The World as a Labyrinth

German satires of the 18th century

Edited by Gustav René Hocke

Via the Enlightenment and the Sentimentalism to “Sturm und Drang”/Storm and Stress: With his work “Deutsche Satiren des 18. Jahrhunderts” (German Satirical Writing of the 18th Century), Gustav René Hocke focuses on a genre of literature that reached its very peak in direct correlation with the political and social changes in Germany. This anthology contains primary material as well as accompanying analyses for some well known, but also for some lesser known works by Rabener, Sturz, Gellert, Zachariae, Musäus, Lichtenberg, Kästner, Lessing, Friedrich II. von Preußen, Wieland, Gleim, Thümmel, Hölty, Blumauer, Seume, Goethe, Schiller, Lenz, Bürger, Claudius, H. v. Kleist and Jean Paul. 26 illustrations from copper prints of the 18th century underline the clever puns and the wit of the contemporary authors.