Der Fischer (Goethe) Explained

"Der Fischer" (English: '''"The Fisher"''') is a ballad by Goethe, written in 1779. Goethe's poem describes an exchange between a fisher and a mermaid who accuses him of luring her brood. As revenge, she enchants him with her song and pulls him into the water.^[1]

Musical settings

• • Alphons Diepenbrock Anton Eberl
• Hans Sommer (1837–1922)
• Johann Vesque von Püttlingen (1803–1883)
• Anselm Hüttenbrenner (1794–1868)
• Fanny Mendelssohn
• Franz Schubert (1797–1828)
• Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
• Claudio Santoro (1919-1989)^[2]

Fine arts

Between 1856 and 1858, Frederic Leighton made the painting The Fisherman and the Syren, which is now on display in the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery, with explicit reference to Goethe's poem:

Sources

• Brooks, Charles Timothy, trans. (1904). "The Fisher". In Carman, Bliss, et al. (eds.). The World’s Best Poetry. Vol. VI. Fancy. Philadelphia: John D. Morris & Co.
• Hyner, Bernadette H. & Stearns, Precious McKenzie (2009). Forces of Nature: Natural(-Izing) Gender and Gender(-Ing) Nature in the Discourses of Western Culture. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
• Rhys, Ernest (1900). Frederic Lord Leighton: An Illustrated Record of his Life and Work. London: George Bell & Sons.

Notes and References

1. Hyner & Stearns 2009.
2. http://www.claudiosantoro.art.br/Santoro/11.html