Alfons Paquet
Alfons Paquet was a prominent German writer born in Wiesbaden in the late 19th century, known for his diverse contributions to literature during the first half of the 20th century. His body of work includes poetry, short stories, novels, essays, and biographies. Initially adhering to his father's wishes to work in the family glove business, Paquet ultimately pursued his passion for writing, publishing his first poem in 1900 and transitioning to journalism with the Frankfurter Zeitung in 1904. He earned a Ph.D. in economics and maintained a lifelong commitment to travel, which informed his writing.
Throughout his career, Paquet explored themes of urban development and political agitation in various forms, including novels and plays, with a notable focus on his spiritual journey as he became a member of the Quaker community in 1933. His literary output includes works that reflect his disillusionment with politics, particularly during the rise of National Socialism, leading him to withdraw from certain literary circles. One of his notable achievements was receiving the Golden Rose Prize for his short story "Abendwolkchen." Paquet's writing is characterized by vivid imagery and a lyrical approach, providing a nuanced perspective on the human experience and the socio-political landscape of his time.
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Subject Terms
Alfons Paquet
Writer, playwright and poet
- Born: January 26, 1881
- Birthplace: Wiesbaden, Germany
- Died: February 8, 1944
- Place of death: Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Biography
Born in Wiesbaden, Germany, Alfons Paquet contributed widely to German literature in the first forty years of the twentieth century, writing poetry, short stories, novels, essays, and biography. While he asserted in his autobiography that he inherited his poetic inclinations from his mother, Jean Paquet, he initially followed the wishes of his father, Friederike Berger Paquet, to work in the family glove business. Taking every opportunity to write, Paquet published a poem on Gutenberg in 1900. When, by 1902, two more books had been published, a collection of short stories, Schutzmann Mentrup, und Anderes (police officer Mentrup, and other stories), and a collection of poems, Lieder und Gesänge (poems and songs), he felt justified in leaving the business world to write full time. He started as a journalist, contributing to the newspaper Frankfurter Zeitung from 1904 to 1943.
Between 1902 and 1905, Paquet attended Heidelberg University and Munich University, completing his Ph.D. in economics at Jena University by 1908. In 1910, he married Marie-Henriette Steinhausen; they had six children. During these years Paquet traveled, as he would do all of his life, writing essays, novels, and poems based on his observations. Later he would write Stadte, Landschaften, und ewige Bewegung: Ein Roman ohne Helden, which traced the development, evolution, and conflicts of protagonists—not people, but cities.
From 1916 to 1918, he lived in Stockholm employed by the Frankfurter Zeitung. Assigned to the German consulate in Moscow, he wrote many essays on his observations, focusing many on the public’s reaction to Lenin’s rule. Meanwhile, Paquet tried new forms: the novel, Kamerad Fleming (comrade Fleming), set in Paris, depicts a German who, as a result of connecting with political agitation, is killed, and the drama, Limo der grosse bestandige Diener (Limo the great and constant servant), which also explores a character’s political principles.
During the 1920’s, a most productive period, Paquet saw three plays produced. Two, Fahnen: Ein dramatische Roman in Drei Akten (flags: a dramatic novel in three acts) attracting much acclaim, and Sturmflut (storm flood), were performed in Berlin. A third, based on the life of American William Penn, was performed in Frankfurt. This drama, an essay on the Quakers, and the biographical poem on Quaker George Fox attest to his growing interest in his spiritual life and in the Quakers, the religious group he joined in 1933. In 1939, he published a collection of poems, Erwahnung Gottes (mention of god), reflecting his desire for religious connection and expression.
He became increasingly disillusioned with national politics, withdrawing from the Literary Section of the Prussian Academy to protest the control of that group by the National Socialists and declining to write political pieces for his newspaper. In 1935, he was arrested in Berlin and held briefly. Paquet’s short story “Abendwolkchen” (little evening cloud) was awarded the Golden Rose Prize by the city of Cologne. His work presents vivid, realistic descriptions of place and a sensitive and lyrical voice.