This is the first English translation of Schelling’s novel, most likely written after the death of his first wife, Caroline, the former wife of August Wilhelm Schlegel. Although only a fragment, Clara remains unique. Part novella, part philosophical tome, its central theme is the connection between this world and the next. Schelling masterfully weaves together his knowledge of animal magnetism, literary techniques, and his doctrine of the potencies to make his philosophy accessible to all.
Steinkamp addresses the main issues concerning the dating of the work—many commentators have deemed Clara to be a sketch for Schelling’s The Ages of the World or an outline for the third, missing book of that work—and provides a short biography of Schelling with particular emphasis on events claimed to play a role in the conception of Clara, such as the deaths of both Caroline and her daughter, Auguste. She also shows how passages in Clara are strikingly similar to the content of Schelling’s touching letters mourning Caroline, written to Pauline, the daughter of Caroline’s best friend and the woman who would become his second wife. Clara, strongly influenced by the Romantic movement, is an early illustration of Schelling’s attempt to unite his positive and negative philosophy.
Daftar Isi
GENERAL INTRODUCTION by Fiona Steinkamp
Clara—Introducing the Text
Situating Clara—The Ages of the World and Bruno
Dating of Clara
Schelling—Biographical Details xvii
Schelling’s Early Years
Caroline—Background
Schelling and Auguste
Schelling and Caroline
Schelling’s Letters and Their Similarity to Clara
Schelling and Pauline
Who is Clara?
Closing Remarks
Biographical Sources Used
Notes about the Translation
Edition Translated
Translation Difficulties
Footnotes and Endnotes
Numbering of Sections
Acknowledgments
CHRONOLOGY
C L A R A
or, On Nature’s Connection to the Spirit World
INTRODUCTION
I [11]
II [27]
III [40]
IV [86]
V [92]
Spring [175]
Sketch [275]
APPENDIX
German Single Editions of Clara
Translations of Clara
Selected Works with Substantial Discussions of Clara
English Translations of Schelling
NOTES
GLOSSARY
German-English
English-German
REFERENCES
INDEX
Tentang Penulis
Fiona Steinkamp is Professor of Psychology at the University of Edinburgh.