Reisebilder
- 597 pages
- 21 hours of reading
"Germany. A Winter's Tale" is the literary result of Heinrich Heine's journey through Germany in 1843. As a "foreigner" who left Germany in 1931, he returns to meet his mother and his publisher, Campe. From a distance, he critiques the stagnant social, political, and cultural conditions of Restoration Germany. Heine's "travel picture" initially appears to be a travelogue featuring stops in Aachen, Cologne, and Hamburg, but it is, in fact, a satire written shortly after his return to French exile. Upon its publication in 1844, Heine faced severe attacks from the press; the work was banned and censored. Nevertheless, it was published in full later that year in the social-revolutionary journal "Vorwärts," edited by Karl Marx. Heine, who offers radical political criticism, also expresses a deep connection to Germany and a desire for change: "Plant the black-red-gold flag at the height of German thought, make it the standard of free humanity, and I will give my best heart's blood for it." Heine's satirical epic represents the pinnacle of his work and holds a unique place in 19th-century poetry.
