Wolfram von Eschenbach belongs to the small group of German narrative poets composing at the beginning of the thirteenth century. With his close contemporaries Hartmann von Aue, Gottfried von Strassburg, and the anonymous author of the Nibelungenlied, he brought medieval German literature to a remarkable brief flowering usually designated as “die mittelhochdeutsche Blütezeit” (literally “the Middle High German time of blossom”). Although they share more or less the same time-span for their creativity, the quartet are remarkably varied, and Wolfram’s own œuvre is distinguished by its variety, originality and his mastery of language and thought. Side by side with his three very different narrative works – Parzival, Willehalm

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First published 07 January 2004

Citation: Gibbs, Marion E.. "Wolfram von Eschenbach". The Literary Encyclopedia. 7 January 2004.
[http://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=4784, accessed 9 February 2010.]