Stories by Foreign Authors: German

In Short

This volume presents a curated selection of German prose, offering a window into the sentimental, the psychological, and the fantastic traditions of 18th- and 19th-century literature. From the quiet, pious final days of a beloved academic to the nightmarish bargain of a man who loses his shadow, the stories explore the weight of conscience and the isolation that follows moral compromise. By alternating between grounded realism and dark allegory, these tales endure as poignant reflections on what it means to be remembered, to be redeemed, and to be human.

The Story

The collection opens with Christian Gellert’s Last Christmas, a portrait of a revered moralist in 1768 Leipzig. As the aging, gentle professor nears his end, his influence is felt by a simple woodman, Christopher, who is moved by Gellert’s hymns to seek out the man himself. Their meeting confirms the peasant’s reverence and provides Gellert with a final, quiet validation of his life’s work.

In A Ghetto Violet, the narrative shifts to the insular, often harsh world of a Ghetto. The story centers on the tragic marriage of Gudule, a woman of profound grace, to Ascher, a man cursed by the "pestilence of gaming." Despite Gudule’s attempts to anchor him, Ascher’s compulsion ruins their domestic peace. After Gudule’s death, her children, Ephraim and Viola, struggle to keep their integrity amidst their father's descent. Ascher eventually reaches a point of total moral collapse, driven to steal from his own children, but the sight of his daughter—who bears a striking resemblance to his lost wife—shatters his delusions. He survives this "awakening" as a broken, white-haired man, ultimately finding a fragile peace through the selfless devotion of his children.

The collection concludes with the surreal Peter Schlemihl, the account of a man who, in a moment of desperation, trades his shadow to a mysterious stranger for a bottomless purse of gold. This wealth brings him only misery; he becomes an outcast, unable to walk in the sunlight, and is rejected by the society he sought to impress. His attempt to buy back his shadow from the stranger fails, as he refuses to trade his soul. Schlemihl eventually retreats into a life of scholarly isolation, wandering the globe in seven-league boots. He becomes a dedicated man of science, documenting the world’s flora and fauna, finding a strange, solitary redemption in his intellectual labor. His life ends not in social triumph, but in a quiet, studious resignation, having reconciled himself to his nature as an eternal, shadowless wanderer who has finally, and perhaps fruitlessly, exhausted his energies in the pursuit of knowledge.

How It Unfolds

The professor’s grace The story follows Christian Gellert as he concludes his final lecture, leaving an indelible impression of moral stability on his students. His influence extends into the countryside, where a simple laborer finds his own spiritual burden lightened by the professor’s words.

The gambler’s snare The Ghetto watches as Ascher’s marriage to the virtuous Gudule begins with hope, yet the shadow of his gambling addiction looms. Despite his outward decorum, his vice consumes his family’s peace, leading to the early death of his wife and the forced maturity of his children.

The moment of theft Ascher’s moral decay hits a nadir when he attempts to rob his own home, only to be confronted by his daughter, Viola. This encounter acts as a psychic shock, forcing him to witness his own degradation and finally ending his cycle of ruin.

The shadow’s price Peter Schlemihl arrives in a new land and, hoping to secure his future, makes a Faustian bargain for a purse that yields endless gold. He immediately realizes his error when he discovers that in buying riches, he has lost his shadow and his place among men.

The scholar’s penance Exiled by his own wealth, Schlemihl wanders the earth, finding that no amount of gold can restore his humanity. He eventually trades his life of social aspiration for a life of scientific observation, roaming the world in magical boots to catalog the natural wonders of the planet.

The People

Christian Gellert is an elderly, gentle academic who seeks only to live as he teaches. He is defined by his humility and the comfort he provides to others.

Gudule is the moral center of her family, a woman of great inner strength whose patience with her husband, Ascher, is both her glory and her tragedy. Ascher is a man possessed by the "spectres of ruin" inherent in gambling; he is a cautionary figure who loses his dignity and his family, only finding redemption through the mercy of his children, Ephraim and Viola, who raise themselves from his wreckage with a love that transcends human logic.

Peter Schlemihl is a man of "moderate wishes" who chooses wealth over his shadow, only to realize that social standing is inseparable from the integrity of one’s own image. He is accompanied by the faithful Bendel, a servant whose loyalty provides the only human warmth in Schlemihl’s otherwise freezing, isolated existence. Schlemihl evolves from a desperate social climber into a detached, weary scholar, trading the impossible burden of his wealth for the heavy, singular duty of scientific study.

In Its Own Voice

"His lessons were for the Life, for his life in itself was a lesson."

The narrator reflects on the consistency of Christian Gellert’s character as both a teacher and a man.

"Nowhere, probably, does the grim, consuming pestilence of gaming claim more victims than in the Ghetto."

This observation sets the stakes for the life of Ascher and the suffering of his wife, Gudule.

"I have studied all living creation—and more especially the kingdom of plants—more profoundly than any one of our race."

Peter Schlemihl describes the shift in his purpose from seeking social acceptance to finding satisfaction in scholarly exploration.

What It's Really About

These stories examine the conflict between the internal self and the external world. Whether it is the saintly Gellert providing a model for others or the gambler Ascher losing his identity to a vice, the text asks if an individual can ever truly hide their nature from their community. The shadow in Peter Schlemihl functions as a potent metaphor for social identity and the "mark" that distinguishes an individual from the crowd. The book argues that wealth and status are hollow comforts if they require the sacrifice of one’s moral standing or one’s literal presence in the world, suggesting that true belonging is earned through consistency and integrity rather than material acquisition.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate the nineteenth-century tradition of the moral tale will find much to admire here. The stories are written with a solemn, often melancholic gravity that demands slow, thoughtful reading. You will feel the weight of the "Ghetto" and the cold, crystalline air of Schlemihl’s solitude. The writing is precise, though occasionally prone to the sentimental flowery prose typical of its era, which may feel dense to modern readers accustomed to faster pacing.

The primary challenge is the starkness of the period’s attitudes, particularly in the depiction of the Ghetto and the rigid social hierarchies of the 1700s. These works are not light entertainment; they are serious explorations of human failing and the high cost of redemption. You will leave the book with a lasting sense of the fragility of reputation and the quiet power of those who, having fallen, choose to spend their remaining days in the service of knowledge or in the humble act of caring for those they once wounded. It is a haunting, intellectual companion for anyone interested in the German literary imagination.