Walter Hasenclever

German playwright and poet. Born in Aachen. Studied law at Oxford and Lausanne, and literary history and philosophy at Leipzig, where he later met Kurt Pintus, who compiled the expressionist poetry collection "Twilight of Mankind". Volunteered for World War I, but returned wounded. Devoted himself to Buddhism and mysticism. After Hitler came to power in 1933, he fled to France (he was interned by the Vichy government, and committed suicide out of fear of being handed over to the Nazis). The tragedy "The Son" (1914), which reflects the author's own family environment and the experiences of his entire generation, is a representative expressionist play that deals with the conflict between a tyrannical father and a rebellious son. "Antigone" (1917), based on classical drama, is a revolutionary play that appeals to the inevitability of the overthrow of the state by the people suffering from oppression and war. From the 1920s onwards, he gradually distanced himself from politics and social issues, writing witty, satirical light comedies such as At First Sight a Gentleman (1926), a novel about the life of a refugee (1940), and a collection of poems called Disciples (1913).

[Yokotsuka Yoshitaka]

"Antigone, translated by Shigenobu Funaki (included in Modern Drama Series 6, 1923, Dosho Kankokai)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

ドイツの劇作家、詩人。アーヘン生まれ。オックスフォード、ローザンヌ両大学で法律を、ライプツィヒ大学で文学史、哲学を学び、またのちに表現主義詩集『人類のたそがれ』を編んだクルト・ピントゥスなどと出会う。第一次世界大戦に志願、負傷して帰還。仏教や神秘主義に傾倒。1933年ヒトラーの政権掌握後フランスに亡命（ビシー政権により強制収容され、ナチに引き渡されるのを恐れて自殺した）。作者自身の家庭環境と同世代全体の体験を反映した悲劇『息子』（1914）は、専制的父親と反抗的息子との葛藤(かっとう)を扱った表現主義演劇の代表作。古典劇に拠(よ)った『アンティゴネー』（1917）は圧政と戦争に苦しむ民衆による国家打倒の必然性を訴えた革命劇。20年代以後はしだいに政治や社会の問題から離れ、機知に富み風刺的な軽喜劇『一見紳士風』（1926）などを書いた。ほかに亡命者の生活を描いた『権利なきものたち』（1940）、詩集『弟子』（1913）などがある。

［横塚祥隆］

『舟木重信訳『アンティゴーネ』（『近代劇大系6』所収・1923・同書刊行会）』

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