Gioacchino Pagliei, le naiadi (1881). Wikimedia Commons
Undine
The one about love between a water spirit and a knight.
To Explore
Elemental spirits and Romantic tradition
Who are the elemental spirits described by Paracelsus, and what role do they play within German Romanticism? How does Undine draw on and reinterpret this tradition?
The role of water in German fairy tales
Water gives Undine life, it takes her away, and it returns her at the end. How does the tale use water as an active force – and how does this compare to the role of water in the other tales in this curriculum?
Naturphilosophie and the living world
How does the Romantic concept of Naturphilosophie - which understands nature as a living, interconnected system - inform the structure and meaning of Undine?
German Romanticism and the soul
What does it mean that Undine gains a soul through love, and that this brings both depth and suffering?
German Romanticism and love
What does Undine suggest about the relationship between love and loss within German Romanticism?
(light) Research
Books
Films
Other
Key figures
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