A poet whose verse inspired music by Schubert, Schumann, Mendelssohn and Brahms, Heinrich Heine (1797-1856) was in his lifetime equally admired for his elegant prose. This collection charts the
development of that prose, beginning with three meditative works from the Travel Pictures, inspired by Heine’s journeys as a young man to Lucca, Venice and the Harz Mountains. Exploring the
development of spirituality, the laterOn the History of Religion and Philosophy in Germany spans the earliest religious beliefs of the Germanic people to the philosophy of Hegel, and
warns with startling force of the dangers of yielding to ’primeval Germanic paganism’. Finally, theMemoirs consider Heine’s Jewish heritage and describe his early childhood. As rich in
humour, satire, lyricism and anger as his greatest poems, together the pieces offer a fascinating insight into a brilliant and prophetic mind.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global
bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished
scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
