4*8 



GERMANY. (LITERATURE AND SCIENCE.) 



instance, the Fruitbearing Society, (q. v.), or the 

 Order of the Palm, the Order of the Swan, the Flower 

 Order, the Shepherds of the Pegnitz). The peace 

 of Westphalia (1648) had the most salutary influence 

 on exhausted Germany. As there was no central 

 point, no capital to dictate laws to the nation, a free- 

 dom of investigation, of opinion, and of expression 

 prevailed, which was found hardly any where else. 

 Freedom of thought was particularly favoured in the 

 rising state of Prussia. Different branches began to 

 be treated in a philosophical manner ; history and its 

 auxiliary sciences, and public and private law, were 

 thus raised to a more elevated character. Hermann 

 Conring and Samuel von Puffendorf are great names, 

 which must be mentioned here. Otto Guerike stands 

 at the head of German natural philosophers. Whilst 

 the grossest spirit of dogmatical controversy reigned 

 in theology, there were men, like Spener and others, 

 whose devout mysticism had a beneficial influence. 

 One of the chief obstacles to the progress of German 

 literature in this period, was the corruption of the 

 German language. (See German language.) After 

 the thirty years' war (1617 1648), during which the 

 Spaniards and French had exerted so great an 

 influence, it was corrupted by the mixture of foreign 

 words, particularly Latin and French ; but the 

 learned John Daniel Morhof (died 1691), and the 

 diligent Justus George Schottel, endeavoured to sup- 

 ply the want of a German grammar ; and from the 

 time of Christian Thomasius, the German language 

 was used for literary purposes. With the increase of 

 the political influence of France, this corruption of the 

 language increased also. The greatest genius of his 

 time in Germany, Leibnitz (1646 171 6), made use of 

 the French language, in preference to his mother 

 tongue. The efforts of Christian von Wolf to render 

 philosophy intelligible in the German language, were 

 of great importance. His system was adopted and 

 extended by numerous followers, and assailed by 

 others, for instance, Crusius ; and thus speculation, 

 as well as style and language, was improved. The 

 Berlin academy of science, founded by Leibnitz, led 

 the way to great discoveries in the mathematical and 

 natural sciences. Literary societies and associations 

 were every where formed. The book trade began to 

 flourish, and many critical tribunals were instituted, 

 to pass judgment on science and art. The Germans 

 began to make the purity and elegance of their native 

 language an object of attention. Alexander Baum- 

 garten, the founder of philosophical criticism, and 

 Gottsched, (1700 66), contributed greatly to produce 

 this effect. The latter purified the language, but 

 endeavoured, at the same time, to introduce the 

 Frencli taste for a tame style, both in poetry and prose. 

 (See German Criticism.) His school, which was cal- 

 led the Leipsic school, was successfully opposed by 

 that of Zurich, at the head of which were Bedmer 

 and Breitinger. The poets, Haller, Hagedorn, Gel- 

 lert, J. C. Schlegel, gave energy, elegance, and ease 

 to their native tongue. The researches of German 

 scholars were also directed towards classic antiquity, 

 by philologists and archaeologists (Joh. Mat. Gesner, 

 Joh. Dav. Michaelis, J. A. Ernesti, and others), par- 

 ticularly after the foundation of the university of Got- 

 tingen. 3. These beginnings were matured, in the 

 third part of this period, by Lessing, Klopstock, 

 Winckelmann, Heyne, the Stolbergs, Herder, Wie- 

 land, Voss, Schiller, Goethe. Lessing, gifted with a 

 rare wit and penetration, appeared as the antagonist 

 of the popular French taste, and the founder of acute 

 criticism. Winckelmann (q. v.), under the influence 

 of enthusiasm for antiquity and art, produced his 

 immortal work, a specimen of elevated taste and 

 extensive learning, in the midst of literary degeneracy 

 and barrenness. Klopstock raised the German lan- 



guage and poetry, by his sacred songs, to a pitch of 

 loftiness, richness, and originality, which it liad never 

 before attained. In addition to this must be men- 

 tioned the influence of English literature, particularly 

 the translation of Shakspeare. Adelung, Voss, and 

 others, made critical researches into the structure and 

 extent of the language, which was, at the same time, 

 applied to every department of science. Numerous 

 critical works endeavoured to give a right direction 

 to the overflowing stream of German literature. A 

 profound study of theology was promoted by the 

 efforts of Michaelis and Ernesti, Mosheim, Semler, 

 Storr, Reinhard, Schleiermacher, De Wette. Philo- 

 sophy, particularly metaphysics, was developed in the 

 original systems of Kant, Fichte, Schelling, Jacob!, 

 and others. Philology was advanced by the labours 

 of Heyne, Woif, Hermann, Bockh, Vater. Gesenius, 

 and many others. History presents names like those of 

 John Muller, Woltmann, Schrockh, Schmidt, Spittler, 

 Eichhorn, Heeren, Niebuhr, Luden, Plank, &c. Nor 

 should the services of Voss, Creuzer, Kanne, Gorres, in 

 mythology, and of the creators of the most compre- 

 hensive criticism (see German Criticism), be forgot- 

 ten in the general history of literature. A multitude 

 of original minds have extended German literature 

 in all directions. If the objection which has been 

 made to modern German literature be well founded, 

 that the manner has received too little of the atten- 

 tion which has been paid to the matter, it may be 

 said, on the other hand, that a greater number of 

 G erman works are imperfect, on account of the no- 

 velty and greatness of the undertakings, and the 

 excessive minuteness of investigation, than from a 

 superficial treatment of the subject. (Compare the 

 views of madame de Stael on Germany, and the 

 opinions in the fifty-second number of the Edinburgh 

 Review.) In regard to the recent German literature, 

 it may be observed, that a struggle has pervaded all 

 the branches of literature. In theology, philosophy, 

 and art, it is the contest between mysticism and the 

 romantic spirit on one side, and rationalism and the 

 severity of the ancient style on the other. In poli- 

 tics, history, and natural law, it is the contest between 

 liberal ideas and legitimacy. In theology, this oppo- 

 sition appears in the systems of rationalism and 

 suprarationalism. In philosophy, the different sys- 

 tems, with regard to the sources of human know- 

 ledge, might almost be designated by the same 

 names. In poetry and the fine arts, the spirit of 

 classical and that of romantic description are in op- 

 position. Of an unquestionable and important influ- 

 ence upon German literature, have been the latest 

 political events. The great body of literary men are 

 deeply imbued with the patriotic tendency of the 

 time. The German writers, since the general peace 

 in Europe, have given to their works much more of 

 a practical character than the writers of the previous 

 times. Theological literature has displayed the old 

 controversy between the rationalists and supernatu- 

 ralists, the former of whom either deduce religion 

 from the principles of reason, and endeavour to ex- 

 plain the Scriptures in accordance with those princi- 

 ples, or merely endeavour to free religion from what 

 appears to them supernatural. The latter are either 

 dogmatists, founding their system on doctrines de- 

 duced from the Scriptures by a more or less literal 

 interpretation, or mystics, who have adopted the idea 

 of a divine illumination, proving and even extending 

 the truths of revelation. Dogmatical manuals have 

 been written by Reinhard, Bretschneider, WegscheU 

 der, Schleiermacher, De Wette. A few writers, like 

 A. L. Kahler, in his connexion between rationalism 

 and supernaturalism, and A. Klein, in his Grundlinien 

 des Religiosismus, have made fruitless attempts to- 

 wards a reconciliation. The Catholics have begun 



