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 Theodor
Storm (1817 - 1888): He too was a poet and a novel-writer (and a lawyer).
He lived most of the time in a town by the shore of the North Sea called
Husum and many of his poems describe this landscape (the coast being not
rocky but flat and sandy with a large area left free by low tide - the
so-called Watt -, the land partly covered with heather and fir-woods) and
give the atmosphere of a land deeply influenced by the sea. The poems I
will present describe the land and the town of Husum. From 1852-1863 Storm
had to live in exile in Berlin because he said the wrong things about the
Danish occupation of the county of Schleswig-Holstein. In Berlin he met
Fontane and became member in the same literary circle "Der Tunnel über der
Spree".
Theodor Storm
Ans Haff nun fliegt die Möwe (The sea-gull flies ashore now)
The sea-gull flies ashore now,
And twilight's setting in;
Upon the mud-flats mirrors
The sun of the late evening.
The sea-birds like grey shadows
Approaching waters flee;
And dreamlike lie the islands
In the mists upon the sea.
Low murmurs and misterious
Of fermenting mud I hear,
Lonely sea-gulls' harsh cries,
A sound, to me so dear.
Once more the wind is whisp'ring,
And then a silence falls;
The voices above the surface -
Audible become their calls.
Theodor Storm
Die graue Stadt (The Grey Town)
Grey is the shore, and grey the sea,
And nearby lies the town.
Approaching mists oppress the roofs,
The murmur of the sea, it mourns
Forever round the town.
No wind is whisp'ring in the woods,
No birds will sing in May;
The grey geese only with harsh cries
Will pass the town in autumn nights;
On the shore will move the grass.
But yet you are so dear to me,
You grey town by the sea,
Because enchanting dreams of youth,
Smiling sweetly, rest in you,
You grey town by the sea.
Theodor Storm
Weihnachtslied (Christmas Song)
From Heaven into valleys deep
The mild light of a star descends,
From fir tree woods a fragrance sweet
Ascending through the cold night breathe;
And lit by candles is the night.
My heart is startled now with joy,
It is the Christmas time so dear!
Afar I hear the church bells toll,
So dear and homely they call
Me back into a fairy tale.
Again, I stand in adoration,
The old enchantment holds me still;
Before my eyes, from deep oblivion
Lost childhood's golden dreams return.
I feel, a miracle has happened here. |
