The life and works of Rainer Maria Rilke

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The life and works of Rainer Maria Rilke
By Christine Petrarca
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The Beginning

• Rainer Maria Rilke, born René Karl Wilhelm Johann
  Joseph Maria Rilke, was born in Prague,
  Czechoslovakia on December 4, 1875

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Background

• Josef Rilke, father of Rainer, was a railway
  supervisor.
• Sophie Entz, his mother, was a prominent bank
  officicals daughter.
• Although Rilke was born in Czechoslovakia, he was
  a resident of various cities in Europe including
  Berlin and Munich.
• Rilke was born of Austro-Hungarian descent.

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The Early Years

• During the first five years of his life, Rilkes
  mother dressed him as a girl. This resulted from
  the loss of a baby girl one year prior to Rilkes
  birthhis mother called him Sophie until it was
  time for him to attend school.
• Although Rilkes mother was to blame for his
  early childhood trauma, she encouraged him to
  read and write poetry.
• I had to wear beautiful long dresses and until I
  started school I went about like a little girl.
  I think my mother played with me as though I were
  a big doll.

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A fathers influence

• Upon the decision of his father, a failed
  military officer, Rilke was sent to St. Pölten
  and Mahrisch-Weisskirchen military academy until
  1891.
• After this duration of his education, he went to
  preparatory school, and later to business school
  in Linz, Austria.

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Poetic Debut

• Rilkes first work was published in 1894
  -entitled Leben und Lieder.
• In 1895, Rilke heads for study at the Charles
  University in Prague.
• Near the end of 1895, Rilke published his second
  set of works, Larenopfer.
• Shortly after, in 1896, his third collection was
  published, Traumgekrönt.

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Rilkes first love
In 1896, Rilke began his study of Philosophy at
the University of Munich. That same year he met
Lou Salomé, a Russian woman who was fourteen
years older than he. He fell in love with her
shortly thereafter. In 1897, René changes his
name to Rainer. This year, he also decides to
follow Salomé to Berlin.
"To be loved means to be consumed. To love is to
give light with inexhaustible oil. To be loved is
to pass away, to love is to endure."
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A time of transition for Rainer
In 1898, Rilke spent some time in Florence. He
said about the city I felt at first so
confused that I could scarcely separate my
impressions, and thought I was drowning in the
breaking waves of some foreign splendor.
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A short-lived love affair, an abundance of
experience

• Although Rilkes relationship with Salomé lasted
  less than two years, they remained close and
  traveled together, along with Salomés new
  husband, to Russia in 1899.
• This is when Rilke met Tolstoy. He was impressed
  with what he learned of Russian writings during
  this time period.

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From his trips to Russia, a new book of poetry
was born. Although Das Stunden Buch , the Book
of the Hours, wasnt published until 1905, it was
reflective of his time spent in Russia with
Nietzsche and Salomé.
Ich bin du Ängstlicher. Hörst du mich nicht
mit allen meinen Sinnen an
dir branden? Meine
Gefühle, welche Flügel fanden,
umkreisen weiß dein Angesicht.
Siehst du nicht meine Seele, wie sie
dicht vor dir in einem Kleid aus
Stille Steht? Reift nicht mein
meiliches Gebet an
deinem Blicke wie an einem Baum? Wenn du der
Träumer bist, bin ich dein Traum. Doch wenn du
wachen willst, bin ich dein Wille und werde
mächtig aller Herrlichkeit und
ründe mich wie eine Sternenstille
über der wunderlichen Stadt der Zeit.

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Married Life

• In 1900, Rainer met Clara Westhoff, A pupil of
  Rodin, and married her the following year.
• The same year as the two married, Rilkes
  daughter, Ruth, was born.
• Rilkes marriage to Westhoff was short-lived, yet
  he never divorced.

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Rilke in Paris
In 1902, Rilke heads to Paris and joins an art
colony at Worpswede. His wife, an art pupil,
enables Rilkes introduction to Rodin, whom he
eventually becomes the secretary for. During his
time in France he was working on his next work,
Das Buch der Bilder (1902-1906). By 1903, though,
Rodin had already inspired Rilkes next work
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Neue Gedichte
Rilke was impressed with how hard Rodin worked to
let others be privy to his art. Rilkes writings
of this time were indicative of a shift from
poems not about feelings, but about things he
had felt. His new poetry was very inward
focused, and although he shifted his poetic
style, he never really converted to modernism. He
may be considered the last symbolist because
the explosion of German expressionism had not
deeply impacted his writings.
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Der Panther
Sein Blick ist vom Vorübergehn der Stäbe
so müd geworden, daß er nichts mehr hält. Ihm
ist, als ob es tausend Stäbe gäbe
und hinter tausend Stäben keine Welt. Der weiche
Gang geschmeidig starker Schritte, der sich im
allerkleinsten Kreise dreht, ist wie
ein Tanz von Kraft um eine Mitte, in
der betäubt ein großer Wille steht. Nur manchmal
schiebt der Vorhang der Pupille sich lautlos
auf-. Dann geht ein Bild hinein, geht durch der
Glieder angespannte Stille- und hört im
Herzen auf zu sein.
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Twelve Years of Silence
After Paris, Rilke traveled throughout Europe,
trying to find a home in many different
cities. In 1910, Rilke produced Die
Aufzeichnungen des Malte Laurids Brigge, a series
of works that creatively drained him. It would be
another twelve years before he revisited the
public with a new piece of work.
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In 1910, Rilke visited his friend Princess Marie
von Thurn und Taxis-Hohenlohe at Duino in her
castle off the coast of the Adriatic. He returned
there the following year
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Before returning to the castle where his thoughts
were flying freely, he attended a psychological
congress in Munich, with his dearest Lou Salomé.
This is where Rilke became acquainted with
Sigmund Freud.
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In Duino, Rilkes ideas were flowing and his next
masterpiece was in the making. His second trip to
was cut short though. The war had begun and, in
1913, Rilke was forced back to Germany to serve
in the military.
Upon his return to Germany, many of his
belongings were seized in Paris.
"He who does not at some time, with definite
determination consent to the terribleness of
life, or even exalt in it, never takes possession
of the inexpressible fullness of the power of our
existence."
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After leaving the military, Rilke decided to
settle in Muzot, Switzerland.
This is where he finishes Duineser Elegien that
he had been working on for ten years since his
visits to the castle.
In that same year, 1922, Rilke produces Die
Sonette an Orpheus written in only two weeks yet
one of his most recognized works.
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From Sonnets to Orpheus
II, 23 Rufe mich zu jener deiner Stunden,
die dir unaufhörlich
widersteht
flehend nah wie das Gesicht von Hunden,
aber immer wieder weggedreht, Wenn du
neinst, sie endlich zu erfassen.
So Entzognes ist am meisten dein.
Wir sind frei. Wir wurden
dort entlassen, wo wir
meinten, erst begrüßt zu sein. Bang verlangen wir
nach einem Halte, wir zu
Jungen manchmal für das Alte
und zu alt für das, was niemals war. Wir,
gerecht nur, wo wir dennoch preisen,
weil wir, ach, der Ast sind und das Eisen
und das Süße reifender
Gefahr.
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During the last years of Rilkes life in
Switzerland, his companion was the artist Baladine
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Rilke suffered through the last years of his life
from his battle with cancer. He died of leukemia
on December 29,1926 in Valmont, Switzerland.
"What is required of us is that we love the
difficult and learn to deal with it. In the
difficult are the friendly forces, the hands that
work on us. Right in the difficult we must have
our joys, our happiness, our dreams there
against the depth of this background, they stand
out, there for the first time we see how
beautiful they are."
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Rilkes influence on others is imminent. Some of
which are Sidney Keyes, Robert Bly, W.S. Merwin,
John Ashbery, and W.H. Auden
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Picture Credits
www.virtusens.de www.arts.uwaterloo.ca www.de.geoc
ities.com/lilasbleuviolet/uebersicht.html www.user
.chollian.net www.paratheatrical.com www.picture-p
oems.com www.alcavalluccio.it www.onenet.it www.we
ge-durch-das-land.de www.infoplease.com www.rilkeg
edichte.de www.michael-tippet.com www.haplessdilet
tante.com www.csustan.edu www.home.ccc.at/lroll/au
den.jpg
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Works Cited
www.kirjasto.sci.fi/rmrilke.htm www.rilke.de www.w
ashingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/chap
1/lifeofapoet.htm www.geocities.com/Paris/LeftBank
/4027 www.dhm.de/lemo/html www.poets.org www.littl
ebluelight.com Rilke. Selected Poems.
Translations C.F. MacIntyre. 1960 University of
California Press, Berkeley and Los
Angeles. Rilke. The Selected Poetry of Rainer
Maria Rilke. Translations Stephen Mitchell.
1989. Vintage International Books, New York.