born May 31, 1773, Berlin, Prussia
died April 28, 1853, Berlin
German writer and critic.
He was educated at the universities of Halle, Göttingen, and Erlangen. His first works are associated with early Romanticism, the best appealing to the emotions rather than the intellect. Volksmärchen (1797) includes one of his best short novels, Blond Eckbert . This period culminated in the grotesque, lyrical plays Life and Death of St. Genevieve (1800) and Emperor Octavian (1804). Later his writing moved toward realism. While he was an adviser and critic at the Dresden theatre (1825–42), he became a great literary authority.