Religious prejudice through imagery in The Lorelei Early 19th century history is often dominated by the likes of Napoleon and the wars between his French empire and the likes of Brittan, Austria and Russia. Throughout these early conflicts the empire of Prussia, led by Frederick William III, is often forgotten about, as they attempted to stay neutral until 1813 when they would join the fight against Napoleon. Frederick William ruled with an iron fist, regarded as one of the most oppressive rulers of the German states, he wanted religious uniformity and was not a fan of the arts or freedom of expression. But little did he know that a young poet was budding in his empire. Heinrich Heine was just a teenager during the Napoleonic wars and the …show more content…
Not until Fredrick William III was there a ruler who was even relatively lenient on the Jews, Jewish Virtual Encyclopedia notes, “Not until the reign of Frederick William III did the Jews have relief of the oppressive laws brought against them, such as the repeal of the law of the law which compelled the Jews to buy expensive china and re-sell it at lower price.” (David Bridger) Laws like these, which plagued Jews until the early to mid 19th century, had a huge influence on Heine’s writing. In addition, Jews were often the ones who were forced to serve in the army, most of the times against there will. In addition they were often put on the front lines, in the most dangerous positions on the battlefield. Even though citizenship was granted to Jews, they were by no means equal, The Jewish Virtual Library notes, “Even though Frederick William reluctantly granted Jews citizenship, Jews were still excluded from all academic and most government positions through the Prussian empire.” (Encyclopedia Judaica) Oppressive actions like these would stay with Jewish intellectuals and artists like Heine forever and would eventually cause Heine to move to Paris because he feared his political views would bring him harm. Imagery, language that appeals to one or more of the five senses, is a powerful tool used in Heine’s writing. The first …show more content…
Heine himself was a minority who had to suffer under an oppressive ruler, and wrote The Lorelei out of personal prejudice he felt against him growing up as a Jewish child in 19th century Prussia. Instead of just coming and saying it, Heine uses vivid imagery to show the discriminatory ideals of Prussia rulers and citizens. Heine would go on to be one of most celebrated German poets of all time. During the Holocaust, his name was removed from his work and replaced with “Unknown Author”. Often times Jews in ghettos or concentration camps would read Heine’s work as a reminder that once, and hopefully once again, Jews can be great artists and rise up from oppression and prejudice. A major takeaway from The Lorelei is don’t judge a