Adelbert von Chamisso was a poet and botanist whose life journey led him from French nobility into service within the Prussian army. Despite limited formal education, he cultivated his literary inclinations through diligent self-study and co-founding literary journals, earning recognition among contemporary artists. His most famous work, a fairy tale about a man who sold his shadow, was penned to amuse his children and friends, achieving international renown. Chamisso also pursued botany, embarking on a significant scientific voyage around the world that broadened his worldview and informed his later creative output.
Unsuccessful in his ambitions, the young and naive Peter Schlemihl seals a pact with the Devil in which he exchanges his shadow for the purse of Fortunatus, thereby gaining everlasting riches. But when he is ridiculed, persecuted, and hated for being different from other men, he realizes that poverty is easier to bear than the loss of his peace of mind. Originally written as a cautionary tale for the children of Chamisso s patron, this amusing and poignant tale was hailed by contemporaries as a masterpiece with a wide adult appeal."
Annotated Edition with an introduction by Leopold von Loewenstein-Wertheim
101 pages
4 hours of reading
The story follows Peter Schlemihl, a young man who naively trades his shadow for wealth, gaining a magical purse that grants him endless riches. However, his newfound fortune comes with a heavy price, as he faces ridicule and ostracism for his unusual condition. Ultimately, Peter learns that the loss of his shadow brings greater suffering than the poverty he sought to escape, highlighting themes of identity, societal acceptance, and the true cost of material wealth.
Nach Alexander von Humboldt und Georg Forster präsentiert Adelbert von Chamisso in der Anderen Bibliothek eine farbenfrohe Weltreise, die durch 140 erstmals vollständig versammelte Lithographien von Ludwig Choris lebendig wird. Diese berührend-brillanten Dokumente halten eine untergegangene außereuropäische Welt fest. Chamisso, bekannt als Autor von „Peter Schlehmils wundersamer Geschichte“ und als Dichter, ist weniger als Kustos des Berliner Botanischen Gartens und als Weltreisender bekannt. 1836 stellte er sein letztes Werk vor, das die Reise um die Welt dokumentiert, die er zwischen 1815 und 1818 auf einem russischen Expeditionsschiff als Botaniker unternahm. Diese Expedition erkundete die kürzeste Verbindung von Europa nach Asien über den Pazifik. Begleitet wurde er von Ludwig York Choris, einem talentierten Zeichner und Maler, der später in Paris Bildbände veröffentlichte. Die sensationelle Weltumseglung, die zweite in der russischen Geschichte, führte Chamisso von Kopenhagen über Teneriffa, Brasilien und Chile nach Alaska, San Francisco, Hawaii und in die südpazifische Inselwelt. In Chamissos „Klassiker“ vereinen sich der anekdotische Reiseerzähler, der naturkundlich interessierte Forscher, der aufklärerische Ethnologe und der enthusiastische Dichter.
Asked which book by another author he would most like to claim as his own work, Italo Calvino once said without hesitation, Adelbert von Chamisso's Peter Schlemiel. First published in 1814, this brilliant novel is not only a precursor of Poe, Kafka, and the magic realists - it is a timeless fable with a remarkably contemporary flavor. When a mysterious man in a gray coat asks Peter Schlemiel if he would sell him his shadow, that "lovely, lovely shadow" of his, he naturally thinks the man must be mad. But then the stranger makes him an offer he can't refuse. In return for his shadow, Schlemiel receives a neverending source of riches, and he is convinced he is on the road to happiness. Yet he finds that without a shadow he is rejected by society and unable to find the fulfillment of love. After a series of fantastic adventures, Peter Schlemiel realizes that he must discover a new way to give his life meaning if he is to go on in the world. Adelbert von Chamisso was born in France, but moved at an early age to Prussia, where he lived during the Franco-Prussian war. Chamisso felt that he belonged equally to both war-torn cultures. Peter Schlemiel was written soon after Prussia's defeat by Napoleon, and was Chamisso's answer to a world in turmoil. The novel was an immediate success, and it catapulted him to international fame. Peter Wortsman's new translation lets us rediscover all the charm wit, and power of this classic tale. In his introduction he gives us the historical background of the novel and traces its influence on the literature of the twentieth century.
