Gottfried Keller

See also: Keller

Gottfried Keller (July 19th 1819 with Zurich - July 15th 1890), short story writer, novelist and Swiss poet of language German E.

Wire of ambitious master craftsman, Gottfried Keller is affected by the death of his/her father, whereas it is only five years old. His/her mother remarie, but the child keeps the feeling to be marginal. Is 14 years old, it is returned cantonal school for indiscipline. The question of its future arises and Keller decides to become painter landscape designer. After a passage in some workshops inhabitant of Zurich, it accomplishes a study trip to Munich (1840-1842). But the experiment of Munich shows a failure: its talent is not with the height of its hopes. Of return to Zurich, it is interested in the policy; its liberalism gives the opportunity to him to write political poems. Keller chose its camp: vis-a-vis the preserving federalistic State and guard of the religion, whose the novelist Jeremias Gotthelf asserts itself, it is radical, in favor of the development of democratic structures and freedoms of the people.

Its first collection of poetries appears in 1846.Il is necessary however to await its stay with Berlin (1850-1855) so that its literary vocation continues. They are certainly for one time Keller loneliness and material misery, but also profitable intellectual contacts with artists and writers, the first of which the philosopher Ludwig Feuerbach, author of gasoline of the chrisitanism (1841). The influence of this last is visible in the second collection of poetries (1851), where Keller proclaims inter alia its release of the belief in beyond. It writes especially its first novel, Henri the green (1855), autobiographical novel, or more precisely Bildungsroman (Romance of formation), that the German critics quickly compared with the Wilhelm Meister of Goethe. A new version, enriched, will be published in 1880.

Of return in Switzerland, Keller forged a literary reputation. It remains however impassioned by the policy. In 1861, it is thus named first chancellor of State of the canton of Zurich, posts that it will preserve until in 1876.Il is less available for its work, but joins again with its genius in the Seven legends (1873), the Gens of Sedwyla (1873-74), or the Nouvelles inhabitants of Zurich (1878).

the last years are fertile. The solitary veillard, painted by Arnold Böcklin, delivers two novels, the Epigram (1881) and Martin Salander (1887). First is pleasant, but less in catch with its time that the second, where Keller denounces them through whom threaten Switzerland, in particular unslung capitalism and the destruction of the environment. Its last collection of poetries is published in 1883. One year before its death, it is pleased to see appearing an integral edition of its works, joined together in ten volumes. Its audience is large, both in Switzerland, in Germany.

Within the Swiss literature of German language of the 19th century, Gottfried Keller côtoie another traditional, just like him poet and novelist: Conrad Ferdinand Meyer . In French, his works in prose were published by the Age of Man and Zoe .

Sources:

Pierre-Olivier Walzer (to dir.): Dictionary of the Swiss literatures , Editions of the Surface, Lausanne, 1991 - Raetus Luck (Swiss National library): the poet of sadness and the joy , (article published in the Swiss Re-examined , for the centenary of died of Keller, in 1990)

A door its name.

Works

Poetries (1846)
new Poetries (1851)
Henri the green (1853-1855)
inhabitants of Seldwyla (Volume first: 1856, volume second: 1874)
Seven legends (1872)
New Inhabitants of Zurich (1878)
Henri the green (1879-1880), new version
the epigram (1881)
Collection of poetries (1883)
Martin Salander (1886)

" It is there precisely what our time has the role of achieving and of getting, namely a perfect safety of the right and honor, whatever our belief or our design of the universe, and that not only in the legislation, but also in the relations personal and familiar of the men between them. (...) With the remainder, the man learns the every day something, and nobody could surely say what he will believe in the evening of his life . " ( Henri the green )

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