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PAUL H. GRUMMANN
with the exception of a single copy which he proceeds to read. She fears
disastrous consequences, seizes the book and throws it into the fire, assur¬
ing Clemens of her undying love. Nietzsche has said that poets arethe most
unchaste of all people because they publish their most sacred feelings.
There is, however, a vital difference between an honest attempt to relate
one'’s experiences to the larger consciousness of the race and the pervading
of personal affairs — even where they are partially cloaked.
The Bohemianism which was considered so essential to the success of
the artist during the last generation forms the background of the tragedy,
The Lonely Way' (03). Wegrath, a young painter, takes his friend
Fichtner to the village, where his sweetheart, Gabriele, lives. She falls
desperately in love with Fichtner, and the two decide to elope. Just
before the plan is to be carried out Fichtner’s ardor cools — his Bohemian
instincts assert themselves — and he deserts her. She now marries We¬
grath, who in time becomes the director of the academyof fine arts. Gabriele
becomes the mother of two children, the older of whom, Felix, is the son of
Fichtner, as we may suppose. Fichtner, after some time, returns to
Vienna and associates with his old friends. As his life becomes more
lonesome he has a growing desire to enter into closer relations with his son.
His love affairs have not given him the inspiration for great work, and finally
he wanders about aimless and homeless. After Gabriele’s death he re¬
turns again to Vienna and tries to claim his son by revealing the secret of
his parentage, but Felix remains true to the man who has bestowed love and
care upon him, and has provided for his mother. Von Sala, another char¬
acter of the drama, is a cultured nobleman of the old school. He revels
in sensual, intellectual and esthetic pleasures without much compunction
for woes that he inflicts upon others. Less emotional and more intellectual
than Fichtner, von Sala analyzes his conduct and philosophizes about it.
Felix is representative of a new type. According to von Sala he has a proper
sense of the fitness of things. He may be less intellectual than the older
generation but he excels it in self-control.
Aseries of short stories under the title The Greck Dancer’ was pub¬
lished in Munich in ’04. The work is of subsidiary importance, and does
not call for special discussion. The tendency of individuals to look
upon their moral problems as unique and not subject to the principles
that are binding for others has been illustrated in many of Schnitzler’s works.
This question is treated with particular force in The Interlude’ (’05).
Amadeus Adams, director of an orchestra, is married to Cecilia, a noted
prima donna. Both have the artists’ characteristic megalomania, which
plays havoc with their moral perception. They see the moral laxness and
trickery of their acquaintances and resolve to put their life upon the basis of
10
S
0
box 36/4
Iet
am
—Dl S ITprints
35
PAUL H. GRUMMANN
with the exception of a single copy which he proceeds to read. She fears
disastrous consequences, seizes the book and throws it into the fire, assur¬
ing Clemens of her undying love. Nietzsche has said that poets arethe most
unchaste of all people because they publish their most sacred feelings.
There is, however, a vital difference between an honest attempt to relate
one'’s experiences to the larger consciousness of the race and the pervading
of personal affairs — even where they are partially cloaked.
The Bohemianism which was considered so essential to the success of
the artist during the last generation forms the background of the tragedy,
The Lonely Way' (03). Wegrath, a young painter, takes his friend
Fichtner to the village, where his sweetheart, Gabriele, lives. She falls
desperately in love with Fichtner, and the two decide to elope. Just
before the plan is to be carried out Fichtner’s ardor cools — his Bohemian
instincts assert themselves — and he deserts her. She now marries We¬
grath, who in time becomes the director of the academyof fine arts. Gabriele
becomes the mother of two children, the older of whom, Felix, is the son of
Fichtner, as we may suppose. Fichtner, after some time, returns to
Vienna and associates with his old friends. As his life becomes more
lonesome he has a growing desire to enter into closer relations with his son.
His love affairs have not given him the inspiration for great work, and finally
he wanders about aimless and homeless. After Gabriele’s death he re¬
turns again to Vienna and tries to claim his son by revealing the secret of
his parentage, but Felix remains true to the man who has bestowed love and
care upon him, and has provided for his mother. Von Sala, another char¬
acter of the drama, is a cultured nobleman of the old school. He revels
in sensual, intellectual and esthetic pleasures without much compunction
for woes that he inflicts upon others. Less emotional and more intellectual
than Fichtner, von Sala analyzes his conduct and philosophizes about it.
Felix is representative of a new type. According to von Sala he has a proper
sense of the fitness of things. He may be less intellectual than the older
generation but he excels it in self-control.
Aseries of short stories under the title The Greck Dancer’ was pub¬
lished in Munich in ’04. The work is of subsidiary importance, and does
not call for special discussion. The tendency of individuals to look
upon their moral problems as unique and not subject to the principles
that are binding for others has been illustrated in many of Schnitzler’s works.
This question is treated with particular force in The Interlude’ (’05).
Amadeus Adams, director of an orchestra, is married to Cecilia, a noted
prima donna. Both have the artists’ characteristic megalomania, which
plays havoc with their moral perception. They see the moral laxness and
trickery of their acquaintances and resolve to put their life upon the basis of
10
S