Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from Friedrich Ritschl)
Jump to navigationJump to search

Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl

Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl (6 April 1806 � 9 November 1876) was a German scholar
best known for his studies of Plautus.

Contents
1 Biography
2 Character
3 Scholarship
4 Plautus
5 Recommendation of Nietzsche
6 Other works
7 See also
8 Notes
9 References
Biography
Ritshi was born in Gro�vargula, in present-day Thuringia. His family, in which
culture and poverty were hereditary, were Protestants who had migrated several
generations earlier from Bohemia. Ritschl was fortunate in his school training, at
a time when the great reform in the higher schools of Prussia had not yet been
thoroughly carried out. His chief teacher, Spitzner, a pupil of Gottfried Hermann,
divined the boy's genius and allowed it free growth, applying only so much either
of stimulus or of restraint as was absolutely needful. After a wasted year at the
University of Leipzig, where Hermann stood at the zenith of his fame, Ritschl
passed in 1826 to Halle.[1]

Here he came under the powerful influence of Christian Karl Reisig, a young
Hermannianer with exceptional talent, a fascinating personality and a rare gift for
instilling into his pupils his own ardour for classical study. The great
controversy between the Realists and the Verbalists was then at its height, and
Ritschl naturally sided with Hermann against B�ckh. The early death of Reisig in
1828 did not sever Ritschl from Halle, where he began his professorial career with
a great reputation and brilliant success, but soon hearers fell away, and the pinch
of poverty compelled his removal to Breslau, where he reached the rank of ordinary
professor in 1834, and held other offices.[1]

The great event of Ritschl's life was a sojourn of nearly a year in Italy
(1836�37), spent in libraries and museums, and more particularly in the laborious
examination of the Ambrosian palimpsest of Plautus at Milan. The remainder of his
life was largely occupied in working out the material then gathered and the ideas
then conceived. Bonn, where he moved on his marriage in 1839, and where he remained
for twenty-six years, was the great scene of his activity both as scholar and as
teacher.[1]

The philological seminary which he controlled, although nominally only joint-

director with Welcker, became a veritable officina litterarum, a kind of Isocratean
school of classical study; in it were trained many of the foremost scholars of the
late 19th century. The names of G. Curtius, Ihne, Schleicher, Bernays, Ribbeck,
Lorenz, Vahlen, H�bner, B�cheler, Helbig, Benndorf, Riese, Windisch, and Nietzsche,
who were his pupils either at Bonn or at Leipzig, attest his fame and power as a
teacher. In 1854 Otto Jahn took the place of the venerable Welcker at Bonn, and
after a time succeeded in dividing with Ritschl the empire over the philological
school there. The two had been friends, but after gradual estrangement a violent
dispute arose between them in 1865, which for many months divided into two hostile
forces the universities and the press of Germany. Both sides were steeped in fault,
but Ritschl undoubtedly received harsh treatment from the Prussian government, and
pressed his resignation. He accepted a call to Leipzig, where he died in harness in
1876.[1] Ritschl was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of
Arts and Sciences in 1868.[2]

Character
Ritschl's character was strongly marked. The spirited element in him was powerful,
and to some at times he seemed overbearing, but his nature was noble at the core;
and, though intolerant of inefficiency and stupidity, he never asserted his
personal claims in any mean or petty way. He was warmly attached to family and
friends, and yearned continually after sympathy, yet he established real intimacy
with only a few. He had a great faculty for organization, as is shown by his
administration of the university library at Bonn, and by the eight years of labour
which carried to success a work of infinite complexity, the famous Priscae
Latinitatis Monumenta Epigraphica (Bonn, 1862). This volume presents in admirable
facsimile, with prefatory notices and indexes, the Latin inscriptions from the
earliest times to the end of the Republic. It forms an introductory volume to the
Berlin Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, the excellence of which is largely due to
the precept and example of Ritschl, though he had no hand in the later volumes. The
results of Ritschl's life are mainly gathered up in a long series of monographs,
for the most part of the highest finish, and rich in ideas which have leavened the
scholarship of the time.[1]

Scholarship
As a scholar, Ritschl was of the lineage of Bentley, to whom he looked up, like
Hermann, with fervent admiration. His best efforts were spent in studying the
languages and literatures of Greece and Rome, rather than the life of the Greeks
and Romans. He was sometimes, but most unjustly, charged with taking a narrow view
of philology. That he keenly appreciated the importance of ancient institutions and
ancient art both his published papers and the records of his lectures amply
testify. He devoted himself for the most part to the study of ancient poetry, and
in particular of the early Latin drama. This formed the centre from which his
investigations radiated. Starting from this he ranged over the whole remains of
pre-Ciceronian Latin, and not only analysed but augmented the sources from which
our knowledge of it must come. Before Ritschl the acquaintance of scholars with
early Latin was so dim and restricted that it would perhaps be hardly an
exaggeration to call him its real discoverer.[1]

Plautus
To the world in general Ritschl was best known as a student of Plautus. He cleared
away the accretions of ages, and by efforts of that real genius which goes hand in
hand with labor, brought to light many of the true features of the original. It is
infinitely to be regretted that Ritschl's results were never combined to form that
monumental edition of Plautus of which he dreamed in his earlier life. Ritschl's
examination of the Plautine manuscripts was both laborious and brilliant, and
greatly extended the knowledge of Plautus and of the ancient Latin drama. Of this,
two striking examples may be cited. By the aid of the Ambrosian palimpsest he
recovered the name T Maccius Plautus, for the vulgate M Accius, and proved it
correct by strong, extraneous arguments. On the margin of the Palatine manuscripts
the marks "C" and "DV" continually recur, and had been variously explained. Ritschl
proved that they meant Canticum and Diverbium, and hence showed that in the Roman
comedy only the conversations in iambic senarii were not intended for the singing
voice. Thus was brought into strong relief a fact without which there can be no
true appreciation of Plautus, viz., that his plays were comic operas rather than
comic dramas.[1]

In conjectural criticism Ritschl was inferior not only to his great predecessors
but to some of his contemporaries. His imagination was in this field (but in this
field only) hampered by erudition, and his judgment was unconsciously warped by the
desire to find in his text illustrations of his discoveries. But still a fair
proportion of his textual labours has stood the test of time, and he rendered
immense service by his study of Plautine metres, a field in which little advance
had been made since the time of Bentley. In this matter Ritschl was aided by an
accomplishment rare (as he himself lamented) in Germany, the art of writing Latin
verse.[1]

In spite of the incompleteness, on many sides, of his work, Ritschl must be

assigned a place in the history of learning among a very select few. His studies
are presented principally in his Opuscula collected partly before and partly since
his death. The Trinummus (twice edited) was the only specimen of his contemplated
edition of Plautus which he completed. The edition has been continued by some of
his pupils--Georg Goetz, Gustav Loewe, and others.[1]

Recommendation of Nietzsche
Ritschl recommended that his student, Friedrich Nietzsche, be considered for the
position of professor at the University of Basel. He described Nietzsche in the
following words.

However many young talents I have seen develop under my eyes for thirty-nine years
now, never yet have I known a young man, or tried to help one along in my field as
best I could, who was so mature as early and as young as this Nietzsche. His Museum
articles he wrote in the second and third year of his triennium. He is the first
from whom I have ever accepted any contribution at all while he was still a
student. If � God grant � he lives long enough, I prophesy that he will one day
stand in the front rank of German philology. He is now twenty-four years old:
strong, vigorous, healthy, courageous physically and morally, so constituted as to
impress those of a similar nature. On top of that, he possesses the enviable gift
of presenting ideas, talking freely, as calmly as he speaks skillfully and clearly.
He is the idol and, without wishing it, the leader of the whole younger generation
of philologists here in Leipzig who � and they are rather numerous � cannot wait to
hear him as a lecturer. You will say, I describe a phenomenon. Well, that is just
what he is � and at the same time pleasant and modest. Also a gifted musician,
which is irrelevant here. ... Nietzsche is not at all a specifically political
nature. He may have in general, on the whole, some sympathy for the growing
greatness of Germany, but, like myself, no special tendre [fondness] for
Prussianism; yet he has vivid feeling for free civic and spiritual development, and
thus certainly a heart for your Swiss institutions and way of living. What more am
I to say? His studies so far have been weighted toward the history of Greek
literature (of course, including critical and exegetical treatment of the authors),
with special emphasis, it seems to me, on the history of Greek philosophy. But I
have not the least doubt that, if confronted by a practical demand, with his great
gifts he will work in other fields with the best of success. He will simply be able
to do anything he wants to do.[3]

Walter Kaufmann described the unusual situation as follows. "But Nietzsche had not
yet fulfilled his residence requirement and hence had no doctorate. So Ritschl
expected the case to be hopeless, 'although in the present instance,' he wrote, 'I
should stake my whole philological and academic reputation that the matter would
work out happily.' It is hardly surprising that Basel decided to ignore the 'formal
insufficiency.' Ritschl was delighted: 'In Germany, that sort of thing happens
absolutely never.'."[4]

Nietzsche was beginning to lose interest in philology at the time, due to his
intense interests in science, Wagner's music, and Schopenhauer's philosophy.
Kaufmann continued: "His call to the university of Basel came as a surprise to
Nietzsche, who had not yet received his doctorate though he had published some
fruits of his research in a scholarly journal. He had actually considered giving up
philology for science when, on Ritschl's recommendation, he was appointed a
professor of classical philology at Basel, and Leipzig hurriedly conferred the
doctorate without examination."[5]

Nietzsche's consuming interest in philosophy, however, soon overcame his work in

philology. His first published book, The Birth of Tragedy, effectively ended his
career as professor. "Ritschl dismissed the book as geistreich Schweinerei,
'brilliant bull.' "[6] Enrollment in Nietzsche's classes briefly suffered in the
wake of the book's poor reception by Classics professionals generally. He retired
due to migraines and other physical disabilities at the age of thirty-five.
Ritschl's prophecy had been the direct opposite of the course of events.

Other works
An interesting and discriminating estimate of Ritschl's work is that by Lucian
M�ller (Berlin, 1877).
Carl Schurz, Reminiscences (3 vols.), New York: McClure Publ. Co., 1907. In Vol.
One, Chap. 5, pp. 126�7, Schurz recalls a meeting, in the wake and the midst of the
events of 1848, of university students at the University of Bonn where Ritschl was
the chair. Schurz gave an impromptu speech which was well received, and after the
adjournment Ritschl met him and asked his age and was disappointed that at nineteen
Schurz was still too young to be a member of the planned parliament.
See also
Carl Friedrich Wilhelm Alfred Fleckeisen
Notes
Reid 1911.
"Book of Members, 1780�2010: Chapter R" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and
Sciences. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
Walter Kaufmann, The Portable Nietzsche, p. 7 f.
Walter Kaufmann, The Portable Nietzsche, p. 8
Walter Kaufmann, Nietzsche: Philosopher, Psychologist, Antichrist, p. 25 f.
Arthur Danto, Nietzsche as Philosopher, Ch. 2, VI
Attribution
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Reid,
James Smith (1911). "Ritschl, Friedrich Wilhelm". In Chisholm, Hugh. Encyclop�dia
Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
References
Otto Ribbeck, Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der Philologie.
(Leipzig, 1879�81).
Ribbeck, Otto (1879�81). Friedrich Wilhelm Ritschl. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der
Philologie. Leipzig. OCLC 3478063.
Danto, Arthur (1965). Nietzsche as philosopher. New York: Macmillan. ISBN
0025294903. OCLC 243128.
Kaufmann, Walter (1974). Nietzsche: Philosopher, Psychologist, Antichrist.
Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691019835. OCLC 1246183.
Kaufmann, Walter (1976). The Portable Nietzsche. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-015062-5.
OCLC 2805508.
Authority control
WorldCat Identities BNE: XX1418773 BNF: cb106343029 (data) GND: 118745441 ISNI:
0000 0001 2277 9332 LCCN: n86000147 ICCU: IT\ICCU\SBLV\095557 SELIBR: 255511 SNAC:
w60295nh SUDOC: 074529757 VIAF: 30332195
Categories: 1806 births1876 deathsPeople from Unstrut-Hainich-KreisGerman
ProtestantsGerman classical scholarsGerman philologistsFellows of the American
Academy of Arts and SciencesMembers of the Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science
and ArtUniversity of Bonn facultyPeople of the Revolutions of 1848Leipzig
University alumniUniversity of Halle alumniUniversity of Halle facultyKnights 1st
class of the Albert Order
Navigation menu
Not logged inTalkContributionsCreate accountLog inArticleTalkReadEditView
historySearch

Search Wikipedia
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Wikipedia store
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Wikidata item
Cite this page
Print/export
Create a book
Download as PDF
Printable version
In other projects
Wikimedia Commons

Languages
Dansk
Deutsch
Fran�ais
Italiano
Portugu�s
???????
Svenska
3 more
Edit links
This page was last edited on 13 October 2018, at 17:43 (UTC).
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License;
additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and
Privacy Policy. Wikipedia� is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation,
Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policyAbout WikipediaDisclaimersContact WikipediaDevelopersCookie
statementMobile view