Siebenkäs
Encyclopedia
Siebenkäs is a German
Romantic
novel by Jean Paul
, published in three volumes between 1796-1797 in Berlin
. As is common for Romantic novels of the period, the original title Flower, Fruit and Thorn Pieces; or, the Married Life, Death and Wedding of Siebenkäs, Poor Man's Lawyer is somewhat verbose, and is commonly abbreviated simply as Siebenkäs.
, or Doppelgänger
(a word of Jean Paul's own invention). Leibgeber convinces Siebenkäs to fake his own death
, in order to begin a new life. Siebenkäs takes the advice of his alter ego, and soon meets the beautiful Natalie. The two fall in love; hence the "wedding after death," as found in the title.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
Romantic
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
novel by Jean Paul
Jean Paul
Jean Paul , born Johann Paul Friedrich Richter, was a German Romantic writer, best known for his humorous novels and stories.-Life and work:...
, published in three volumes between 1796-1797 in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. As is common for Romantic novels of the period, the original title Flower, Fruit and Thorn Pieces; or, the Married Life, Death and Wedding of Siebenkäs, Poor Man's Lawyer is somewhat verbose, and is commonly abbreviated simply as Siebenkäs.
Plot
As the title suggests, the story concerns the life of Firmian Stanislaus Siebenkäs, and is told in a comedic style. Unhappily married, Siebenkäs goes to consult his friend Leibgeber, who is in reality his alter egoAlter ego
An alter ego is a second self, which is believe to be distinct from a person's normal or original personality. The term was coined in the early nineteenth century when dissociative identity disorder was first described by psychologists...
, or Doppelgänger
Doppelgänger
In fiction and folklore, a doppelgänger is a paranormal double of a living person, typically representing evil or misfortune...
(a word of Jean Paul's own invention). Leibgeber convinces Siebenkäs to fake his own death
Pseudocide
A faked death occurs when an individual leaves evidence to suggest that he or she is dead in order to mislead others. This may be done for a variety of reasons, such as to fraudulently collect insurance money or avoid capture by law enforcement for some other crime.People who fake their own deaths...
, in order to begin a new life. Siebenkäs takes the advice of his alter ego, and soon meets the beautiful Natalie. The two fall in love; hence the "wedding after death," as found in the title.
External links
- Siebenkäs at Projekt Gutenberg-DEProjekt Gutenberg-DEProjekt Gutenberg-DE is a collection of German language literary texts, distributed via the web and on CD-ROM. It is run by a small publishing company called Hille Partner, run by Gunter Hille, and its web presence is hosted by the weekly magazine Der Spiegel....
(in German) - Siebenkäs at Google Books (English translation of Volume 2)
- Siebenkäs at the Internet Archive