Rudolf Pannwitz

Rudolf Pannwitz (27 May 1881 in Crossen/Oder, Province of Brandenburg, Prussia – 23 March 1969 in Astano, Ticino, Switzerland) was a German writer, poet and philosopher. His thought combined nature philosophy, Nietzsche, an opposition to nihilism and pan-European internationalism:

Pannwitz's elusive, difficult goal may be seen as the complete re-evaluation of man, art, science and culture envisaged as the expression of an evolving cosmos obeying the laws of eternal recurrence, with Nietzsche-Zarathustra as the supreme prophet.[1]

Picture of the german writer Rudolf Pannwitz.

Life

Pannwitz was educated at the University of Marburg before moving to Berlin to continue studying. Through Gertrud Kantorowicz, a cousin of Ernst Kantorowicz and friend of Georg Simmel, he was introduced to Sabine Lepsius and the poetry of Stefan George. Pannwitz's poem 'Das Totengedicht' [The Poem of the Dead] was published in George's literary magazine, Blätter für die Kunst.[1] George and Nietzsche were lasting influences upon Pannwitz.[2] In 1904 Pannwitz cofounded the periodical Charon with Otto zur Linde, co-editing it until 1906. His 1917 book The Crisis of European Culture impressed Hugo von Hofmannsthal, though Hofmannsthal later distanced himself from Pannwitz.[1]

From 1921 to 1948 Pannwitz lived on the small island of Koločep. In 1968 he received the Gryphius Prize.[3]

Works

Prose
  • Die Erziehung, 1909
  • Formenkunde der Kirche, 1912
  • Die Krisis der europäischen Kultur, 1917
  • Die deutsche Lehre, 1919
  • Grundriß einer Geschichte meiner Kultur 1886 bis 1906, 1921
  • Kosmos Atheos, 1926
  • Die Freiheit der Menschen, 1926
  • Logos, Eidos, Bios, 1930
  • Der Ursprung und das Wesen der Geschlechter, 1936
  • Nietzsche und die Verwandlung des Menschen, 1940
  • Weg des Menschen, 1942
  • Das Weltalter und die Politik, 1948
  • Der Nihilismus und die werdende Welt, 1951
  • Nach Siebzig Jahren, 1951
  • Beiträge zu einer europäischen Kultur, 1954

Poetry
  • Prometheus, 1902
  • Dionysische Tragödien, 1913
  • Mythen, 1919-1921, In 9 Parts, including Das Kind Aion, Der Elf, Das Lied vom Ehlen, Faustus und Helena, Der Gott, and Logos.
  • Urblick, 1926
  • Hymnen aus Widars Wiederkehr, 1927
  • König Laurin, 1956
  • Wasser wird sich ballen, 1963

References
  1. Raymond Furness, Zarathustra's children: a study of a lost generation of German writers, pp.17ff.
  2. Pannwitz, Was ich Nietzsche und George danke, 1989
  3. 'Pannwitz, Rudolf', in The Oxford Companion to German Literature, ed. Henry & Mary Garland, 3rd ed., 1997, pp.646-7

Further reading
  • Alessandro Gamba, Mondo disponibile e mondo prodotto. Rudolf Pannwitz filosofo, Vita e Pensiero, Milano 2007. ISBN 978-88-343-1624-5
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