Ernst Robert Curtius
Ernst Robert Curtius was a prominent German literary scholar born on April 14, 1886, in Thann, Alsace. He pursued studies in Romance languages and philosophy across notable German universities, beginning his teaching career at the University of Marburg in 1920 and later at the University of Bonn until his retirement in 1951. Curtius aimed to bridge cultural gaps between France and Germany through his extensive research on French literature, producing significant works like "Die französische Kultur" and monographs on writers such as Maurice Barrès and Honoré de Balzac.
In response to the political turbulence of the early 1930s, he expressed his concerns about the rise of nationalism and the impending dangers of the Nazi regime in his work "Deutscher Geist in Gefahr." Curtius championed medieval humanism as a vital element of Western culture, a theme he elaborated on in his influential book "Europäische Literatur und lateinisches Mittelalter." Although celebrated for his insights into medieval literature, his views have also faced critique for being ethnocentric and overlooking complexities within the Western tradition. Curtius's legacy endures as one of the foremost literary scholars of the twentieth century, though discussions of his work continue to invoke a range of perspectives on cultural interpretation and historical analysis. He passed away in Rome on April 19, 1956.
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Ernst Robert Curtius
Writer
- Born: April 14, 1886
- Birthplace: Thann, Alsace, Germany (now in France)
- Died: April 19, 1956
- Place of death: Rome, Italy
Biography
Ernst Robert Curtius was born on April 14, 1886, in Thann, a city in the German province of Alsace, where French culture continued to be a vibrant influence. His grandfather, Ernest Curtius, and his great-uncle, Georg Curtius, were both outstanding scholars. After studying the Romance languages and philosophy at the universities in Strasbourg, Berlin, and Heidelberg, he began his teaching career at the University of Marburg in 1920, and later he was a professor at the University of Bonn from 1929 until his retirement in 1951.
During the early post-World War I period, Curtius had the goal of making France understandable to Germans through studies of French literature. After publishing monographs on writers Maurice Barrès and Honoré de Balzac, he wrote a general work on the French spirit, followed by his book, Die französische Kultur (1930; The Civilization of France: An Introduction, 1962). By this time he was also writing essays and articles about British and American literature.
Alarmed by the economic and political crisis of the early 1930’s, Curtius wrote and published a short book, Deutscher Geist in Gefahr (1932), which attacked the uncivil behavior and nationalistic frenzy that were forerunners of the Nazi regime. As an antidote, he pleaded for an adherence to an integrated humanism of the Western cultural tradition, especially values espoused by writers of the Middle Ages.
During the Nazi period, Curtius became even more persuaded that medieval humanism provided the foundation for the great intellectual and spiritual tradition of Western culture. After the war, he defended this thesis in his most well-known book, Europäische Literatur und lateinisches Mittelalter (1948; European Literature and the Latin Middle Ages, 1953), which appeared in a dozen editions by the turn of the century. In 1950, he published a collection of critical essays on various European authors. He died in Rome on April 19, 1956.
Curtius is remembered as one of the foremost literary scholars of the twentieth century. Numerous readers have enjoyed his insightful summaries of medieval authors. Although his glorification of Western culture was popular in the 1950’s and 1960’s, later proponents of multiculturalism looked upon his point of view as somewhat ethnocentric. Some skeptics of the Enlightenment tradition disliked his tendency to overlook unpleasant aspects of the Middle Ages, such as religious intolerance and the Inquisition. Even persons sympathetic to the Western tradition have suggested that his theory about an integration of that tradition was questionable because it ignored the great differences and contradictions among individual thinkers.