Superior Powers: The Red Umbrella/In the Gothic House - Paperback

by Hartmut Heyck (Author), Hartmut Heyck (Editor), Hartmut Heyck (Foreword by)

The two novellas by Wilhelm Jensen (1837-1911), "The Red Umbrella" ("Der rote Schirm") and "In the Gothic House" ("Im gotischen Hause") were originally published by Verlag Emil Felber, Berlin in 1892 under the title ÜBERMÄCHTE [SUPERIOR POWERS]. They have not been reprinted since, nor have they to the best of my knowledge ever been translated into English.They play a role in the history of psycho-analysis, because Sigmund Freud refers to them in a letter to Wilhelm Jensen on December 16, 1907 concerning the latter's novella GRADIVA, which Freud had analysed at length: ". . . a knowledgeable friend has drawn my attention to two other novellas of yours, which you have combined under one title as "Übermächte" ["Superior Powers"]. Of these the first - Der rote Schirm - [The Red Umbrella] shows remarkably many traits which also belong to the Gradiva; the other - Im gotischen Hause - [In the Gothic House] appears to be related to the Gradiva via mediation of the first."The full text of Freud's letter and Jensen's reply are found in the Appendix. - Unless otherwise stated, the translations are by me. I have included the original German poems to allow readers a comparison. Hartmut Heyck, translator, Great-grandson of Wilhelm Jensen

Author Biography

Wilhelm Hermann JENSEN was born at Heiligen-hafen/ Holstein (now Germany), son of S. H. Jensen (1795-1855), mayor of the city of Kiel (1834-1844), later administrator (Landvogt) of the German/Danish island of Sylt, who came of old patrician Frisian stock. Jensen was the son-in-law of the journalist and writer J. A. Moritz Bruehl (1819-1877), the father-in-law of the historian and editor Eduard Heyck, the grandfather of the writer and poet Hans Heyck and the step-grand-father of the psychologist Narziss Ach. - After attending classical schools in Kiel and Luebeck, Jensen studied medicine at the univer-sities of Kiel, Wuerzburg, Jena and Breslau. He abandoned the medical profession, however, for that of letters, and moved to Munich, where he associated with writers like Emanuel Geibel. After a residence in Stuttgart (1865-1869), where for a short time he edited the Schwaebische Volks-zeitung and became the lifelong friend of the writer Wilhelm Raabe, he was appointed editor in Flensburg of the Norddeutsche Zeitung. In 1872 he returned to Kiel, lived from 1876 to 1888 in Frei-burg im Breisgau, and from 1888 until his death in Munich and St. Salvator near Prien on Lake Chiemsee. Jensen was a prolific writer, poet and dramatist with more than 150 titles to his credit: Karin von Schweden had sales of 230,000+ copies. Jensen has now, however, fallen out of favour with the public and is these days known mainly because Sigmund Freud analysed his novel GRADIVA ("Delusion and Dream in Wilhelm Jensen's Gradiva"). If it were not for this novella, Jensen would now be largely forgotten.