Sturm und Drang

How much do you know about German literary movements? A good place to start could be the Sturm und Drang movement, meaning 'Storm and Stress' in English. It was prevalent in German artistic culture during the period of the late 1700s, characterised by literature and poems full of intensity and emotion.

Sturm und Drang: meaning

Sturm und Drang was a German literary movement with the meaning of the term translating to 'Storm and Stress'. It was a brief movement, lasting only a few decades. Sturm und Drang can be characterised by its belief in intense emotional expression. The movement also argues against the existence of an objective reality. It promoted the idea that there were no universal truths and that reality was completely subjective, depending on each individual's interpretation.

Fig. 1 - Sturm und Drang was focused in Germany.

Works in the genre did not typically focus on common themes of love, romance, family, etc. Instead, Sturm und Drang regularly explored the topics of revenge and chaos. These works also tended to have numerous violent scenes. Characters were permitted to fulfil and follow their desires to the fullest extent.

The term 'Sturm und Drang' comes from a 1776 play of the same name by German playwright and novelist Friedrich Maximilian von Klinger (1752-1831). Sturm und Drang is set during the American Revolution (1775-1783) and follows a group of friends travelling through America with the aim of participating in the revolutionary war. However, a series of familial feuds ensue instead. Sturm und Drang is full of chaos, violence, and intense emotions. Several of the main characters can be linked to the expression of a particular emotion. For example, La Feu is fiery, intense, and expressive, whereas Blasius is uncaring and apathetic. Characters such as these became emblematic of the Sturm und Drang movement.

Sturm und Drang: period

The period of the Sturm und Drang movement lasted from the 1760s until the 1780s, and focused majorly in Germany and surrounding German-speaking countries. Sturm und Drang partly erupted as a rebellion against the Age of Enlightenment. The Age of Enlightenment was a rational, scientific time that focused on individuality and the importance of logic. Proponents of Sturm und Drang became uncomfortable with these characteristics, believing they fundamentally suppressed natural human emotions. This is a key reason why the literature of this movement placed such a focus on emotional chaos. Sturm und Drang writers allowed their characters to experience the full spectrum of human emotions.

In a period characterised by scientific discovery and progress, Sturm und Drang attempted to refocus the literary conversation on humanity and natural beauty. Writers in the genre were more interested in the natural expression of human emotions rather than in the pursuit of scientific knowledge. They felt that modernisation was moving too fast and neglecting humanity.

The literature of Sturm und Drang

Sturm und Drang literature can be characterised by its chaos, violence, and intense expressions of emotion. Literature in the genre tended to focus on individuals and explored the most basic desires of human nature. Below is one example of Sturm und Drang literature.

Sturm und Drang: Die Leiden des jungen Werthers (1774)

Die Leiden des jungen Werthers, translating to The Sorrows of Young Werther, is a novel by renowned German novelist, poet, and playwright Johann Wolfgang Goethe (1749-1832). Goethe was one of the central figures in the Sturm und Drang movement. His poem 'Prometheus' (1789) is thought to be one of the exemplars of Sturm and Drang literature.

The Sorrows of Young Werther follows Werther, a young artist, who is intensely emotional in his daily life. This is worsened when he falls for his new friend, the beautiful Charlotte, who is engaged to be married to another man, Albert. Despite Charlotte's unavailability, Werther cannot help but love her. He is tortured by this unrequited love, writing long letters to his friend, Wilhelm, about his suffering. The novel is comprised of these. Quoted below is an excerpt from one of Werther's letters to Wilhelm, exemplifying his intense emotions.

After a complex back and forth, Werther ends up distancing himself from Charlotte but this does not ease his pain. In a tragic end to the story, Werther commits suicide and suffers a drawn-out and painful death. Goethe insinuates at the end of his novel that Charlotte too may now be suffering from a broken heart because of what has happened.

The Sorrows of Young Werther is emblematic of many of the key characteristics of Sturm und Drang literature. Below is a summary of how this manifests in Goethe's novel.

• Focus on an individual and their experiences.
• Showcases intense emotions.
• Violent ending.
• Chaotic interactions.
• The protagonist is guided by his emotions.

Sturm und Drang poems

Sturm und Drang poems are thematically similar to other literary works in the movement. They are chaotic, emotional, and often violent. Read on for a poem that contains these elements.

Sturm und Drang: Lenore (1773)

Lenore is a long-form poem by another key figure in the Sturm und Drang movement, Gottfried August Bürger (1747-1794). The poem revolves around the pain and torments of Lenore, a young woman whose fiancé, William, has not returned from the Seven Years War (1756-1763). Other soldiers in the locality are coming back, yet William is still absent. Lenore is deeply worried that he has lost his life and begins cursing God for taking her fiancé away from her.

Fig. 2 - The central focus of the poem is Lenore's loss of her fiancé.

A large portion of the poem is taken up by a dream sequence that Lenore has. She dreams that she is on a black horse with a shadowy figure who looks like William and promises her that they are going to their marriage bed. However, the scene quickly changes and the bed transforms into a grave containing William's body and damaged armour.

Lenore is a fast-paced, dramatic, and emotional poem. It details the suffering Lenore goes through as she worries for William and, eventually, discovers that he has passed away. It is also insinuated that Lenore too loses her life at the end of the poem. The dark and deathly themes of Lenore are also credited with inspiring future Gothic literature.

Sturm und Drang in English

The Sturm und Drang movement was not found in English-speaking countries. Instead, it was primarily focused in Germany and surrounding German-speaking countries. Previous to the 1760s, there was no definable idea of German literary and artistic culture. German artists often borrowed themes and forms from works in mainland Europe and England. Sturm und Drang established a more concrete conception of German literature.

However, Sturm and Drang was a short-lived movement. The intensity of it meant that it petered out relatively quickly, only lasting for approximately three decades. Sturm und Drang is thought to have had a significant impact on the movement that spread across Europe afterwards, Romanticism. Both movements can be defined by their focus on the importance of human emotions.