August Wilhelm von Schlegel

August Wilhelm von Schlegel – Life, Career, and Famous Quotes

Discover the life, works, and philosophy of August Wilhelm von Schlegel — German Romantic poet, translator, critic, and orientalist (1767–1845). Explore his biography, greatest achievements, and most inspiring quotes.

Introduction

August Wilhelm von Schlegel (8 September 1767 – 12 May 1845) occupies a central place in the history of German Romanticism. A polymath sensitive to language, literature, and culture, he was a poet, translator, literary critic, philologist, and later an orientalist. His translations of Shakespeare into German remain legendary, and his lectures and theoretical writings shaped generations of literary thinkers. Today his name is often associated with the spirit of early Romanticism and the profound interplay of art, philosophy, and culture.

Early Life and Family

August Wilhelm Schlegel was born in Hanover in 1767, in the Electorate of Hanover (now modern Germany).

In his youth, the Schlegel household fostered strong interests in literature, theology, and classic learning. The family environment, with access to books and education, enabled August Wilhelm to cultivate a broad cultural outlook.

Youth and Education

In 1786, Schlegel entered the University of Göttingen, initially studying theology.

At Göttingen, he studied under scholars like Heyne, and interacted with students and intellectual currents influenced by Herder, Kant, Winckelmann, and later Romantic thinkers.

Between 1791 and 1795, Schlegel served as a private tutor in Amsterdam for the son of a Dutch banker, which allowed him to travel and refine his linguistic and cultural sensibilities.

By the early 1790s, he had already begun working on translations, including early efforts at rendering Shakespeare into German.

Career and Achievements

Jena, the Romantic Circle, and Literary Criticism

In 1796, Schlegel moved to Jena, then a hotbed of intellectual ferment. Horen and Musen-Almanach.

Along with his brother Friedrich Schlegel, he co-founded the journal Athenaeum (1798–1800), a crucial organ for early German Romantic thought. Through Athenaeum, the Schlegel brothers explored aesthetics, philosophy, language, and literary criticism.

In 1801, he published Charakteristiken und Kritiken, a collection of literary criticisms.

Dramatic Theory, Translations, and Literary Works

In 1802–1803, Schlegel published Ion, a tragedy in the style of Euripides, which sparked discussions of dramatic theory. Spanisches Theater (1803–1809), translating Spanish plays (notably Calderón) into German.

His most enduring legacy lies in his translation of Shakespeare. His German versions (eventually about 17 plays) are considered masterpieces of poetic translation and had a formative effect on the reception of Shakespeare in Germany.

Between 1804 and about 1818, Schlegel spent extended periods in the households and circles of Madame de Staël, residing at Coppet and working as her literary advisor and tutor. Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature (delivered around 1808, published 1809–1811), which became one of his most influential theoretical writings.

Oriental Studies and Later Career

In 1818, Schlegel accepted a professorship in Bonn, becoming one of the first major Indologists in Continental Europe. Bhagavad Gītā (Latin translation). Indische Bibliothek. Rāmāyaṇa.

In his later years, he also published Kritische Schriften (two volumes, 1828) consolidating critical writings, and continued working on comparative linguistics and philology.

Schlegel passed away in Bonn in 1845.

Historical Milestones & Context

• Schlegel was a formative figure in Jena Romanticism, one of the first major phases of German Romantic culture.

• His co-founding of Athenaeum (1798–1800) placed him at the center of early Romantic debates about poetry, criticism, philology, and aesthetics.

• His Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature helped disseminate Romantic aesthetic ideas across Europe, influencing writers and criticism beyond Germany.

• His work in Sanskrit and Indology coincided with a growing European interest in Oriental cultures; he helped bring Indian epics into Western scholarly view.

• His translation work made Shakespeare part of German national literary heritage. Through his versions, Shakespeare entered the German consciousness, influencing German drama, poetry, and literature.

Legacy and Influence

Schlegel’s legacy is multi-layered:

1. Literary Criticism & Aesthetics
   His theory that a critic should seek to understand an artwork from within rather than judge it from a detached standard remains one of his lasting contributions. His lectures and writings bridged theory and practice, influencing Romantic and later literary criticism across Europe.

2. Translation and Reception of Shakespeare
   His German Shakespeare translations became benchmarks of poetic translation. Through them, German readers encountered Shakespeare’s dramas in a powerful, poetic German idiom.

3. Oriental Studies & Comparative Linguistics
   As one of the pioneer Indologists, he contributed to early German scholarship in Sanskrit, pushing comparative linguistics and the study of Asian texts in Europe.

4. Cultural Bridge-Builder
   He moved across languages, literatures, and cultures. He was equally conversant in German, French, English, Latin, and Sanskrit—he occupied a rare space as a scholar capable of both deep specialist work and broad cultural synthesis.

Although in the modern literary memory he is somewhat overshadowed by his brother Friedrich, recent scholarship has called for a reappraisal of his contributions as uniquely integrative and cross-disciplinary.

Personality and Talents

• Intellectual breadth and curiosity — Schlegel never confined himself to a single specialty. From poetry and criticism to Sanskrit and philology, his interests spanned fields.

• Linguistic mastery — He had deep command over multiple languages and understood the nuance needed in translation, which allowed him to produce highly poetic and faithful renderings.

• Critical generosity — His Romantic stance emphasized empathy toward the work of art: he believed that criticism should illuminate rather than condemn.

• Cultural mediator — He served as a bridge between German, French, English, and Indian literary traditions.

• Energetic teacher and lecturer — His lecture courses (in Berlin, Vienna, Bonn) were known for their intellectual vigor and range.

Famous Quotes of August Wilhelm von Schlegel

Here are some of his most memorable sayings:

“Our mind has its own ideal time, which is no other but the consciousness of the progressive development of our beings.” “In actual life, every great enterprise begins with and takes its first forward step in faith.” “Literature is the immortality of speech.” “That which exists in nature is a something purely individual and particular. Art, on the contrary, is essentially destined to manifest the general.” “The thinker requires exactly the same light as the painter, clear, without direct sunshine, or blinding reflection, and, where possible, from above.” “Egotism erects its center in itself; love places it out of itself in the axis of the universal whole.” “Authorship is, according to the spirit in which it is pursued, an infamy, a pastime, a day-labor, a handicraft, an art, a science, a virtue.” “Formerly it was the fashion to preach the natural; now it is the ideal. People too often forget that these things are profoundly compatible; that in a beautiful work of imagination the natural should be ideal, and the ideal natural.”

These quotes reflect his belief in the union of ideal and natural, the role of faith and growth in human enterprise, and the delicate craft of art and criticism.

Lessons from Schlegel

1. Holistic engagement — Schlegel’s life teaches us that one need not specialize narrowly: great insights often arise from engaging broadly across fields.

2. Criticism by empathy — Critique rooted in effort to understand the work from within can lead to deeper, more generous interpretation.

3. The power of translation — Translation is not mere linguistic conversion but cultural mediation; Schlegel’s work reminds us of the creative possibilities in rendering texts afresh for new audiences.

4. Cultural openness — His turn to Sanskrit studies reflects a belief in cross-civilizational dialogue; we too can look beyond our traditions to enrich our thinking.

5. Intellectual perseverance — Schlegel’s lifelong pursuit across philology, poetry, criticism, and oriental studies shows that intellectual ambition sustained over decades can yield a vast legacy.

Conclusion

August Wilhelm von Schlegel was more than a Romantic poet or critic — he was a cultural bridge, a translator of worlds, and a thinker unafraid to cross disciplinary boundaries. His life’s work lives on in the German appreciation of Shakespeare, in the foundations of European comparative linguistics, and in the ethos of criticism as sympathetic discourse. He challenges modern readers to embrace breadth, curiosity, and empathy in thought.

Explore more of his works, translations, and lectures, and let his insight continue to inspire your own engagement with literature and culture.