Gedichte (Bristol German Publications)

by Lothar Schreyer, Brian Keith-Smith

In the introduction, the editor analyses several of Schreyer’s cycles of poetry, including early works close to the traditions of ‘Jugendstil’ (art nouveau), religious cycles, and the long series of prose-poems Die menschliche Elegie that Schreyer recited in public after 1945. The texts are arranged as far as possible chronologically into published and previously unpublished sections. Several manuscripts cannot be dated, so a large collection of ‘Vermischte Gedichte’ is arranged thematically. For the most part these are the result of private reflection and reveal a sensitive, suffering and enquiring mind. These texts show years of experiments with poetic forms, and prove that the expressionist works by which he is best known during the Sturm-period formed only a small part of his overall output. Occasionally different versions are included that give interesting insights into a poet that was never satisfied with his writing.

597 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004