Holderlin Analysis - Grade: A+ PDF

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This an in-depth essay for Professor Felix Bernstein's English Writing II Class. It is an analysis of the work of Friedrich Holderlin and analysis of his mental illness as illustrated by several of his poems. A bibliography is included at the end. The essay incorporates several theories as well as q...

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Grace Kassin Felix Bernstein Writing II October 4th, 2017 A Divided Existence Throughout Johann Christian Friedrich Hölderlin’s works, and perhaps his life from his birth in the late 18th century until his death in the mid 19th century, extreme shifts permeate in both a physical and literary sense. The question, though, remains, why? Hölderlin was diagnosed with one the most infamous diseases associated with a distressing dichotomy: schizophrenia. Stemming from the Greek words skhizein, to split, and phrēn, mind, the poet essentially suffered a split in his cognition. The disorder is often categorized by withdrawal from reality with relationships bordering on fantasy and mentalities supported by elements that are often in conflict, stereotypes that are evident throughout his pieces. However, the spectrum of his symptoms, whether a removal of himself from reality or the belief in conflicting ideals, manifest themselves in a multitude of ways. He writes about Christ and monotheism along with the gods of Ancient Greece, conflicting ideals that he unified; yet, he also writes of fantasies of jubilation which shift rapidly to let downs and despair, high and lows reminiscent of manic depression. Clearly, mental health had its effect on his poetry and those effects provide the reader with a glimpse of how Hölderlin thought, what he thought about, and what he believed about human nature. In analysis of mental deterioration, one of the most notable symptoms is manifested shifts from emotional highs to desolation. This hallmark symptom is seen in “Hyperion’s Song of

Fate,” as it begins with characteristic imagery illustrating illumination and hope. He speaks about the ethereal touch of divine spirits, basking in the airs of the gods and their calmness and clarity. However, he shatters that emotion by confronting the harsh reality of human downfall into despair and uncertainty. The language he uses, “suffering human beings… thrown downward,” illustrates a literal fall from joy into sadness, a key characteristic of depression. Although this poem was written in the early 1790s, prior to his diagnosis and the height of his mental disorder, it is still teeming with evident symptoms of manic depression and psychosis, precursors to schizophrenia. The same pattern is seen in “Mnemosyne” as he begins describing nature and her beauty in vivid detail. He then goes on to speak of a human trait that will arguably bring a man to his tragic downfall, refusing to submit to misfortune. Although willfulness is often celebrated, it ultimately brought the demise of great men like Achilles and Ajax. These men illustrate what it means to be too human, although the qualities may seem minute and unavoidable, and define the lines between humankind and godliness. Unlike “Hyperion’s Song of Fate,” “Mnemosyne” tells of the possible causes behind human downfall. The idea behind this hamartia and demise closely matches the Aristotelian heroes. The excessive ability and god-like qualities, or struggle to obtain them, Hölderlin believed precipitated a certain descent. Doom, in this sense, was almost certain because humans could never reach the levels of the gods; in turn, in struggling to climb, they would only be cast downward. Whether or not the deterioration relates to cognitive ability, or lack thereof, it certainly mirrors Hölderlin’s own mental state. Towards the later years of his illness, the contrast between rising up and reverting to darkness is clarified in Hölderlin’s writings; in fact, in “Bread and Wine,” he uses of darkness and

light quite literally to illustrate that contrast. The poem begins with discussing the serenity and rest provided by the torchlight and the thought that stems from daylight. But that manic high is lost when he writes that even the “faithful man, too, gladly looks into darkness.” Night hides the world of those running from the light, from those who wish it away. Darkness, Hölderlin writes, affords the opportunity of avoiding responsibility and stress that is kindled during the daylight. After falling from a high, darkness becomes the low that allows a disconnect from reality. Aside from the contrast of light and dark, he uses the concept of intoxication to portray a longing to detach. Humans, he writes, are yearning for “brimming cups, and life to be led more boldly,” they are yearning to enter a state outside of themselves. This poem was written in 1801, one of the last before succumbing to the height of his mental illness. Hölderlin wrote a reflection of his mania, he wrote of a man wishing to hide and escape from the reality of himself and being human. While the stylistic elements of his writing certainly display mania and mental distress, the themes Hölderlin uses throughout his poetry foreshadow psychosis, an abnormal cognitive state that dissociates a person from reality, one of the most evident symptom of schizophrenia. Growing up, Hölderlin was groomed for life as a minister and attended highly devout, religious seminaries. However, his devotion to Greek mythology was in constant discord with contemporary Protestant theology and traditional Christian beliefs. He viewed the gods and goddesses of Greece as real forces that manifested themselves in objects perceptible to human understanding. The ideas behind mythology and Hellenism are in direct conflict with monotheism and Christianity, but not in the eyes Hölderlin. He unified these ideas not only in theory, but in chronology, a clear illustration of thoughts that are out of touch with reality. In

“Bread and Wine,” the poem that epitomizes the symptoms of his mental illness, Hölderlin writes about Christ in succession with the gods of Ancient Greece. In his earlier poems, like “Hyperion’s Song of Fate,” Christ is only alluded to, while in some poems, like “Mnemosyne,” he is absented in favor of mythology. Then, Hölderlin also turns away from notions he previously put in his poems, the position of the Greek gods. In this poem, the gods are seen as those who care little about humankind, and, in turn, humans begin to care little about the gods; thus, Christ is briefly elevated in the eyes of Hölderlin. Rather than transitioning between religious ideologies, the dichotomy became one unit as his illness progressed. The title “Bread and Wine” refers to elements that are crucial both to Christian communion and the Hellenist feasts of Dionysus. Even in the title Hölderlin is determined to reconcile the disparity between modern and ancient worship, a disparity within himself. Hölderlin is certainly a curious character among the poets of the past. He struggled with an existence attempting to reconcile opposite poles. This existence placed a strain on his cognition, perhaps causing his descent into psychosis. The progression of his writing eerily mirrors this descent, long before a formal diagnosis. His writing is laced not only with unconventional themes and use of stylistic elements, but with unconventional messages and images. Mental illness, whether manic depression or schizophrenia, often has interesting ways of making itself apparent; in the case of Hölderlin it manifested itself as new insights into various religions. These insights, combined with his poetic genius, create poems that stray from traditional monotheistic beliefs, essentially establishing an unprecedented experience in poetry....