ნიკოლოზ ბარათაშვილი და გერმანული რომანტიზმი
Nikoloz Baratashvili and German Romanticism

Summary/Abstract: The article is an attempt, based on comparative approach, to identify the typological and genetic proximity of the poetry and worldview between the Georgian Romantic Poet Nikoloz Baratashvili (1817-1845) along with the perspectives and poetical paradigms of German romanticism. The following similarities in the point of view as well as poetical cognition has been determined after a thorough analysis: 1. Division of the existence as visible and invisible worlds, thus as empirical (emotional) and transcendental (receptive, supernatural) worlds; 2. The a prior synthesis of these two worlds, or their radical confrontation and the apparent impossibility of synthesis, which is apparent in both German Romanticism and Baratashvili’s lyrics (this tragic situation is coined by Hegel as “tragic consciousness”); 3. Encouragement of individual subject/subjectivity and outlining its universal andunique nature; 4. Understanding persistence (Sehnsucht) as the principle of existence, which is apermanent condition” “the unconquerable feeling of persistence” (“das Gefühl einer unbefridigten Sehnsucht”) (Friedrich Schleiermacher); 5. Understanding human as a consciously persistent being;6. Understanding human as a transcendental being, striving to achieve the metaemotional, invisible reality; 7. The principle of religion: religion as a means of restoring the lost transcendence and a prior seen as a process re-connection. Within the frameworks of these ontological and anthropological positions the following features can be seen in the Romantic Heroes created by Baratashvili, which can be generalized and adjusted to German Romantic Heroes as well: 1. The full readiness for reflection, self-perception, self-understanding as well asthe irrational forces of spiritual cognition: the will of imagination (Einbildungskraft), feeling/passion (Gefühl), observation (Anschauen); Thus, in the lyrics accent is made on such spiritual organs which are vital for spiritual/mystical perception, upon which “Magical Idealism”, “Romanticisation” is based and further developed – Heart/Soul/Mind (Herz/ Seele/Gemüt), 2. “Romantic” Protagonist is always capable of “Romanticisation”, thus has the cognitive “method” of “Romantic Irony” 3. Readiness for transcendence, and aspiration (Sehnsucht);4. Longing for nature (The Formula by Novalis Me = No-Me/ Ich = Nicht-Ich), because a “Romantic” hero a prior sees Nature as an expression of Paradise in this word, and a pre-requisit or methodological space , where Romanticism should emerge, 5. The primacy of individual subjectivity, meaning considering the experiencegained though one’s personality and personal cognition superior to objective reality (Fichtean approach), which simultaneously (the primacy of subjectivity) indicates the universal-cosmic feeling in one’s own essence; the aim of this is to establish in one’s self “absolute me”, 6. Fullness with “tragic consciousness” (“das tragische Bewusstsein”) 7. Heroic Pessimism (Comparison “Hymns to the Night” by Novalis and “Merani”by Baratashvili); 8. Pathos of Distance – a prior rivalry and differentiation from the Philistine-Civilexistence, the Philistine-Civil society and their conscious. The belief that the Poetry by Nikoloz Baratashvili is spontaneously created (by the inspiration of a Muse, etc.) and the verses are mechanically arranged without any special concept can be regarded wrong, as the poetry is based on a fully understandable viewpoint and a united structural concept, due to which it establishes as a unifed poetical textwhere each verse can be regarded as a “chapter”. There are several reasons on which thishypothesis is based. Like the structure of the musical symphony, not only the masterpiece “Merani” is based on a counterpoint principle, which was highlighted by M. Gogiberidze (Essay “The Aesthetic-Entiphaitic Analysis of Merani by Nikoloz Baratashvili”), but the whole poetry by Batarashvili is created on a counterpoint principle creating a plot structure uniting the different verses and incorporating them in one whole text, namely in Baratashvili’s verses the opposites are always apparent, the increasing and decreasing perspectives anddiscourses – the tragic melancholy and the Dionysian transcendentalism, the feeling of vanity and deep philosophical belief. They are in constant movement and the alteration of the opposing forces creates a deeper, more tragic, developed and triumphant line. The duel or dialogue of opposing discourses are culminated in “Merani”, where the dualism is being overcome, and the plot node opened. Program like verses appear in the romantic lyric by Nikoloz Baratashvili such as “Napoleon” and “I bless my birthday”. Existence of such verses points out that each poetical example is united under one conceptual idea and thus one huge text is being established. This means, that each verse by Baratashvili is a part of the developing plot of thewhole text, which separately can be regarded as “chapters” of the one united text. The verses by Baratashvili are structurally integrated and created as one whole lyrical text due to the lyrical hero, always appearing in various poems and always sharing one and the same point of view as well as temperament. The lyrical hero in every verse by one and the same intensity shows his rebellious perspective and ethic positions. The emotional attitudes are repetitive as well: on the one hand tragic and melancholic and on the other hand transcendental.In the verses by Nikoloz Baratashvili the usage of one and the same repetitive lexical units somewhat establishes the poetical “terminology” of the poet (“dew”, “shining”, “spatial”, heavenly”, “sky”, “light”, “soul”, “feeling”, “heart”, etc.), which is also outlined by Revaz Siradze in an essay called “The Literary and Aesthetic belief of Nikoloz Baratashvili”. This also enables each of the lyric text to be structurally united and incorporated in one integrated text.

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