Emilia Galotti

Abstract

Born on 23 January 1729, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing was the son of an impoverished Lutheran pastor whose living was in the town of Kamenz, north-east of Dresden. Despite initial opposition from his father, Lessing was to become Germany’s first professional man of letters and first outstanding playwright. Between 1741 and 1746 he received a fine classical education as a scholar at a boarding school in Meissen. In September 1746 he matriculated at the University of Leipzig, with the intention of studying theology, but his good intentions did not last for long. Apart from discovering the pleasures of dancing, fencing and socialising, he became increasingly interested in literature and the theatre. The acting troupe led by Karoline Neuber was at the time based in Leipzig, and Lessing was soon an active admirer and literary collaborator. His very first comedy, The Young Scholar, was performed by Frau Neuber ’s troupe in January 1748. Lessing was already planning further playscripts when the precarious financial position of the troupe led them to leave Leipzig in some disarray. Somewhat quixotically, Lessing offered to act as a guarantor for the troupe, which meant that he too was soon obliged to leave Leipzig in some haste to escape a clutch of angry creditors. By February 1749 he had reached Berlin. He was still a young man of only twenty, but he now took the conscious decision to give up his studies and to dedicate himself to a literary career.KeywordsNational TheatreFemale BeautyGuardian AngelOutstanding Natural BeautyAnxious FatherThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.