The representation of the Christian ethos in the poetry of Werner Bergengruen: an integrated approach

The representation of the Christian ethos in the poetry of Werner Bergengruen: an integrated approach

KUSCHKE, Gudrun Friedel Therese, Ph. D. University of the Witwatersrand, 1981 .

This thesis studies the representation of the Christian ethos in the poetry of Werner Bergengruen, using an integrated approach.

Comparatively few studies on Werner Bergengruen's poetry have been published in the last decade and those which do exist, approach his work from a seccionalistic point of view. Such positivistic approaches with their dichotomic interpretations of Christian art, and therefore partialis tic examination and evaluation of poetry, have over the years both under estimated and exhausted Bergengruen's poetic legacy. Because of the limited vision of such biographic, thematic and content-directed approaches they have been unable to satisfactorily unlock the text as a whole and have therefore been responsible for the development of a restrictive analytical tradition that has failed to do justice to the poetic totality.

In order to revive interest in the poetic importance of Bergengruen, a re-assessment of the quality of the text an sichj has become relevant. The necessity of a new structural approach which will reveal the text entirety and not just a sectionalistic segment, concurs with the imperative need of a Christian literary criticism that calls for the establishment of a methodology of poetic analysis to reveal the Work of God in life and in poetry as a concretized expression of experienced reality.

An examination of a representative body of investigations concerning the existing analytical approaches, has disclosed the dualism between theoretical opinions on the unity of life and work and the contrary experience in the practical application thereof.

What is thus urgently needed is a Christian based analytical method, incorporating all structural dimensions of existence by which poetry may be opened up in all its creation;1 possibilities and thus to determine its concretized certitudinal perspective. To establish this aesthetic symbolified religious stand, which motivates and integrates the work of art, the integrative cosmological model for literary criticism, developed by Calvin Seerveld and based on the Phi osophy of Dooyeweerd, is utilized in an adapted form.

Departing from the knowledge that all modes of existence issue from the Word of God, man has the responsibility to positivize these divine structures into visible manifestation. The wide scope of the Dooyeweerdian modal structure offers the possibility of opening up a totality of creational dimensions, unlocking the external lingua-formative foundation and the implicit, qualifying symbolical richness of the poem. By means of the leading function of the confessional aspect in the whole unfolding pro cess of analysis, the multi-valencial potential and the appropriate balance, will disclose the objectified celebrative attitude.

The totality of the poem, reflected through the style and the coherent integration of the parts, reveals the manifestation of the ethos. Thus the intrinsic value of the text, which forms the basis of this theoreti cal model, is analysed into its constituent segments and evaluated in its revelatory entitety, unveiling the pervading ethos. The hypothesis therefore posits that the Christian ethos which is the visible disclosure of a Christ-centredness, characterizes and qualifies the 'Christianness' of Christian poetry.

The Christian vision will emerge from an integrated person and be reflected in the wholeness of life and wo r k . This total revelation can be detected and analysed in the concrete poem. But to be truly Christian, the work of art will be required to portray qualitative lingual and aesthetic expressivity, integrated by a normative world and life view. In order to substantiate the supposition, this integrating theory of analysis is practically applied to a wide selection of Bergengruen1s poetry. Repre sentative of the volume of his work, the selection of poetry is divided into three main and inter-related thematic components: paradoxy, the eternal ordinances and the 'heile Welt1.

In the application of this integrated structural approach, the whole opening up process is directed through and from the pistical aspect. All modalities are unlocked by means of the witness of the speaker through the poem.

In the poem 'Die heile Welt' (1962: 94) for instance, the central theme of 1Heilheit1 is the cohering force which unifies the various sub-motifs within the poem. The wholeness-theme is also followed through technically, revealing the total and consequential character of the implied author s 'whole' world. From this vantage point of the faith aspect, the authorial presence is revealed and the confessional stand disclosed. It is signi ficant that this poem, reflecting the poet's world and life view in a nutshell, should thus also include all the major motifs which have con fessionally concerned Bergengruen, and which notably enough, all form part of his total, intact and healed world. These sub-themes have thus all found an integrated place within the overarching assurances of faith in a redeemed and 'whole' world. It is thus multi—dimensionality of expres sion, coherently integrated, which manifests the permeating poetic con fessional witness. This is the excellence and undisputable mastery of Bergengruen's poetry ... the concretized reflection of a Christ-centred vision.

The practical substantiation of the hypothesis, tS irrefutable proof of the success and practicability of this integrated structural approach.

Similarly, the single poems by contemporary Christian poets and two examples of non-Christian poetry, additionally verify the applicability of this methodology to all poetry.

Zum Andenken an meinen Vater 'und das ... Leben 1st allerwegen gan z '

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS gratefully acknowledge the co-operation and assistance of my supervisors, Prof. R. Nethersole of the University of the Witwatersrand and Prof. D.H. Steenberg of the Potchefstroom University for CHE. Special thanks is due to Prof. D.H. Steenberg for the formative guidance and his invaluable counsel and judgement curing Prof. Nethersole's sabbatical leave. I also wish to exp.ess my appreciation to Prof. Elaine Botha for her interest and encouragement during the commencement of this study. I am especially indebted to the inspired teaching of Prof. Calvin Seerveld (Institute for Christian Studies, ^oronto, Canada) whose introduction to Christian philosophy and aesthetics prompted this study.

Financial assistance by the Human Sciences Research Council is hereby acknowledged.

Opinions expressed or conclusions reached are those of the author and are not to be regarded as a reflection of the opinions and conclusions of the Human Sciences Research Council.

CONTENTS

Page 1. INTRODUCTION . .......................................... 1 1.1 Bergengruen's importance . . . . 1 1.2 Approaches to Bergengruen ............................. 5 1.3 Quest ........................... - ^ 2. A CHRISTIAN WORLD VIEW • 18 2.1 Roots of an integrated Christian Approach .............. 18 2.2 Assumptions of a Reformational World view . . . . . . . 21 3. THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE COSMONOMIC I D E A .................... 29 3.1 Dooyeweerd's Development of a Christian Philosophy . . 29 3.2 The Philosophy of the Cosmonomic L a w - I d e a .............. 32 4. HYPOTHESIS: THE CHRISTIAN ETHOS ......................... 37 5. M E T H O D O L O G Y ..................... 43 5.1 A Christian analytic methodology . 43 5.2 The qualifying aspect of the aesthetic . . . . . . . . 44 5.3 The founding aspect of the lingual modality . . . . . . 44 5.4 The leading function of belief .................. 45 5.5 The norm of coherence: S t y l e ..................... 46 5.6 The role of naive experience ........................... 48 5.7 The integrative cosmological model for literary analysis 49 5.8 The adapted Dooyeweerdian cosmological modal scale . . . 51 5.9 Comparative structural analysis....... .................... 55 1Kreuzigung', R.M. Rilke ............................... 55 'Die letzte Epiphanie1, W. Bergengruen ............... 80 ' V e r f a l V , G. Trakl .................................... 94 'Herbstliche Trostung'. W. Bergengruen . . . . . . . . 99

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6. APPLICATION OF THE COSMONOMIC LAW IN DEALING WITH CHRISTIAN POETRY . . . . . ........................ 106 6.1 Structural analysis on the theme of paradoxy in uhe poetry of Werner Bergengruen .......................... 108 6.2 Paradox in representative poems of Bergengruen . . . . 111 6.3 The eternal o r d i n a n c e s ................................. 156 6.5 'Die heile Welt' ...................................... 219 7. AN EVALUATION OF WERNER BERGENGRUEN AGAINST THE BACKGROUND OF HIS AGE ............................ 7.1 'Die letzte Epiphanie', W. Bergengruen . . . . 7.2 'Wir haben seinen Stern gesehen', R.A. Schroder 7.3 'Weihnachtslied im Kriege', J . Klepper . . . . 7.4 'Der Engel. 7.5 Comparative Evaluation 273 275 278 290 Advent' , R. Schneider ........... 313 331 8. EVALUATION .................... 8.1 Werner Bergengruen's poetic image 8.2 Themes of his age . . . . . . . 8.3 Aesthetic revelation ......... 8.4 The integrated approach .... 337 337 339 342 346 BIBLIOGRAPHY 349