Research On Lessing’s Tragic Thoughts

Lessing was a famous aesthetician, playwright and literature critic of Germany in eighteenth Century. As for being in a special period of German Enlightenment, Lessing was also an outstanding initiation thinker. The blend and collision between the thought of literary aesthetics and the enlightenment made him choose drama to express his philosophical views and enlightenment ideas, then open and enhance people’s consciousness to resist the feudalism. Lessing was clearly aware that Germany should establish a kind of national drama with independent consciousness to realize the German unified culture with national characteristics. Therefore, Lessing launched a series of practical activities in drama. Through these practice, Lessing criticized and reformed the past rigid tragedy to set up people’s tragedy and his own theory in tragedy writing. Taking “Lessing’s tragic thoughts” as the domain, this thesis will completely present Lessing’s tragic thoughts from three aspects(the origin, content and work analysis).There are three parts in this thesis except the introduction:The first part primarily interprets the origin of Lessing’s tragic thoughts. First, writer focuses on the background of Enlightenment to explain the enlightenment thought and rational theology which contributed to the formation of Lessing’s tragic thoughts. Secondly, writer focuses on Lessing’s personal interest and endowment to explain Aristotle’s tragic theory and Shakespeare’s tragic principles which enriched Lessing’s tragic thoughts.The second part elaborates the main contents of Lessing’s tragic thoughts. Lessing’s tragic thoughts concentratedly embody in people’s tragedy that he founded. Lessing not only re-interpreted the emotions caused by tragedy from theoretical level, but also had a comprehensive and profound insight into tragic incidents, plots, characters, language and performers in terms of level of tragedy works. Lessing’s tragic thoughts fully embody the composing principle of realistic tragedy, which is closely related to his enlightenment thought.The third part mainly explains the specific application of Lessing’s tragic thoughts in Nathan the Wise. There are precise and rigorous plot conceiving, characters shaping full of personality, peculiar language and maverick text form. All of these are concrete manifestation of Lessing’s tragic ideas. Through Nathan the Wise, we can clearly see Lessing’s view of tragedy and ideal of life that he admired.