is left to the reader to draw the comparison: the first three stanzas give the material scene, the last three the play of fancy. Professor Max Müller, the distinguished son of the poet, calls Vineta "the highest point reached by his poetry." It is quoted in Heine's Reisebilder (Die Nordsee, 1826). Translated by J. A. Froude (Cosmopolis, iv, 631) and by the present editor in the Methodist Review, July, 1895. Set to music by Brahms for a six-voiced Chor a capella (op. 42, no. 2). 1. 1. Grunde, depths. 73. Sturm Written 1825, on the island of Norderney. Heine brought the sea, especially the North Sea, into popular poetry. The "dithyrambic❞ metrical form had been earlier developed by Goethe and Tieck, in imitation of the rhapsodic odes of Pindar. It is used by Heine very effectively in reproducing the motion and color of a marine scene. 11. 11-12. Venus, the mother of Cupid, was born from the waves of the sea. 11. 30-39. Possibly an allusion to the mother in the pathetic Scotch ballad Edward (see Percy's Reliques). Cf. No. 53, ll. 1719, n. 74. Seemorgen Written 1832 or 1833, in connection with the author's journey to America, the chief result of which was a distorted account of American national character and civilization which is still potent in keeping up strong prejudices in Germany. It would be hard to find a poem which better portrays the invigorating, refreshing play of sea, breeze, and sunshine. 1. 6. wie . . . auch, however much. 1. 14. Gesprüh', spray. 1. 15. Frisband, rainbow-streamer. 75. Trost Written about 1852, and addressed to the poet's wife. 1. 1. was da, whatever. 76. Auf der überfahrt Written 1823. The reminiscences which underlie this reflective poem came to Uhland while being ferried across the Neckar near Tübingen. The translation by C. T. Brooks is familiar. 1. 1. vor Jahren, years ago. 1. 6. zween, old inflected masculine form of the numeral. 1. 7. The reference is to the poet's favorite uncle, a venerable rural pastor. 1. 8. Uhland's valiant young friend Friedrich von Harpprecht, who was killed in battle, 1813. 77. Die Stadt One of Storm's earlier poems, an affectionate reminiscence of the little town of Husum in Schleswig, near the North Sea, where he was born, and where he passed much of his life. 1. 13. für und für, continually. 78. An meine Mutter B. Heine These two sonnets were published 1821. Whatever moral blemishes Heine's life exhibited, he was always most affectionate and considerate to his excellent mother. 79. Für meine Söhne Written about 1851. 1. 1. hehle . . . mit, conceal. 1. 4. Matth., vii, 6. 1. 6. zuzeiten, at times. 1. 8. Goldne, worth their weight in gold. 1. 11. Leutseligkeiten, dat. of reference with Wegen. 1. 20. Carriere-Machen, pushing ahead in the world. 1. 22. Cf. Exodus, xxxii, 1-19. 80. Meiner Tochter For an interesting account of the life of Johanna Ambrosius, with all its hard limitations, see Professor Kuno Francke's Glimpses of Modern German Culture, New York, 1898, pp. 57-68. 1. 1. lauter Seide, nothing but silks. 81. Sprüche und Sinngedichte The Germans have always been fond of proverbial rimes, making large use of them even in the decoration of buildings and domestic objects. German literature offers an unusual amount of good didactic verse: the most typical epigrammatic poet is Friedrich von Logau (1604-1655), who published more than 3000 short sententious poems. 1. 6. This epigram, as well as the following, is very familiar in Longfellow's translation. 1. 7. ob, for obwohl, although. 11. 10-11. Cf. C. F. Weisse's Der Aufschub (1772): Wer nicht fortgeht, geht zurücke, and Goethe's Hermann und Dorothea, III, 65–66: Einmal für allemal gilt das wahre Sprüchlein der Alten: Wer nicht vorwärts geht, der kommt zurücke!' So bleibt es. 11. 20-21. Sometimes attributed to Schiller; it appeared for the first time in a group headed „Einer," and signed „G. und S.,“ in the Musenalmanach for 1797, to which the poet-friends contributed many epigrams which they had worked out together. 1. 22. Trüge: = ich trüge. 1. 33. Doktoren, scholars, holders of learned degrees. 1. 34. Cf. Luther's remark, "A great scholar must always remain a pupil," and I Cor., viii, 2. 1. 54. den Alten, the ancients. 1. 56. Politik, the science of government. 1. 77. Unberechenbare Konsequenzen, incalculable consequences. THIRD PART 82. Der Sänger Written as early as 1783. The underlying idea of this ballad (which introduces the favorite medieval motive of the minstrel who wanders from court to court, enjoying, even in a ruder society, a certain sacredness of person as a representative of the fine arts) is the ideal character of the reward for which the artist strives. It is not unlike that set forth by Kenyon Cox in The Gospel of Art (The Century Magazine, xlix, 533): Work thou for pleasure: paint or sing or carve The thing thou lovest, though the body starve. Who works for glory misses oft the goal; Work for the work's sake, then, and it may be That these things shall be added unto thee. For the general situation cf. Scott's Lay of the Last Minstrel. 11. 8-14. The words of the minstrel. 1. 17. schauten mutig drein, looked on with high spirit; the effect of the minstrel's epic passages was to awaken courage in the knights who heard him. 1. 18. And the fair ones gazed into their laps, i.e., overcome with modest embarrassment at the praise of beauty in the lyric passages. 1. 21. holen. Some editors read reichen, following the edition of 1827. 1. 28. zu andern Lasten, in addition to his other heavy burdens (of responsibility for the state). 83. Des Sängers Fluch Written 1814. Cf. the situation in the preceding ballad. The style and language have many reminiscences of medieval German sources. The metrical form, here first introduced into modern poetry, was derived by Uhland from a martial ballad-measure popular in the middle ages, and closely related to the meter of the Nibelungenlied. Since the publication of this poem it has been considerably used for vigorous ballad-narration. Cf. No. 49, and the measure of Macaulay's Lays of Ancient Rome. 1. 2. Lande, a more stately form than Länder. 1. 8. As often as he speaks, some one is scourged; he never writes his name without signing some one's death-warrant. 1. 14. tiefsten, coming from the very depths of the heart. Ton in the medieval sense of song. 11. 25-28. Much admired is this epitome of the scope of min strelsy: the last two lines refer to the lyric and epic elements, as mentioned in the preceding ballad, ll. 17-18. 1. 38. verröchelt, breathed his last gasp. 1. 42. aller Harfen Preis, the most excellent of all harps. 1. 46. Saite, the sound of stringed instruments. 1. 47. Note the alliteration. 1. 60. über Nacht, in a night. 1. 64. Cf. the end of the Nibelungenlied: Hier hat die Mär ein Ende: das ist das Nibelungenlied. (Simrock.) 84. Der Graf von Habsburg Written 1803. One of the most typical of Schiller's dignified and elaborate artistic ballads. chronicler Tschudi, and the Goethe's Der Sänger, No. 82. Loewe. The story is taken from the Swiss ballad shows some influence of Beautifully set to music by Karl Stanza I. Concerning the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation," see No. 48, 1. 20, n. The Hapsburg family (still upon the throne of Austria) had almost a prescriptive hold upon the imperial crown from the days of Rudolph of Hapsburg (reigned 1273-1291) till 1806. It originated in Switzerland. 1. 1. Aachen, the seat of Charlemagne's government, and place where the emperors were often crowned. 1. 3. heilige Macht, say, sacred person. 11. 5-6. The prince Palatinate, one of the electors (Wähler), held the hereditary office of lord high-steward of the empire, and served the emperor at the coronation banquet. Der Böhme, the king of Bohemia, another of the seven electors. Schiller does not profess to observe rigid historical accuracy in the setting of this ballad. Des perlenden Weins, partitive gen., object of schenkte. 1. 15. verderblichen. The weak form of the second adj. (often with an idea of its being more closely connected with the noun in meaning) is quite common in modern German in the dat. sing. and gen. pl. 1. 16. The so-called Interregnum (1254-1273) followed the fall of the house of Hohenstaufen. |