Novalis, Heinrich von Ofterdingen

Dennis Mahoney (University of Vermont)
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Heinrich von Ofterdingen

[

Henry von Ofterdingen

], whose protagonist’s dream of the Blue Flower in the opening pages of the novel has become the epitome of Romantic longing for the infinite, is a prime example of the German Romantics’ reaction in theory and practice to Goethe’s

Wilhelm Meister’s Lehrjahre

[

Wilhelm Meister’s Apprenticeship

, 1795-96]. In 1798 Friedrich Schlegel called Goethe’s novel one of the three greatest tendencies of the age, alongside the French Revolution and the philosopher Fichte’s

Wissenschaftslehre

[

Science of Knowledge

, 1794-95], and also published a highly laudatory review of

Wilhelm Meister

in the journal

Athenaeum

, the theoretical organ of Early German Romanticism that he and his brother August Wilhelm Schlegel edited. Two years later, also in…

2528 words

Citation: Mahoney, Dennis. "Heinrich von Ofterdingen". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 September 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=14310, accessed 21 November 2024.]

14310 Heinrich von Ofterdingen 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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