Sämtliche Werke

Part Two of the historical-critical edition of Eichendorff's poems contains all those known poems (both complete and unfinished) not included by the poet in the authorized selection and grouping of 1841 (on which Volume I/1 of the present edition is based). The total number of these poems is 414, 165 of which have never been previously published. The material ranges from sketches abandoned in their early stages to poems finalized for printing, and is divided up into eight sections reflecting the respective state of completion. Each of these sections is arranged chronologically (publication and planned publication during the poet's lifetime come before posthumous manuscripts etc.).

Volume IV of the historical-critical edition of Eichendorff's works at last makes the author's second major novel available in the original orthography of the first edition. The documentation on the various versions of the novel in the Commentary makes the textual history of »Dichter und ihre Gesellen« transparent for the first time. The Commentary rounds off with information on the genesis of the work and the contemporary reception accorded to it, explanatory notes on content and individual words, and references to literary and historical models and motivic parallels in other works.

Volume V/1 of the historical-critical edition of Eichendorff's complete works assembles seven novellas and other narratives, including such famous titles as "Das Marmorbild", the "Taugenichts" and the Revolution novella "Das Schloß Dürande". Unlike all other modern editions, the present compilation adheres to the author's original orthography. Also, text-critical verification has made it possible to excise numerous errors stemming from early print versions and persisting to the present day. Hence this edition is the first to present these texts in the form originally intended by the author.

For the novellas included in Volume V/1 this installment (V/2) contains first all the extant manuscript versions of the text and the variants in the printed editions, second a description of their genesis and the forms in which they have come down to us, including brief analyses of these texts, and third commentaries on individual passages most of which are taken from contemporary works. As Eichendorff's nachlass is largely destroyed or missing many of the text versions are difficult to reconstruct, not least in their chronology. Apart from a first outline we at least have a manuscript of the first two chapters of the »Taugenichts«; but only for the »Marmorbild« do we have a richer text corpus, notably a late complete manuscript version. Altogether the volume is the product of an attempt to piece together an intricate puzzle for which many of the pieces are missing. As it stands, it does however present all the extant text material and in so doing will hopefully be conducive to new insights.

The volume assembles Eichendorff's satirical and posthumous narratives and fragments. With the exception of the story »Viel Lärm um nichts« all the texts have been reproduced in accordance with the manuscripts. For the first time this edition draws upon textual testimonies stemming from Eichendorff manuscripts thought to have been lost for good after 1945. This applies particularly to the story »Libertas und ihre/ihr Freier«, of which two highly divergent versions have come down to us, the earlier one (»Ihre Freier«) published here for the first time. It also applies to the »Märchen« collected by Eichendorff, our knowledge of which has been based so far on an inadequate edition by Karl von Eichendorff. The appendix also contains the story »Zauberei im Herbst« already included in Volume V/1 on the basis of the first printed version. It has now been reedited on the basis of the manuscripts that have resurfaced in the meantime.

Over the space of almost 30 years, Eichendorff constantly returned to the idea of writing an autobiography, approaching the project from a variety of angles, changing his thematic emphases and contemplating various literary forms. The present volume is organised to reflect the five different stages in Eichendorff's ,memoir project', presenting the relevant texts in chronological order and grouped according to the specific plan Eichendorff had in mind at a given point.

Band VI/1 der historisch-kritischen Eichendorff-Ausgabe vereinigt zum erstem Mal sämtliche historischen Dramen und Dramenfragmente. So findet der Benutzer nicht nur die beiden bekannten, zu Lebzeiten Eichendorffs publizierten Stücke »Ezelin von Romano« und »Der letzte Held von Marienburg«, die hier nach kritischer Durchsicht den Erstdrucken folgen und somit auch in Orthographie und Interpunktion unangetastet bleiben. Das eigentliche Kernstück des Bandes aber sind die zahlreichen nur handschriftlich überlieferten Fragmente, die hier erstmals dem Lesepublikum und der Forschung bereitgestellt werden. Sie erweitern die Grundlage der Eichendorff- und Romatikforschung um signifikantes Material vor allem hinsichtlich politischer Tendenzen der Epoche. - Bei der Edition der Texte stand der Herausgeber vor der schwierigen Aufgabe, die zahlreichen Überarbeitungen und Ergänzungen Eichendorffs an seinen Texten in einem textgenetischen Modell zur Anschauung zu bringen und gleichzeitig die gute Lesbarkeit zu erhalten. Weder die 'Bereinigung' der Fragmente noch eine 'Verschlüsselung' im Sinne einer oft als Geheimwissenschaft gerierenden Editionsphilologie konnten in Frage kommen. Das hier gewählte Modell versucht, beide Klippen zu umschiffen, ohne Kompromißlösungen zu verfallen. Der Benutzer findet sämtliche Elemente des Textbefundes auf einer Seite, wobei die genaue Genese einer Passage als Fußnote erscheint. Gestrichene Passagen bleiben im Haupttext (eindeutig gekennzeichet) bestehen, so daß der Charakter eines work in progress nicht verschleiert wird. Faksimilebeigaben der Handschriften, die sowohl die Herausgeberentscheidungen überprüfbar machen als auch einen Blick in Eichendorffs dichterische Werkstatt ermöglichen, runden den Band ab.

Volume VI/2 of the historical-critical Eichendorff edition contains the editorial notes on the historical dramas and dramatic fragments assembled in Volume VI/1, which is already available (Tübingen 1996). The volume offers users a detailed account of the genesis of the works, copious notes on the various forms in which they have been handed down to us and - for the first time - a critical engagement with the sources. Chronology tables and indexes of names facilitate access to the texts. The volume also includes detailed subject indexes and numerous facsimiles.

For the first time, Volume VII/1 of the Complete Critical Edition presents Eichendorff’s complete satirical dramas in reliable textual form. Alongside the better-known dramas, Krieg den Philistern! (“War on the Philistines!”) and Die Freier (“The Suitors”), the inclusion of the literary satire Meierbeth's Glück und Ende (“Meierbeth’s Luck and End”) will help to expand perceptions of Eichendorff's work. The author reveals his most sarcastic side, sparing none of the literary conceits of the second half of the 19th century. The texts Wider Willen (“Against One’s Will”) and Das Incognito (“The Incognito”), which have been edited from their manuscript versions, also show Eichendorff’s sharp sensibility for his times, thus providing important documentation of the politics of the late Romantic era.

Vol. X of the historical-critical edition of Eichendorff's works contains his historical political writings. Some of these texts have only been re-discovered recently and are published here for the first time in a genetic form. The textual material, most of which was not published during the author's lifetime, sheds new light on Eichendorff. The texts demonstrate that he was not the unworldly romantic as which he has often been presented in literary history, but that he took an active interest in the turbulent political events of his time. Thus, his final dissertation for his study of law from 1818/19 deals with the consequences of secularisation, and contemporary events led him to write a variety of essays on the constitutional question and press law at the beginning of the 1830s.

Joseph von Eichendorff's (1788-1857) diaries are of major importance for the cultural history of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. They cast light on economic, medical, and religious aspects of life at the time, on important loci of socialization and education, such as school, university, and the theatre, and also reflect political activities and modes of travel typical of the age. Both in the text and the commentary, the historical-critical edition has made substantial revisions to all previous printed versions of the diaries.

The translations of Don Juan Manuel's »El Conde Lucanor« and Calderón's autos sacramentales published by Eichendorff between 1840 and 1853 are presented here for the first time in a two-volume edition comprising a critical version of the texts (Vol. XV,2 has already appeared, also a volume - XVI - with unfinished translations of plays by Cervantes and Calderón). The first editions corrupted by a number of printer's errors have been emended at various points by a comparison with the Spanish originals Eichendorff had access to: Keller's edition of »Lucanor«, and the Aponte edition of the autos sacramentales. The commentaries situate the original works in literary history and elucidate the theological and poetological contexts. Comparison with literal translations of significant passages documents Eichendorff's tendency to romanticize in his versions.

This two-volume edition is the first to present the translations of Calderón's autos sacramentales published by Eichendorff in 1846 and 1853 in a version based on a text-critical review of the material. The first edition was marred at various points by printer's errors, which have now been emended via comparison with Eichendorff's source, the authoritative Apontes edition of Calderón's works. The commentaries situate the allegorical dramas on the Eucharistic mystery in their literary-historical context, cast light on theological and poetological issues, and prepare the reader for an appreciation of the plays. Comparison with literal translations of significant passages points up Eichendorff's romanticizing approach.