Heinrich von Kleist (Kleist Heinrich von)

(1777-1811)
Full name - Bernd Heinrich Wilhelm von Kleist, (Bernd Heinrich Wilhelm von Kleist). Born October 18, 1777 in Frankfurt / Oder. Fifteen-year teenager entered military service, but in 1799 left her and began to study mathematics and philosophy at the local university. After three semesters of enhanced training Kleist had come to the conclusion that all knowledge is relative. He became a wanderer, an obsessive thought about the incomprehensibility of human destiny, and because the mind does not give ready-made solution, he turned to art. The first work of Kleist's play Family Shroffenshteyn (Die Familie Schroffenstein). The writer rejected this drama, conceived as an amalgam of Shakespeare's characters and the completeness of the density of Sophocles, even before its printed, (1803), with the start of work on Giskarom Robert (Robert Guiscard). After a half years of Kleist burned the manuscript and enlisted in Napoleon's army, preparing to invade the British Isles. In poor health, he returned in June 1804 in Berlin. A year later, in Konigsberg, he made a gallant processing of Moliere's comedy Amphitryon (Amphitryon, 1807) and wrote a realistic comedy of a broken jug (Der zerbrochene Krug, 1808, publ. 1811), at the same time, Kleist, an attempt at a novel. In a broken jug Kleist's dramatic talent was revealed most fully: here the rules is not the case, but the logic of characters. Comedy has become as it were preparing for the establishment of the tragedy Penthesilea (Penthesilea, 1808), which is based on the myth of the queen of the Amazons. Then was written romantic tale of Kethen Geylbronna, or test fire (Kthchen von Heilbronn, oder Die Feuerprobe, 1810). Recreated from memory the first act of Robert Giskara, Kleist intended to finish this drama, but instead she wrote a poetic drama Prince Frederick Homburg (Prinz Friedrich von Homburg, 1810, publ. 1821).
Kleist lived in Berlin. Urging Germany to unite in the struggle against Napoleon, he wrote a political drama The Battle of Hermann (Die Hermannschlacht, 1809, publ. 1821), turns to journalism. But the Prussian king was an ally of Napoleon, it was impossible to put the drama, journalistic activities and was in jeopardy. Kleist was in despair. In autumn 1810 he released a volume of short stories (Erzhlungen), who opened his prose masterpiece Kol'haas Michael (Michael Kohlhaas). In June the following year released the second volume of short stories. These are characterized by dramatic concise and lively action, but their characters - victims of a cruel and relentless fate, blind chance and circumstance. Having lost all hope, Kleist committed suicide near Potsdam on Nov. 21, 1811.