The Adventurous Simplicissimus by Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen

First published:Der abenteuerliche Simplicissimus, 1669 (English translation, 1912)

Type of work: Novel

Type of plot: Picaresque

Time of plot: Seventeenth century

Locale: Germany

Principal characters

• Simplicius Simplicissimus, a vagabond
• A Peasant, his foster father
• A Hermit, his real father
• A Pastor,
• Ulrich Herzbruder, Simplicissimus’s friend
• Oliver, a rogue

The Story:

Simplicissimus’s beginning is one of a child of pure innocence. Since he lives far removed from any other influences except the small, barely sufficient farm near the Spessart forest, he presents himself as nothing short of a simpleton. His main job is looking after the livestock, and when told to look out for the foxes who come to raid the chickens, Simplicissimus mistakes some soldiers for foxes. Since he never saw either a fox or a knight before, he interprets them in the only way he knows how. The soldiers are soldiers of the Thirty Years’ War and plunder his family’s farm as Simplicissimus escapes into the forest.

Deep in the forest, he meets a hermit. This hermit asks him many questions that Simplicissimus can answer only in the most naïve manner. He cannot even tell the hermit his real name. He states that his father calls him “boy.” For two years the boy stays with the hermit and learns from him. The hermit dies and the pastor who gives Simplicissimus supplies is captured by the soldiers. The small town nearby is plundered. Simplicissimus again escapes to the forest but ends up having even his small hut plundered. He is taken as prisoner to the Governor of Hanau. The soldiers questions Simplicissimus, and again he cannot tell his name, nor much of his history. A pastor comes to Simplicissimus’s rescue by stating that the pastor saw Simplicissimus in a hermitage with the old man, who happened to be a nobleman disenchanted with the war.

As Simplicissimus’s life goes on, he begins his climb in status. He becomes a page, but his simpleton ways are not those of the court. He is at a grave disadvantage. He ends up looking and playing a fool. He comments liberally about society, and during a great feast, he sees men acting with such bad manners he thinks that they are representing themselves as beasts instead of men. The more he sees the more Simplicissimus realizes a fool’s ways are better suited for survival than the ways of a courtier.

Again his circumstance change and he becomes a prisoner to the Croats. He learns to serve many masters. He escapes dressed as a girl, but he is destined to serve as a lady’s maid. He is then discovered to be male and ends up as a horse boy, at which time he meets his friend Ulrich Herzbruder. Simplicissimus gives Ulrich money to escape, which Ulrich successfully does, and again Simplicissimus’s situation changes.

Simplicissimus is beginning to become educated as to the ways of the world. He begins to climb the ladder of success. He goes through the military ranks, and although he plunders, he never takes from the poor, always the rich. He has plenty of wealth and has a reputation as a superior forager, something he was taught by the hermit. Later, Simplicissimus discovers someone attempted to steal his name and reputation and committed crimes in his name, wearing the green garb synonymous with Simplicissimus. Simplicissimus finds and punishes this man. From this time forward, Simplicissimus aspires to become a nobleman, but his fate will not allow it. The Swedes capture him.

During his incarceration with the Swedes, Simplicissimus establishes himself with the ladies. The Swedes, after hearing of his reputation as a soldier, offer him a position in their armies, but Simplicissimus turns them down. The Swedes allow him to roam around the city at will. A young daughter of a colonel attracts Simplicissimus and they marry. Shortly after, Simplicissimus pledges his alliance to the Swedes.

Then his life changes again. On a trip to Cologne the Swedes convince him to go to Paris. There he loses his fortune in a robbery, but he gains many adventures in love. Then Simplicissimus uses a ruse to return to Germany; he impersonates a doctor. He never makes it back to Germany. Instead he is captured and forced to become a soldier in another army. He meets Oliver, who took advantage of his good friend Ulrich. Soldiers kill Oliver, and Simplicissimus travels onward.

Following the war, Simplicissimus visits a Swiss spa and stumbles upon an old man who happens to be his peasant father. Simplicissimus discovers that his peasant father is actually his foster father and that the old hermit of noble birth is his real father. From that time on, he has many adventures, including getting married again only to have his wife die after a year. In the end, Simplicissimus returns to the life of his real father and becomes a hermit.

Bibliography

Allen, Ann Taylor. Satire and Society in Wilhelmine Germany: Kladderadatsch and Simplicissimus, 1890-1914. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1984. An excellent history and criticism of The Adventurous Simplicissimus, with discussion of social problems as related to literature. Includes bibliography.

Bertsch, Janet. “Grimmelshausen’s Der abentheurliche Simplicissimus Teutsch and Der seltzame Springinsfeld.” In Storytelling in the Works of Bunyan, Grimmelshausen, Defoe, and Schnabel. Rochester, N.Y.: Camden House, 2004. Bertsch examines two of Grimmelshausen’s novels, including The Adventurous Simplicissimus, as well as works by John Bunyan, Daniel Defoe, and J. G. Schnabel. These works were written between 1660 and 1740, a period of transition between intense religiosity and a growing secularization, and Bertsch demonstrates how these authors’ works reflect this societal change.

Glasberg, Ronald. “The Perversions of Folly in Grimmelshausen’s Simplicius Simplicissimus: Foreshadowing of Nazism.” CLIO: A Journal of Literature, History, and the Philosophy of History 16, no. 3 (1987): 253-271. A great discussion of The Adventurous Simplicissimus, with an especially valuable analysis of its characters.

Horwich, Cara M. Survival in “Simplicissimus” and “Mutter Courage.” New York: Peter Lang, 1997. A comparison of The Adventurous Simplicissimus and Bertolt Brecht’s play Mother Courage and Her Children, which was based on Grimmelshausen’s work. Horwich maintains that the novel and play share a common concern with human survival in a dangerous world.

Menhennet, Alan. Grimmelshausen the Storyteller: A Study of the “Simplician” Novels. Columbia, S.C.: Camden House, 1997. A detailed examination of Grimmelshausen’s novels about Simplicissimus, in which Menhennet focuses on their common elements, arguing that they are not separate books but part of a coherent cycle. He also demonstrates how they integrate religious and moral concerns with a more secular curiosity and sense of humor.

Negus, Kenneth. Grimmelshausen. New York: Twayne, 1974. A wonderful book that notes major influences on Grimmelshausen. Includes a chapter on his sources and his references and a bibliography.

Otto, Karl F., Jr., ed. A Companion to the Works of Grimmelshausen. Rochester, N.Y.: Camden House, 2003. A collection of essays analyzing Grimmelshausen’s works, including discussions of Grimmelhausen and the picaresque novel, allegorical and astronomical elements in his works, and gender identity in the Simplicissimus cycle.

Richtie, J. M. “Grimmelshausen’s Simplicissimus and The Runagate Courage.” In Knaves and Swindlers: Essays on the Picaresque Novel in Europe, edited by Christine J. Whitbourn. London: Oxford University Press, 1974. An excellent essay integrating the Thirty Years’ War, Grimmelshausen’s life, and some of his other works. Includes bibliography.

Wicks, Ulrich. Picaresque Narrative, Picaresque Fictions: A Theory and Research Guide. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1989. An excellent beginning source. Describes the various aspects of a picaresque novel. Discusses The Adventurous Simplicissimus and its themes.