August von Platen
August von Platen was a German poet and playwright, born on October 24, 1796, in Ansbach, Bavaria. He began his career in the Bavarian life guards before pursuing studies in philosophy and philology at the University of Würzburg. Platen became associated with prominent figures of the Romantic movement, including the philosopher Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling and writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Despite being influenced by Romanticism, he sought to distance himself from its excesses, favoring clarity and classical purity in his works. His notable publications include poetry collections such as "Ghaselen" and "Sonette aus Venedig," as well as plays that critiqued the prevailing Romantic drama. Platen's works often reflected his political sympathies, notably in "Polenlieder," which expressed support for the Polish rebellion against Russian rule. He spent much of his later life in Italy, where he continued to write until his death in Siracusa on December 5, 1835. His complete works were published posthumously in 1839, solidifying his legacy in German literature.
On this Page
Subject Terms
August von Platen
- Born: October 24, 1796
- Birthplace: Ansbach, Bavaria, Germany
- Died: December 5, 1835
- Place of death: Siracusa, Sicily, Italy
Biography
German poet and playwright August von Platen, count of Hallermünde, was born in Ansbach, Bavaria, Germany, on October 24, 1796. He joined the Bavarian life guards in 1814 and began studying philosophy and philology at the University of Würzburg in 1818. He became the protégé of the Romantic philosopher Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling after his move to Erlangen in 1819. In Erlangen, he associated with several prominent thinkers and writers, including the writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and he published his first book of poems, Ghaselen, in 1821. He published additional poetry volumes in the following years, including Lyrische Blätter (1821), Spiegel des Hafis (1822), Vermischte Schriften (1822), and Neue Ghaselen (1823).
Although he was student of the Romantic tradition, especially of the Spanish models, Platen repudiated Romanticism’s flamboyant excesses, seeking to attain narrative clarity and classic stylistic purity in his writing. He was particularly opposed to the Schicksaldrama (fate drama), and he expressed this antagonism in his comedies Die verhängnisvolle Gabel and Der romantische Oedipus, published in 1826 and 1829, respectively. The latter mocked the work of prominent German writer Karl Immermann. Despite the animosity created between Platen and the German Romantics, Platen’s dramas attracted a wide audience with their unambiguous plots and polished expression.
His Sonette aus Venedig (1825; Sonnets from Venice, 1923), a collection of classical verse, was published in 1825. The following year, Platen moved to Italy, eventually settling in Naples. In 1831, he published Polenlieder, a collection of classical poems that sympathized with the Poles’ 1830 rebellion against the tsar. Platen returned to Germany briefly in 1832, following the death of his father, and while living in Munich he worked on the revision of his complete poetic works, Gedichte, published in 1834. His last play, Die Liga von Cambrai, was published in 1833, and a mythical poetic tale entitled Die Abbassiden was released in 1835. He returned to Italy in 1834 and moved to Sicily the following year. He traveled from place to place to avoid outbreaks of cholera, and he died in Siracusa, Sicily, on December 5, 1835. His complete works, Gesammelte Werke in einem Bande, were first published in one volume in 1839.