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Quote by Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel

“Philosophy is the true home of irony, which might be defined as logical beauty: for wherever men are philosophizing in spoken or written dialogues, and provided they are not entirely systematic, irony ought to be produced and postulated; even the Stoics regarded urbanity as a virtue.”

Quote by Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel

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Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel
Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel

Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel was a German poet known for his significant contributions to Romantic literature. His works deeply influenced the development of German literature, particularly in the realms of poetry and drama. more

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“There are ancient and modern poems which breathe, in their entirety and in every detail, the divine breath of irony. In such poemsthere lives a real transcendental buffoonery. Their interior is permeated by the mood which surveys everything and rises infinitely above everything limited, even above the poet's own art, virtue, and genius; and their exterior form by the histrionic style of an ordinary good Italian buffo.”

ArtRealFormVirtueModernStyleDivinePoetGeniusOrdinaryBreathsAncientDetailsBreatheMoodIronyItalianInteriorsSurveysExteriorTranscendentalEntiretyHistrionic
Author:Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel
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“The naive which is simultaneously beautiful, poetic, and idealistic, must be both intention and instinct. The essence of intention, in this sense, is freedom. Consciousness is far from intention. There is a certain enamoured contemplation of one's own naturalness or silliness which itself is unspeakably silly. Intention does not necessarily require a profound calculation or plan.”

DoeBeautifulCertainConsciousnessPlansEssenceIntentionInstinctProfoundSillyContemplationPoeticNaiveCalculationsIdealisticSilliness
Author:Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel
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“We should never invoke the spirit of antiquity as our authority. Spirits are peculiar things; they cannot be grasped with the hands and be held up before others. Spirits reveal themselves only to spirits. The most direct and concise method would be, in this case as well, to prove the possession of the only redeeming faith by good works.”

ShouldWellsHandsWould BeSpiritCasesProveAuthorityDirectMethodPossessionPeculiarGood WorkAntiquityInvokeRedeemingConcise
Author:Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel
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