wunsch und Begehren kann niemand mir wehren, es bleibet dabei: Die Gedanken sind frei! Und sperrt man mich ein im finsteren Kerker, das alles sind rein vergebliche Werke. Denn meine Gedanken zerreißen die Schranken und Mauern entzwei: Die Gedanken sind frei! Drum will ich auf immer den Sorgen absagen und will mich auch nimmer mit Grillen mehr plagen. Man kann ja im Herzen stets lachen und scherzen und denken dabei: Die Gedanken sind frei! Ich liebe den Wein, mein Mädchen vor allen, sie tut mir allein am besten gefallen. Ich sitz nicht alleine bei einem Glas Weine, mein Mädchen dabei: Die Gedanken sind frei! |
Thoughts are free, who can guess them? They flee by like nocturnal shadows. No man can know them, no hunter can shoot them with powder and lead: Thoughts are free! I think what I want, and what delights me, still always reticent, and as it is suitable. My wish and desire, no one can deny me and so it will always be: Thoughts are free! And if I am thrown into the darkest dungeon, all this would be futile work, because my thoughts tear all gates and walls apart: Thoughts are free! So I will renounce my sorrows forever, and never again will torture myself with whimsies. In one's heart, one can always laugh and joke and think at the same time: Thoughts are free! I love wine, and my girl even more, Only her I like best of all. I'm not alone with my glass of wine, my girl is with me: Thoughts are free! |
The rhyme scheme of the lyrics is a - b/ a - b/ c - c/ d - d.
Adaptations
Since the days of the Carlsbad DecreesCarlsbad Decrees
The Carlsbad Decrees were a set of reactionary restrictions introduced in the states of the German Confederation by resolution of the Bundesversammlung on 20 September 1819 after a conference held in the spa town of Carlsbad, Bohemia...
and the Age of Metternich Die Gedanken sind frei was a popular protest song
Protest song
A protest song is a song which is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of topical songs . It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre...
against political repression
Political repression
Political repression is the persecution of an individual or group for political reasons, particularly for the purpose of restricting or preventing their ability to take political life of society....
and censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
, especially among the banned Burschenschaft
Burschenschaft
German Burschenschaften are a special type of Studentenverbindungen . Burschenschaften were founded in the 19th century as associations of university students inspired by liberal and nationalistic ideas.-History:-Beginnings 1815–c...
en student fraternities.
In the aftermath of the 1848 German Revolution the song was proscribed.
The song was important to certain anti-Nazi resistance
German Resistance
The German resistance was the opposition by individuals and groups in Germany to Adolf Hitler or the National Socialist regime between 1933 and 1945. Some of these engaged in active plans to remove Adolf Hitler from power and overthrow his regime...
movements in Germany. In 1942, Sophie Scholl
Sophie Scholl
Sophia Magdalena Scholl was a German student, active within the White Rose non-violent resistance group in Nazi Germany. She was convicted of high treason after having been found distributing anti-war leaflets at the University of Munich with her brother Hans...
, a member of the White Rose
White Rose
The White Rose was a non-violent/intellectual resistance group in Nazi Germany, consisting of students from the University of Munich and their philosophy professor...
resistance group, played the song on her flute outside the walls of Ulm
Ulm
Ulm is a city in the federal German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the River Danube. The city, whose population is estimated at 120,000 , forms an urban district of its own and is the administrative seat of the Alb-Donau district. Ulm, founded around 850, is rich in history and...
prison, where her father Robert had been detained for calling the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
a "scourge of God". Earlier, in 1935, the guards at the Lichtenburg concentration camp
Lichtenburg (concentration camp)
Lichtenburg was a Nazi concentration camp, housed in a Renaissance castle in Prettin, near Wittenberg in eastern Germany. Along with Sachsenburg, it was among the first to be built by the Nazis, and was operated by the SS from 1933 to 1939. It held as many as 2000 male prisoners from 1933 to 1937...
had ordered prisoners to stage a performance in celebration of Hitler's 46th birthday; the imprisoned Jewish lawyer Hans Litten
Hans Litten
Hans Achim Litten was a German lawyer who represented opponents of the Nazis at important political trials between 1929 and 1932, defending the rights of workers during the Weimar Republic. During one trial in 1931, Litten subpoenaed Adolf Hitler, to appear as a witness, where Litten then...
recited Die Gedanken sind frei in response.
Pete Seeger
Pete Seeger
Peter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
recorded the song in 1966 on his Dangerous Songs!?
Dangerous Songs!?
Dangerous Songs!? is a 1966 album by Pete Seeger and was released on the Columbia Records label.-Track listing:# "Medley: Robin The Bobbin/ Mary, Mary Quite Contrary/ Little Jack Horner"# Die Gedanken sind frei 1:52# Jackaro 3:53...
album. Norwegian composer Alf Cranner translated and recorded it as Din tanke er fri in 1985. Parts of the poem were also taken as the basis of a song on the 2005 album
Brazilian Girls (album)
Brazilian Girls is the first album by Brazilian Girls. It was released on February 1, 2005 by Verve Records. The album mixes a number of different musical styles, from reggae to samba and house to acid jazz, as well as many different languages, as lead singer Sabina Sciubba goes from English to...
of the band Brazilian Girls
Brazilian Girls
Brazilian Girls was a band from New York City known for their eclectic blend of electronic dance music with musical styles as diverse as tango, chanson, house, reggae and lounge. None of the members are actually from Brazil and the only female in the band is Sabina Sciubba. Other members include...
.
Die Gedanken sind frei was used as the theme and was sung by the Allied prisoners of war in the 1971 TV movie The Birdmen, which was a fictionalized dramatization of an attempt to escape from the German Oflag IV-C
Oflag IV-C
Oflag IV-C, often referred to as Colditz Castle because of its location, was one of the most famous German Army prisoner-of-war camps for officers in World War II; Oflag is a shortening of Offizierslager, meaning "officers camp"...
camp at Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle is a Renaissance castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden, and Chemnitz in the state of Saxony in Germany. Used as a workhouse for the indigent and a mental institution for over 100 years, it gained international fame as a prisoner-of-war camp during World War II for...
in World War II. It was also featured in the 1998 German movie 23
23 (film)
23 is a 1998 German drama thriller film about a young hacker Karl Koch, who died on 23 May 1989, a presumed suicide. It was directed by Hans-Christian Schmid, who also participated in screenwriting. The title derives from the protagonist's obsession with the number 23, a phenomenon often described...
about the hacker Karl Koch.
In Canadian author Jean Little's
Jean Little
Jean Little is a Canadian author born on January 2, 1932. Her work has mainly consisted of children's literature, but she has also written two autobiographies: Little by Little and Stars Come Out Within. Little has been partially blind since birth as a result of scars on her cornea and is...
1972 book From Anna
From Anna
From Anna is a children's novel written by Canadian children's author Jean Little. It is the story of Anna Solden, a visually impaired child who moves from Germany to Canada with her family, on the eve of Hitler's rise to power in Germany. The book is one of Jean Little's most popular...
the song is used to represent the freedom the titular character's father craves for his children, and as such figures predominantly into the plot at the beginning of the novel.