XXXIV
In the spring of 1919, L. begins composing his oratorio Apocalipsis cum figuris, based on a cycle of Dürer woodcuts. Z. recognizes profound similarities between the themes of this work and contemporary events, Germany having been plunged into a state of chaos following the downfall of the Wilhelmine Empire.
Time of composition: January 3–March 2, 1946, with a lengthy interruption. Time of narration: In or after July 1944. Narrated time: 1919.
| almost breathless productivity | L.’s “breathless productivity” contrasts with Z.’s own “labored breathing” on 5/11. |
| John the Martyr in his cauldron of oil | The Apostle John is traditionally regarded as the author not only of the Gospel of John but also of several other books of the New Testament, including the Book of Revelation. Legend has it that either the Roman Emperor Domitian or the Emperor Nero (both of whom were noted for their persecution of Christians) ordered him boiled in oil, but could not harm him. Dürer included an image of John in the cauldron in his 1498 cycle of woodcuts illustrating the Apocalypse (Fig. 5). For his detailed descriptions of the woodcuts, TM relied on a biography of Dürer by Wilhelm Waetzoldt (1880–1945), which also provided him with inspiration for his description of the L. household in chapter III. |
| | L.’s conflation of contemporary Kaisersaschern with medieval Nuremberg hearkens back to chapter VI. |
| as brothers, the two who have been down below | In the second canto of Dante’s Divine Comedy. |
| | Latin: “daughter of the house.” A euphemism for prostitutes, giving a cruel edge to Z.’s joking remark. |
| “An end is come, the end is come […]” | A word-for-word quotation of Ezekiel 7:6–7. Z. will again quote these words on 455/629, when he describes the downfall of Germany in 1945. |
| These words […] a ghostly melody | For the detailed musical description of the Apocalipsis cum figuris, TM relied on the extensive help of his musical advisor Theodor W. Adorno, to whom he sent an outline of his intentions on December 30, 1945. Possible sources of inspiration also include Stravinsky’s oratorio Oedipus Rex (1927) as well as Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique (1830). |
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| taken almost verbatim from Ezekiel | |
| a work so terrifying close to him | The Apocalipsis is close to Z. not only because he witnessed its creation, but also because it deals with a theme that has been close to his heart since the opening pages of DF: the end of the historical era of bourgeois humanism, and the anxiety over what will come next. |
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| | The following lines are taken from Lamentations 3:39–40, 42–43, and 45. |
| | On the importance of fugues for L.’s musical formation, see Kretzschmar’s second lecture in chapter VIII. |
| | An error in the translation; L. is actually taking the barbiturate Luminal. (Luminol is a chemiluminescent agent used to detect blood in crime-scene investigations). TM himself regularly took Luminal during the stressful early years of his exile, when he was living in Switzerland and tried to continue working on the Joseph cycle despite all the bad news that were reaching him from Germany. |
| Awake, psaltery and harp! | |