Tradition epischer Triumphe: Klopstocks Der Messias, Goethes Faust und Rilkes Duineser Elegien

ABSTRACT The article explores the extended tradition of the German classical epic by focusing on three works that in each case constitute the author’s magnum opus and convey a distinctive Weltanschauung of cosmic dimensions. Klopstock programmatically situated his religiously inspired Messias in the epic tradition and adapted the classical hexameter in order to enable German literature to compete at the highest level with other national traditions. While Goethe followed suit with hexameter epics during his ‘classical’ period, he subsequently developed his early Faust project on the German protagonist’s pact with the devil into a two-part mega tragedy that displays an exuberant array of different verse forms. Rilke’s Duineser Elegien engage with the human condition through the poet’s voice in free verse that draws above all on hexameter rhythms. The article argues that the hidden inspiration Goethe and Rilke derived from Klopstock’s epic contributed vitally to their landmark works in different genres.