The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Spielhagen, Friedrich

SPIELHAGEN, spēl'hä''gĕn, Friedrich, German author: b. Magdeburg, 24 Feb. 1829; d. 1911. He studied at Berlin, Bonn and Greifswald, turned from an academic career to literature, made some translations from French and English, including one of ‘Amerikanische Gedichte’ (1856; 3d ed., 1871), and after publishing two sketches that attracted little attention, became well known through his ‘Problematische Naturen’ (1860), in which he advocated the advanced liberal politics of his time. His 'Sturmflut' (1876), based on the financial crises in Berlin following the Franco-Prussian War, is worthy of comparison with this. He wrote a great number of optimistic and sometimes extravagant novels, having a preference for social problems. His books are often truly voluminous and frequently somewhat grandiose, but display a certain energy of treatment in dealing with what the author believed important questions of the time. See Problematische Naturen.