A Truly Great But Underrated Essayist That Should Not Be Missed, July 21, 2006

To begin, I have to admit that I always have been less than completely impressed with the somewhat ironical poetry of Heine. True, this lyrical poetry has made him famous throughout the world. But the over-rating of his poetry has also won the under-rating of his prose. This worldly-wise author produced some of the best prose of his, or any, century. It is not for nothing that Nietzsche said of him, "And how he employs German! It will one day be said that Heine and I have been by far the first artists of the German language... (Ecce Homo, Why I am so Clever, 4.)" Yes, I know, this section starts out with Nietzsche praising Heine for his lyric poetry. But in order to demonstrate Nietzsche's debt to Heine's prose, I now present two passages for consideration:

"Of this catatrophe, deism's 21st of January, we shall speak in the following section. A peculiar awe, a mysterious piety, prevents our writing more today. Our heart is filled with shuddering compassion - it is ancient Jehova himself who is preparing for death. We knew him so well, from his cradle in Egypt, where he was reared among divine calves and crocodiles, sacred onions, ibis and cats. We saw him as he bade farewell to these playmates of his childhood and to the obelisks and sphinxes of his native Nile valley and became a little god-king in Palestine among a poor shepherd people and lived in his own temple-palace. We saw him later when he came in contact with Assyrian-Babylonian civilization and put aside his all too human passions, no longer spitting nothing but wrath and vengence, at least no longer thundering at every trifle. We saw him emigrate to Rome, the capital, where he renounced all national prejudices and proclaimed the divine equality of all nations, and with such fine phrases established an opposition to old Jupiter, and intrigued until he gained supreme authority and from the Capitol ruled the city and the world, urbem et orbem. We saw how he became even more spiritual, how he whimpered in bland bliss, becoming a loving father, a universal friend of man, a world benefactor, a philanthropist - but all this could avail him nothing. -

Do you hear the little bell ringing? They are bringing the sacraments to a dying god." (Heine, 'Concerning the History of Philosophy and Religion', p 200 of this collection.)

"When he was young, this God out of the Orient, he was harsh and vengeful, and he built himself a hell to amuse his favorites. Eventually, however, he became old and soft and mellow and pitying, more like a grandfather than a father, but most like a shaky old grandmother. Then he sat in his nook by the hearth, wilted, grieving over his weak legs, weary of the world, weary of willing, and one day he choked on his all-too-great pity." (Nietzsche, Zarathustra, Fourth Part, the section known either as 'Retired' or 'Out of Service'.)

The debt of Nietzsche to Heine in this passage is quite obvious. What isn't at all obvious is that the palm goes to Nietzsche. Marx also recognized the merit of Heine, but if the testimony of his daughter can be trusted, Marx also -in my perhaps ill-informed opinion- over-rated the poetry.

"At the request of Karl Kautsky in 1895 Eleanor Marx wrote a comment on the friendship of Heine and Marx. It read in part: "I remember both my parents ... speaking much of Heine, whom (in the early forties) they saw constantly and intimately. It is no exaggeration to say that Mohr [Marx's nickname] not only admired Heine as a poet, but had a sincere affection for him. He would even make all sorts of excuses for Heine's political vagaries. Poets, Mohr explained, were queer kittle-cattle, not to be judged by the ordinary or even extra-ordinary standards of conduct. [...] Heine used, at one time, to run up constantly to their rooms, to read them his 'verses' and ask their opinion. Again and again, Mohr would go over some 'small thing' of eight lines, discussing, analyzing. [...] Politically, as far as I can understand, they seldom discussed things. But certainly Mohr judged Heine very tenderly, and he loved not only the man's work, but also the man himself."" From a lecture by David Walsh, 'The Aesthetic Component of Socialism', January, 1998.)

But Heine was no mere poet, he had a keen, if sardonic, eye for the philosophy that went on around him, and while he mocked their secretive nature he did not spare himself.

"We now have monks of atheism who would burn Monsieur Voltaire alive because he was a hardened deist. I have to confess that this music is not pleasing to me, but it also doesn't frighten me; for I stood behind the maestro when he composed it, to be sure in indistinct and convoluted signs so that not everyone would decipher it. - I sometimes saw how he gazed around anxiously out of fear that he was understood. He was very fond of me, for he was sure I wouldn't betray him; at that time I even thought that he was servile. Once when I was annoyed with the phrase: "Everything that is, is reasonable", he laughed strangely and remarked: "It could just as well read, 'Everything that is reasonable, must be'." He glanced around hastily, but soon calmed himself, for only Heinrich Beer had heard what he said. I only understood such expressions later. Thus I also only understood later why he asserted in his philosophy of history that Christianity already represents progress because it teaches about one God who died while pagan gods knew nothing at all about death. What progress it would therefore be if God had never existed at all!" (Letters on Germany, p 289 of this collection.)

Thus Heine, in a few well-chosen words, exposes the heart of the Hegelian Left: the notion that the real (i.e., existing conditions) must be made rational and also its uncompromising atheism. And, in addition, he attributes all this to Hegel! Also note how he gently makes fun of his own comprehension; thus both he and Heinrich Beer could be trusted by Hegel - neither would 'betray him'. ...This is really very nicely done. In fact, though the tone is often playful, the matter is never frivolous. The essay 'Concerning the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany' remains an excellent piece to use to introduce first-year students to German Philosophy. His asides on Kant (his 'murder' of God, followed by his 'murder' of his first Critique to protect his servant 'Old Lampe') are especially sharp, and even a little poignant; although I think he underestimates the later Schelling throughout. Even though he is often ironic, at times, he even borders on the cynical, Heine never seemed to despair of humanity having a brighter future.

This book of Heine's prose consists of not only 'The Romantic School' and 'Concerning the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany' but also some letters and excerpts too. The 'Concerning the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany' remains indispensable for anyone starting to study German philosophy and really should not be passed up. In fact, the only way Heine could have been better was if he had become a genuine philosopher. ...But, honestly, how many of them are there? ( )