Christian Weise
Christian Weise was a German author born on April 29, 1642, in Zittau, who emerged as a significant literary figure by the end of the seventeenth century. Initially regarded as an unremarkable writer, his reputation began to shift in the 1970s, recognizing him as a dominant voice of his time. Weise pursued his education at Leipzig University, where he focused on history, politics, and law, ultimately earning his master's degree in 1663. Despite initial disappointments in securing a university position, he found success as a private tutor and later as a chair of politics, rhetoric, and poetry at a notable school established by Duke August.
A prolific creator, Weise wrote four influential novels during his career, contributing to the establishment of the "politischer Roman," a genre that explores how individuals navigate the complexities and paradoxes of life. Furthermore, he produced over sixty plays, which gained considerable popularity and led to the development of a dramatic festival at his school. His writing is characterized by a focus on the follies of humanity and the pursuit of practical wisdom in everyday life. Weise’s evolving legacy reflects a shift in perception, as he is now recognized for his contributions to German literature and theater.
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Christian Weise
- Born: April 29, 1642
- Birthplace: Zittau, Germany
- Died: October 21, 1708
- Place of death: Zittau, Germany
Biography
German author Christian Weise for a long time was considered an uninteresting, second-rate writer. However, that opinion began to change in the 1970’s, and he has slowly become recognized as the dominant German writer in the last third of the seventeenth century. Weise was born in the small town of Zittau on April 29, 1642. His father was a teacher who made sure that Weise became a good scholar at an early age, in spite of Weise’s frailty and ill health. In 1659, Weise entered Leipzig University, where he studied history, politics, and law. In 1663, he received his master’s degree from the university and was disappointed when he could not find employment as a university professor.
While he was a student, Weise began to write verse to supplement his income. Much of this verse was written to celebrate family occasions, as was characteristic at the time. The poetry was written in the style created by poetic theorist Martin Opitz. However, unlike other poems written in the Opitzian style, Weise insisted on the idiomatic fluency of the language rather than the more flowery diction found in other examples of this type of verse. While studying at the university, Weise also became interested in the theater, and the plays he later wrote show that he never lost his sense of stage production.
In 1668, Weise went to Halle to assume the post of personal assistant to the chief minister of Duke August of Saxe-Weimar. The post was Weise’s first exposure to the politics of the day. In 1670, he left his post and briefly returned to academia. He then became a private tutor until later in 1670, when he was offered a post as chair of politics, rhetoric, and poetry at the Gymnasium illistre Augusteum, a school founded by Duke August. He remained at the school for eight years.
Between 1671 and 1678, Weise published four novels that made him one of the most important novelists of the period. He established a genre that became known as the politisher Roman, or political novel. These novels are important because they depict how the average person can come to terms with the world and use its paradoxes to make life more advantageous. The emphasis of the novels is on the foolish folly of humankind.
Weise was later offered the post of headmaster at his old school in Zittau. During this period, he was primarily a dramatist, writing and producing more than sixty plays that were staged at his school. His plays became very popular and they eventually evolved into a dramatic festival that attracted spectators from a wide area. A prolific writer, Weise wrote and produced more than thirty-four plays in addition to his novels.