Sturm und Drang
The phrase Sturm und Drang first appeared as the title of a play by Friedrich Maximilian Klinger in 1776. This work was written for Abel Seyler's theatrical company and published that same year. The setting of the play unfolded during the American Revolution, where violent emotions were expressed against the prevailing order of rationalism. Before this point, literature and music associated with the movement existed but lacked self-conscious identity. German artists became distinctly aware of their new aesthetic only after Klinger's publication. The name itself derives from the German word Drang, which carries senses of impulse, urge, pressure, stress, longing, and desire. It is cognate with the English word throng. The movement occurred between the late 1760s and early 1780s within German literature and music. Individual subjectivity and extremes of emotion received free expression during this period. These expressions served as reactions to perceived constraints imposed by Enlightenment rationalism.
French neoclassicism stood as the principal target of rebellion for adherents of the Sturm und Drang movement. This earlier movement began in the early Baroque era with an emphasis on the rational. Sentimentality and objective views of life gave way to emotional turbulence and individuality. Age of Enlightenment ideals such as rationalism, empiricism, and universalism no longer captured the human condition for these writers. Emotional extremes and subjectivity became the vogue during the late 18th century. Significant theoretical statements came from Johann Georg Hamann and Johann Gottfried Herder, both from Königsberg. They had formerly been in contact with Immanuel Kant. A 1773 volume titled Von deutscher Art und Kunst collected essays including commentaries by Herder on Ossian and Shakespeare. Goethe contributed to this collection along with Paolo Frisi and Justus Möser. The radical degree to which individuality appealed to no outside authority save the self marked a key philosophical shift. These ideals were identical to those later cataloged under Kraftmensch movements.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was born in Frankfurt in August 1749. He wrote his first important play Götz von Berlichingen in 1773 using a Shakespearean style. Friedrich Schiller was born in Marbach on the 10th of November 1759. He studied medicine at Karlsschule Stuttgart, a prestigious military academy founded by the Duke of Württemberg. Jakob Michael Reinhold Lenz was born in Sesswegen, now Latvia, on the 23rd of January 1751. He studied theology and philosophy at the University of Königsberg. Heinrich Leopold Wagner was born in Strasbourg on the 19th of February 1747. He worked as a dramatist, producer, translator, and lawyer for the traveling Abel Seyler theatre company. Johann Anton Leisewitz was born in Hanover in 1752 and studied law. He is remembered for his single complete play Julius of Taranto from 1776. This work is considered the forerunner of Schiller's The Robbers. Klinger was born in Frankfurt on the 17th of February 1752 into a humble family that struggled financially after his father died.
Classical period music associated with Sturm und Drang is predominantly written in a minor key to convey difficult or depressing sentiments. Christoph Willibald Gluck's 1761 ballet Don Juan heralded the emergence of this style in music. Program notes explicitly indicated that the D minor finale was meant to evoke fear in the listener. Mozart composed Symphony No. 25, known as the Little G-minor symphony, in 1773. It features rhythmic syncopation along with jagged themes associated with the movement. The symphony also includes an emancipation of wind instruments where violins yield to colorful bursts from oboe and flute. Joseph Haydn wrote several symphonies during the late 1760s to early 1770s featuring newly impassioned elements. His Symphony No. 45 in F sharp minor, called Farewell, premiered in 1772. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach created Symphonies including one in E minor Wq. 178 between 1757 and 1762. These works often feature pulsing rhythms and syncopation common to the era.
Paintings of storms and shipwrecks showing terror and irrational destruction by nature became fashionable in Germany from the 1760s through the 1780s. Goethe possessed and admired paintings by Henry Fuseli capable of giving viewers a good fright. Notable artists included Joseph Vernet, Caspar Wolf, Philip James de Loutherbourg, and Henry Fuseli. Disturbing visions and portrayals of nightmares gained an audience as evidenced by these collections. Andreas Achenbach painted Clearing Up: Coast of Sicily in 1847 which reflects later interpretations of such themes. The public sought emotionally provocative artwork that illustrated a sense of dread. These pre-romantic works served as visual counterparts to literary expressions of emotional turbulence. They mirrored the movement's focus on the irrational and the terrifying aspects of human experience.
Dramatists used the stage as a venue for critique and discussion of societal issues following the Seven Years' War which ended in 1763. German spirit was extremely high after this conflict and people felt importance on a grander stage. Louis-Sébastien Mercier suggested drama be used to promote political ideas. The aristocracy gained power as the ruling class furthering divides between social classes. Johann Georg Hamann defended native culture maintaining language was richer prior to abstract eighteenth-century thought. Six main playwrights initiated and popularized the movement including Leisewitz, Wagner, Goethe, Lenz, Klinger, and Schiller. Abel Seyler owned the Seylersche Schauspiel-Gesellschaft and played an important role promoting Sturm und Drang poets. Writers used episodic structure violence and mixed genres to comment on societal rules while doubting change would occur. Shakespeare was recognized as a genius whose shattering of dramatic unities influenced German playwrights deeply.
According to Betty Waterhouse the movement began in 1771 and ended in 1778. The rise of the middle class led to changes in how society viewed standings. Goethe went to Italy for two years collecting himself before returning with interest in classical ideas. A new form called Weimar Classicism emerged from his travels. This style integrated classical romantic and Enlightenment ideals. The movement gave way to early Romanticism where socio-political concerns for human freedom were incorporated. Religious treatment of all things natural also became part of this transition. Many Sturm und Drang plays showed interest in how society affects individuals despite being challengers of the Enlightenment. They brought attention to power of environment and contradictory attitudes present in every segment of society. The divergent style explored depression and violence with open plot structures far before its time. Despite its brevity the movement set a fire that still burns intensely today.
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Common questions
When did the Sturm und Drang movement begin and end?
According to Betty Waterhouse, the Sturm und Drang movement began in 1771 and ended in 1778. The movement occurred between the late 1760s and early 1780s within German literature and music.
Who wrote the play that gave the Sturm und Drang movement its name?
Friedrich Maximilian Klinger first used the phrase Sturm und Drang as the title of a play published in 1776. This work was written for Abel Seyler's theatrical company and established the self-conscious identity of the movement.
What were the main goals of the Sturm und Drang movement regarding Enlightenment rationalism?
Adherents of the Sturm und Drang movement rebelled against French neoclassicism and perceived constraints imposed by Enlightenment rationalism. They sought free expression of individual subjectivity and emotional extremes instead of sentimentality or objective views of life.
Which composers created music associated with the Sturm und Drang style during the late 1760s and early 1770s?
Christoph Willibald Gluck heralded this musical style with his 1761 ballet Don Juan featuring a D minor finale meant to evoke fear. Mozart composed Symphony No. 25 in 1773, Joseph Haydn premiered Symphony No. 45 in 1772, and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach created symphonies between 1757 and 1762.
Who are the six main playwrights who initiated and popularized the Sturm und Drang movement?
Six main playwrights initiated and popularized the movement including Leisewitz, Wagner, Goethe, Lenz, Klinger, and Schiller. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was born in Frankfurt in August 1749 and Friedrich Schiller was born in Marbach on the 10th of November 1759.