Weltschmerz, the sorrow of the world, colours much of nineteenth-century German verse. Braun does not attempt a full history but studies three contrasting poets in depth: Hölderlin, longing for a lost Greece; Lenau, the self-conscious virtuoso of melancholy; and Heine, whose irony turns pain into wit. A bibliography closes the study.
A clear, focused essay for readers of Romantic poetry and German literature. Download the free EPUB.