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Ernst Theodor Wilhelm Hoffmann was born in Königsberg,
Prussia on January 24th, 1776. He was a German writer,
composer, and painter who was influential in the romantic
movement. Hoffmann is best known for his stories
involving the supernatural where sinister characters
move in and out of men's lives, ironically revealing
the tragic or grotesque sides of human nature.
Son of a lawyer, Hoffmann was the product of a broken
home. He was mainly raised by an uncle. He studied law
and became a Prussian law officer in the Polish provinces
in 1800. In 1806, Napoleon defeated Prussia and Hoffmann
found himself without means. As a result, he turned to
his main interest, music. Until 1814, he was a musical
director, conductor, and critic. During this time he
changed his third baptismal name, Wilhelm, to Amadeus
in reverence for Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
In 1814, Hoffmann had a falling out with the manager
of the theater in Dresden, where he was working at the
time, and was forced to returned to law. He was appointed
to the court of appeal in Berlin and in 1816 he became
councilor. During this time he began to write.
Hoffmann was influenced by such authors as Adelbert
von Chamisso; amongst his short stories was Peter
Schlemihls wundersame Geschichte in which Peter
Schemihl sells his shadow to the devil. This work influenced
Hoffmann's work Abentuer der Silvesternacht,
in which Hoffmann includes the character Peter Schemihl.
Hoffmann wrote two novels, Die Elixiere des Teufels [The
Devil's Elixir] written from 1815 to 1816), and Lebens-Ansichten
des Katers Murr nebst fragmentarischer Biographie des
Kapellmeisters Johannes Kreisler [The Life and Opinions
of Kater Murr, with a Fragmentary Biography of Conductor
Johannes Kreisler] written from 1820 to 1822. Hoffmann
is best known for his short stories. He wrote more than
50 short stories during his life. Among his collections
are Nachtstücke [Strange Stories] written in 1817,
and Die Serapionsbrüder [The Serapion Brethren]
written from 1819 to 1821.
Andersen knew and was influenced by Hoffmann's stories.
Hoffmann used his imagination combining mysterious, sometimes
macabre images with elements from the human psyche. This
combination can sometimes be seen in Andersen's own works.
Hoffmann died from progressive paralysis in Berlin on
June 25th, 1822.
For more information try the following websites:
Biography (English)
Biography (German)
S. Mellor |
