A pair of tragedies from Friedrich Schiller, buddy to Goethe, and child of the enlightenment.

The first, Don Carlos, premiered in 1787, and in it Schiller used the events in the royal family of 16th century Spain as a basis for the tale, with King Phillip II reigning and whose son Carlos was weak and slightly deformed at birth. Carlos’s mental condition deteriorated as a teen and he was rumored to be fleeing Spain, a situation which led to his confinement and death at the age of 23 in 1568.

Mary Stuart, premiering in 1800, tells the tragedy of Mary, Queen of Scots, who claimed the throne held by distant cousin Elizabeth I, which led to her imprisonment and death.

As an aside, the historical relationship between the two is interesting. The common link is Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, whose daughter Catherine of Aragon was the first of Henry VIII’s wives. Ferdinand and Isabella’s royal lineage carried down to Phillip II, while Henry VIII of course dumped Catherine and had Elizabeth I by Anne Boleyn.

But I digress. In both stories, Schiller stretches the historical truth, shifts timelines, and invents characters in order to dramatize the tale. Hey, it was the Sturm und Drang, OK? And both were simply vehicles for him to speak of late 18th century concerns, including justice and freedom of conscience. Don Carlos is critical of the Spanish Inquisition, and it’s telling that during the early years of the Third Reich, audiences applauded in Germany over the expression of freedom of thought, a protest against repression, and that after the war the play was very popular.

I’m sure if I had been alive 200 years ago when it came out, both plays would have been 5 stars for me. And they are still good reads, just not great, maybe in part because it’s hard to capture the magic of a stage performance in print.

Quotes:
On death, from Mary Stuart:
“It is not flowers turning to the sun,
Nor the slow steering round of ships or swans,
When we abandon life it must be sudden,
A leap of lightning.”

On freedom, from Don Carlos:
“But what the crown can tolerate – is that
Enough for me? Can my humanity
Allow itself to chain humanity?
If they can’t think, I cannot call them glad.
Let me not be the chosen advocate
Of the serenity you force on men.
I must refuse to be so generous.
I cannot pledge allegiance to a lord.”

On home, from Don Carlos:
“Some breeze has found its way from France to here,
Reminding me of games I used to play –
Do not be cross with me. Our fatherland
Will keep our hearts, no matter where we are.”

On love, from Don Carlos:
“It is the one thing in the bounds of earth
That cannot be exchanged for anything
But its own self. Love is the price of love.
It is the only diamond I possess
That I must either give away or hide.”

And this one, which I love:
“The man I choose will be the only one,
And I will give him all eternally.
And he who has me will be made immortal,
His happiness will make him God. A kiss,
The distillation of divided souls,
The deep indulgence of the lover’s hour,
The unforbidden witchcraft that is beauty,
Are sister colors of a single flower
Whose close-locked petals blend their many shades.”

As well as this one, from Mary Stuart:
“The only reward acceptable to life
Is when two hearts bewitched by one another
Surrender self-awareness to delight.”

On love unrequited, from Don Carlos:
“And does he prize you? Can he understand
What he possesses? Is your heart his treasure?
If he was happy I would not be bitter,
I would forget the bliss I could have had,
But he is not. And that I cannot bear.”

On progress, from Don Carlos:
“And do you hope to end what you began?
To trample on the universal spring,
Halting the present changes in religion?
The world is growing younger day by day,
And you alone in Europe fling yourself
Into the path of the great world-fate’s wheel,
That runs unstoppably at full speed on!
To jam its spokes with your thin human arm!
You will not.”

On religion, from Don Carlos:
“A free mind sees the laws and not their maker.
Who needs a God, it says, the world is all.
And this free spirit’s blasphemous respect
is praise far greater than a Christian’s anthems.”

On sleep, from Don Carlos:
“King: I shall sleep when I am in the Royal Vault.” ( )

Das Drama Don Karlos ist eines der berühmtesten und bedeutesten Werke von Friedrich Schiller. Der Dichter verfasste das Werk zwischen 1783 bis 1787 und veröffentliche es unter dem vollständigen Titel Don Karlos, Infant von Spanien. Das Stück beschreibt Ereignisse vor dem Hintergrund des durch die spanische Besetzung der Niederlande ausgelösten Achtzigjährigen Krieges. Die Protagonisten sind König Philipp II. von Spanien, dessen Sohn Don Karlos, die Königin Elisabeth von Valois und einstige Geliebte des Thronfolgers und weitere Charaktere des spanischen Hofes. Eng verknüpft mit den politischen Geschehnissen sind familiäre Konflikte rund um die Königsfamilie. Meiner Meinung nach ist das Buch ziemlich langweilig, da die Geschichte eintönig und die Personen einfältig sind. ( )