John Oxenford
Encyclopedia
John Oxenford English
dramatist, was born at Camberwell
, London
, England
.
, and the author of many translations from German
, notably of Goethe's Dichtung und Wahrheit
(1846) and Eckermann
's Conversations with Goethe (1850).
His first play was My Fellow Clerk, produced at the Lyceum Theatre in 1835. This was followed by a long series of pieces, the most famous of which was perhaps the Porter's Knot (1858) and Twice Killed (1835). About 1850, he became dramatic critic of The Times
. He wrote a version of Last Days of Pompeii in 1872. He also wrote many operatic libretti, including eight for George Alexander Macfarren
, including Robin Hood (1860).
Bryan Magee
, in his The Philosophy of Schopenhauer, described how Oxenford contributed to the promulgation of Schopenhauer
's work. Oxenford's anonymous Westminster Review
1853 article, "Iconoclasm in German Philosophy," was written in order to present Schopenhauer as a critic of Hegel. It was translated and published in the Vossische Zeitung
, which resulted in German readers showing enthusiastic and enduring interest in Schopenhauer's writings. It also advanced the cause of Wagner in Britain.
He died in Southwark
on 21 February 1877.
, which itself was the basis of the stage musical and movie Hello, Dolly!
.
Many references to his pieces will be found in The Life and Reminiscences of E. L. Blanchard (ed. C Scott and C Howard, 1891).
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
dramatist, was born at Camberwell
Camberwell
Camberwell is a district of south London, England, and forms part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is a built-up inner city district located southeast of Charing Cross. To the west it has a boundary with the London Borough of Lambeth.-Toponymy:...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Life
He began his literary career by writing on finance. He was an excellent linguistLinguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
, and the author of many translations from German
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....
, notably of Goethe's Dichtung und Wahrheit
Dichtung und Wahrheit
Aus meinem Leben: Dichtung und Wahrheit is an autobiography by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe that comprises the time from the poet's childhood to the days in 1775, when he was about to leave for Weimar....
(1846) and Eckermann
Johann Peter Eckermann
Johann Peter Eckermann , German poet and author, is best known for his work Conversations with Goethe, the fruit of his association with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe during the last years of Goethe's life.-Biography:...
's Conversations with Goethe (1850).
His first play was My Fellow Clerk, produced at the Lyceum Theatre in 1835. This was followed by a long series of pieces, the most famous of which was perhaps the Porter's Knot (1858) and Twice Killed (1835). About 1850, he became dramatic critic of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. He wrote a version of Last Days of Pompeii in 1872. He also wrote many operatic libretti, including eight for George Alexander Macfarren
George Alexander Macfarren
Sir George Alexander Macfarren was an English composer.-Life:George Alexander Macfarren was born in London on 2 March 1813 to George Macfarren, a dancing-master, dramatic author, and journalist, and Elizabeth Macfarren, née Jackson. At the age of seven, Macfarren was sent to Dr...
, including Robin Hood (1860).
Bryan Magee
Bryan Magee
Bryan Edgar Magee is a noted British broadcasting personality, politician, poet, and author, best known as a popularizer of philosophy.-Early life:...
, in his The Philosophy of Schopenhauer, described how Oxenford contributed to the promulgation of Schopenhauer
Arthur Schopenhauer
Arthur Schopenhauer was a German philosopher known for his pessimism and philosophical clarity. At age 25, he published his doctoral dissertation, On the Fourfold Root of the Principle of Sufficient Reason, which examined the four separate manifestations of reason in the phenomenal...
's work. Oxenford's anonymous Westminster Review
Westminster Review
The Westminster Review was a quarterly British publication. Established in 1823 as the official organ of the Philosophical Radicals, it was published from 1824 to 1914. James Mill was one of the driving forces behind the liberal journal until 1828....
1853 article, "Iconoclasm in German Philosophy," was written in order to present Schopenhauer as a critic of Hegel. It was translated and published in the Vossische Zeitung
Vossische Zeitung
The Vossische Zeitung was the well known liberal German newspaper that was published in Berlin . Its predecessor was founded in 1704...
, which resulted in German readers showing enthusiastic and enduring interest in Schopenhauer's writings. It also advanced the cause of Wagner in Britain.
He died in Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
on 21 February 1877.
Legacy
His 1835 one-act A Day Well Spent, after expansion, translation, and rewriting, formed the basis of Thornton Wilder's play The MatchmakerThe Matchmaker
The Matchmaker is a play by Thornton Wilder.The play has a long and colorful history. John Oxenford's 1835 one-act farce A Day Well Spent had been extended into a full-length play entitled Einen Jux will er sich machen by Austrian playwright Johann Nestroy in 1842...
, which itself was the basis of the stage musical and movie Hello, Dolly!
Hello, Dolly! (musical)
Hello, Dolly! is a musical with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and a book by Michael Stewart, based on Thornton Wilder's 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers, which Wilder revised and retitled The Matchmaker in 1955....
.
Many references to his pieces will be found in The Life and Reminiscences of E. L. Blanchard (ed. C Scott and C Howard, 1891).