Image of Theodor Fontane

Timeline

Lifetime: 1819 - 1898 Passed: ≈ 126 years ago

Title

Writer

Country/Nationality

Germany
Wikipedia

Theodor Fontane

Theodor Fontane was a German novelist and poet, regarded by many as the most important 19th-century German-language realist author. He published the first of his novels, for which he is best known today, only at age 58 after a career as a journalist.

Fontane's novels are known for their complex, often sceptical view of society in the German empire; he shows different social and political parts of society meeting and sometimes clashing. Other trademarks of Fontane's work are their strongly drawn female characters (such as Effi Briest and Frau Jenny Treibel), tender irony and vivid conversations between characters.

Fontane was born in Neuruppin, a town 30 miles northwest of Berlin, into a Huguenot family.  At the age of sixteen he was apprenticed to an apothecary, his father's profession. He became an apothecary himself and in 1839, at the age of 20, wrote his first work (Heinrichs IV. erste Liebe, now lost). His further education was in Leipzig, where he became acquainted with the progressives of the Vormärz.

In 1844 Fontane enlisted in the Prussian army and began the first of numerous journeys to England, which fostered his interest in Old English ballads, which he – a lifelong anglophile – began to imitate. In 1845 became engaged to his future wife, Emilie Rouanet-Kummer, whom he had met when still at school.

Fontane's travel books about Britain include Ein Sommer in London (A Summer in London, 1854), Aus England, Studien und Briefe (From England: Studies and Letters, 1860) and Jenseit des Tweed, Bilder und Briefe aus Schottland (Beyond the Tweed, Pictures and Letters from Scotland, 1860). In the books Fontane reflects both nature and the mood in Britain at that time. The success of the historical novels of Walter Scott had helped to make British themes much in vogue on the Continent.

At the age of 57, Fontane finally began work on his novels, for which he is remembered best today. Fontane's lifelong wish to be able to live from his literary works was finally fulfilled. A fine historical romance, Vor dem Sturm (Before the Storm, 1878), was followed by a series exploring modern life, notably L'Adultera (Woman Taken in Adultery, 1882), which was the first of his society novels and deemed risky for its theme of adultery.

Fontane was plagued by health problems during his last years but continued to work until a few hours before his death. He died in the evening of 20 September 1898 in Berlin. As a member of the French Protestant Church of Berlin he was buried in the congregation's cemetery on the Liesenstraße. His wife, Emilie, was buried beside him four years later. Their graves were damaged during World War II but later restored.

Books by Theodor Fontane

Effi Briest Cover image

Effi Briest

Fiction Novel Tragedy
Realism

Effi Briest is a realist novel by Theodor Fontane. Published in book form in 1895, Effi Briest marks both a watershed and a climax in the poetic realism of literature. It can be thematically compared to other novels on 19th century marriage from a fe...

Sommer in London Cover image

Sommer in London

Non-Fiction Essays Travel
19th century Culture Travel Society England London Germany social commentary Observations Europe City Life Fontane Urban Impressionism

Diese 35 kurzen Reiseberichte entstanden, als Theodor Fontane 1852 zum zweiten Mal nach London reiste. Die Stadt faszinierte ihn, und sowohl die guten als auch die abstoßenden Seiten des Großstadtlebens hielt er mit spitzer Feder fest. (Zusammenfassu...

Stechlin Cover image

Stechlin

Satire Drama Novel
19th century Tradition Modernity Society Dialogue social commentary German Literature Irony 20th century Change Family Saga Prussian Nobility

Der Stechlin ist ein Roman des deutschen Schriftstellers Theodor Fontane, der die Geschichte des märkischen Adelsgeschlechts der von Stechlin im späten 19. Jahrhundert erzählt. Der Roman zeichnet sich durch seine detaillierten Charakterstudien, die m...

Frau Jenny Treibel Cover image

Frau Jenny Treibel

Comedy Romance Fiction
Family Marriage Love Realism Money Romance Comedy Education Society Berlin

Frau Jenny Treibel is a novel by Theodor Fontane, published in 1892. It is a humorous and satirical look at bourgeois society in Berlin. The novel centers on the Treibel family, wealthy industrialists, and their attempts to marry their daughter, Cori...

Unterm Birnbaum Cover image

Unterm Birnbaum

Crime Fiction Mystery
19th century Murder Innocence Mystery Crime Village Guilt Suspense Rural Life Germany social commentary Debt

In Theodor Fontane's "Unterm Birnbaum", Abel Hradscheck, a debt-ridden village innkeeper, finds himself entangled in a web of deceit and suspicion. When a French soldier's body is discovered beneath his pear tree, Hradscheck hatches a cunning plan to...

L'Adultera Cover image

L'Adultera

Fiction Drama
Moral Liebe Gesellschaft Realismus Schuld Ehebruch Jung Alt Versöhnung Tragik Historisch Psychologisch

Der Roman 'L'Adultera' von Theodor Fontane aus dem Jahr 1880 erzählt die Geschichte einer jungen Frau, die unglücklich mit ihrem deutlich älteren Ehemann verheiratet ist. Sie beginnt eine Affäre mit einem anderen Mann, was zu tragischen Konsequenzen...

Irrungen, Wirrungen Cover image

Irrungen, Wirrungen

Romance Fiction Tragedy
19th century Tragedy Romance Social Class Passion Summer Forbidden Love Berlin

Set in 1870s Berlin, the novel follows the story of Lene, a beautiful and dutiful young woman who lives with her elderly foster mother. One summer day, while out on a boat trip, she meets and falls in love with the charming and sophisticated Baron Bo...

Stine Cover image

Stine

Romance Fiction Drama Novel
Family Marriage 19th century Love Romance Tradition Social Class Society Class Conflict Relationships Germany social commentary Forbidden Love Morals Class Differences Social Standing Social Expectations

Stine, a young woman from a modest background, finds herself drawn to the attention of Graf Waldemar Haldern, a sickly young nobleman. Their romance blossoms, but societal pressures and class differences threaten to tear them apart. Stine navigates t...

Effi Briest (abridged) Cover image

Effi Briest (abridged)

Drama Novel Tragedy
Marriage 19th century Love Tragedy Duty Society Passion Infidelity Germany Social norms Prussian Realism Social Consequences

Effi Briest is a classic of Prussian Realism that delves into the complexities of social norms, duty, and the consequences of transgression. It follows Effi, a young woman married to an older, conservative official, Geert von Instetten. Effi, feelin...

Jenseit des Tweed Cover image

Jenseit des Tweed

Non-Fiction Essays Travel
History Culture Travel Narrative Landscape Folklore Scotland Observations Sir Walter Scott Bernhard von Lepel Literary Influence

In "Jenseit des Tweed" (Beyond the Tweed), Theodor Fontane documents his journey through Scotland with his friend Bernhard von Lepel. The book blends insightful observations of the Scottish landscape and its people with engaging tales of folklore and...