The Adventures Of Simplicius Simplicissimus

Description

The first great German novel - an extraordinary recreation of the horrors of the Thirty Years War, written by a veteran of the conflict First published in 1668, Simplicissimus tells the picaresque, brilliantly described adventures of a boy swept up in the Thirty Years War and the terrible things that he experiences. Some of it is realistic, some fantastical but the overall effect is an unmatched picture of Europe torn apart by an endless, sadistic, futile war from which nobody can escape. The Adventures of Simplicius Simplicissimus was rediscovered in twentieth-century Germany where the book's grim message as a story of war in all of its horror and absurdity resonated and the book is now established as one of the essential works of German literature.

About the Author

Grimmelshausen was born at Gelnhausen. At the age of ten he was kidnapped by Hessian soldiery, and in their midst tasted the adventures of military life in the Thirty Years' War. At its close, Grimmelshausen entered the service of Franz Egon von Fürstenberg, bishop in Straßburg and in 1665 was made Schultheiss (magistrate) at Renchen in Baden.On obtaining this appointment, he devoted himself to literary pursuits, and in 1668 publishedDer abenteuerliche Simplicissimus Teutsch, d.h. die Beschreibung des Lebens eines seltsamen Vaganten, genannt Melchior Sternfels von Fuchsheim, the greatest German novel of the 17th century. For this work he took as his model the picaresque romances of Spain, already to some extent known in Germany. Simplicissimus is in great measure its author's autobiography; he begins with the childhood of his hero, and describes the latter's adventures amid the stirring scenes of the Thirty Years' War. The rustic detail with which these pictures are presented makes the book one of the most valuable documents of its time. In the later parts Grimmelshausen, however, over-indulges in allegory, and finally loses himself in a Robinson Crusoe story.The historian Robert Ergang, however, draws upon Gustav Könnecke'sQuellen und Forschungen zur Lebensgeschichte Grimmelshausensto convey the assertion that "the events related in the novel Simplicissimus could hardly have been autobiographical since [Grimmelshausen] lived a peaceful existence in quiet towns and villages on the fringe of the Black Forest and that the material he incorporated in his work was not taken from actual experience, but was either borrowed from the past, collected from hearsay, or created by a vivid imagination."Among his other works, the most important are the so-calledSimplicianische Schriften:*Die Ertzbetrügerin and Landstörtzerin Courasche(1669)*Der seltsame Springinsfeld(1670)*Das wunderbarliche Vogelnest(1672)His satires, such asDer teutsche Michel(1670), and gallant novels, likeDietwald und Amelinde(1670) are of inferior interest. He died at Renchen on August 17, 1676, where a monument was erected to him in 1779.Grimmelshausen'sLandstörtzerin Couraschebecame an important inspiration for Bertolt Brecht´s playMutter Courage.

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