Wilhelm Raabe

Wilhelm Raabe

Wilhelm Raabe (September 8, 1831 – November 15, 1910), German novelist, whose early works were published under the pseudonym of Jakob Corvinus, was born in Eschershausen (then in the Duchy of Brunswick, now in the Holzminden District).

He served an apprenticeship at a bookseller's in Magdeburg for four years (1849–1854); but tiring of the routine of business, studied philosophy at Berlin (1855–1857). While a student at that university he published his first work, Die Chronik der Sperlingsgasse (1857), which at once attained to great popularity.

Raabe next returned to Wolfenbüttel, and then lived (1862–1870) in Stuttgart, where he devoted himself entirely to authorship and wrote a number of novels and short stories; notably Unseres Herrgotts Kanzlei (1862); Der Hungerpastor (1864); Abu Telfan (1867) and Der Schüdderump (1870).

In 1870 Raabe removed to Brunswick and published the narratives Horacker (1876); Pfisters Mühle (1884); Das Odfeld (1889); Stopfkuchen (1891) – perhaps his masterpiece, Kloster Lugau (1894) and numerous other stories. Moving away from the idealized depictions of faith and family in his earlier, fairly typical Biedermeier period works to sometimes gritty social realism, his later works were much less popular than the earlier ones, which Raabe now came to regard as cheesy nonsense.

The distinguishing characteristic of Raabe's work is a genial humour reminiscent of Dickens; but often combined with realistic pessimism. His works, many of which double as fairy tales, have a recurrent theme of homecoming to the place of birth.

Raabe's 40th anniversary as a writer in 1894 was a matter of national celebration.

The critical edition of Raabe's complete works was published as Sämtliche Werke (Braunschweiger Ausgabe) Im Auftrage der Braunschweigischen Wissenschaftlichen Gesellschaft hrsg. von Karl Hoppe, beginning in 1965.

Works

• Die Chronik der Sperlingsgasse, 1856
• Ein Frühling, Der Weg zum Lachen, 1857
• Die alte Universität, Der Student von Wittenberg, Weihnachtsgeister, Lorenz Scheibenhart, Einer aus der Menge, 1858
• Die Kinder von Finkenrode, Der Junker von Denow, Wer kann es wenden?, 1859
• Aus dem Lebensbuch des Schulmeisterleins Michel Haas, Ein Geheimnis, 1860
• Auf dunkelm Grunde, Die schwarze Galeere, Der heilige Born, Nach dem großen Kriege, 1861
• Unseres Herrgotts Kanzlei, Das letzte Recht, 1862
• Eine Grabrede aus dem Jahre 1609, Die Leute aus dem Walde, Holunderblüte, Die Hämelschen Kinder, 1863
• Der Hungerpastor, Keltische Knochen, 1864
• Else von der Tanne, Drei Federn, 1865
• Die Gänse von Bützow, Sankt Thomas, Gedelöcke, 1866
• Abu Telfan; oder Heimkehr aus dem Mondgebirge, 1867
• Theklas Erbschaft, 1868
• Im Siegeskranze, 1869
• Der Schüdderump, Der Marsch nach Hause, Des Reiches Krone, 1870
• Der Dräumling, 1872
• Deutscher Mondschein, Christoph Pechlin, 1873
• Meister Autor oder Die Geschichten vom versunkenen Garten, Höxter und Corvey, 1874
• Frau Salome, Vom alten Proteus, Eulenpfingsten, 1875
• Die Innerste, Der gute Tag, Horacker, 1876
• Auf dem Altenteil, 1878
• Alte Nester, Wunnigel, 1879
• Deutscher Adel, 1880
• Das Horn von Wanza, 1881
• Fabian und Sebastian, 1882
• Prinzessin Fisch, 1883
• Villa Schönow, Pfisters Mühle, Zum wilden Mann, Ein Besuch, 1884
• Unruhige Gäste, 1885
• Im alten Eisen, 1887
• Das Odfeld, 1888
• Der Lar, 1889
• Stopfkuchen, 1891
• Gutmanns Reisen, 1892
• Kloster Lugau, 1894
• Die Akten des Vogelsangs, 1896
• Hastenbeck, 1899
• Altershausen (Fragment), 1902 (published 1911)

Wilhelm Raabe the painter

"Farmer's cottage in a heath landscape", oil painting, 37.0 x 23.2 cm.

In addition to writing, Wihelm Raabe also had a less known talent for painting. Approximately 600 of his drawings exist, partially in private ownership of his descendants or with the Braunschweig Museum.

References

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

External links

• Die schwarze Galeere Free human-read audiobook (in the German original) from LibriVox
• Full text of books by Raabe at Projekt Gutenberg-DE (German)