The Ursprung des deutschen Trauerspiels [The Origin of German Tragic Drama] was first read by the University of Frankfurt in 1925 as the text for Benjamin’s Habilitationschrift, the qualification that he hoped would allow him to lecture at universities in Germany. This engagement with academia floundered when the University of Frankfurt rejected this original but intricate study in the same year. Ursprung was first published in Germany in 1928, then disappeared only to re-emerge as one of the most meticulous, pertinent and insightful studies of philosophical, historical and literary analysis for the twentieth century. It was the first in a succession of monographs to bring the baroque and the twentieth century into dialogue in new and rewarding ways. These include Omar Calabrese’s Neo-Baroque: A Sign of the Times (1992), Giles Deleuze’s The Fold: Leibniz and...
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Citation: Armond, Kate. "Der Ursprung des deutschen Trauerspiels". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 May 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=5619, accessed 09 June 2026.]
