Münchhausen

Münchhausen, a novel written by K. L. Immermann in 1838-9 and published in 4 volumes also in 1838-9. Described as Eine Geschichte in Arabesken, it is divided into four parts, each of two books, and is preceded by an ironic motto from Horace's De arte poetica: ‘Non fumum ex fulgore, sed ex fumo dare lucem/Cogitat, ut speciosa dehinc miracula promat, /Antiphatem Scyllamque et cum Cyclope Charybdim. (He does not seek to produce smoke from brightness, but brightness from smoke, so that splendid wonders are shown forth: Antiphates and Scylla and Charybdis with the Cyclope.)

An intentionally eccentric novel, it begins with chapters 11-15 and continues with 1-10. It is woven out of two elements, the comic, and even crazy, story of Münchhausen with its satire on contemporary trends and attitudes, and a solid story of Westphalian rural life (later published separately as Der Oberhof, 1863). The two strands alternate, running parallel. The incorrigible and indefatigable liar Münchhausen establishes himself in the castle of Schnick-Schnack-Schnurr, although he is not always welcomed by the eccentric owners, promising, when his host tires of him, to promote a company for the solidification of air. The extravaganza is pushed to the point at which three satirical figures of Hegelian philosophers appear in the novel as well as Immermann himself.

The story of the Oberhof contrasts with Münchhausen's lunacy in its four-square robustness. The farm (Oberhof), its inhabitants, and their customs, and especially a rural wedding, are described with relish. Within this framework the hunter (Jäger) Oswald and the foundling Lisbeth successfully maintain their love against the initial opposition of the village magistrate (Oberschulze) and their own misunderstandings.