Hermann Anastas Bahr (; 19 July 1863 – 15 January 1934) was an writer, playwright, director, and critic.
Biography
Born and raised in
Linz,
Bahr studied in
Vienna,
Graz,
Czernowitz and
Berlin, devoting special attention to
philosophy, political economy,
philology and
law. During a prolonged stay in
Paris, he discovered his interest in literature and art. He began working as an art critic, first in Berlin, then in Vienna. In 1890, he became associate editor of
Berliner Freie Bühne (
Berlin Free Stage), and later became associate editor and critic of the
Deutsche Zeitung (
German Newspaper). In 1894 he began publication of
Die Zeit (
The Times), and was also editor of the
Neue Wiener Tagblatt (
New Vienna Daily Flyer) and the
Oesterreichische Volkszeitung (
Austrian Popular Newspaper).
In 1906–07, Bahr worked with Max Reinhardt as a director at the German Theater () in
Berlin, and starting in 1918 he was a
Dramaturg with the Vienna
Burgtheater.
Spokesman for the literary group Young Vienna, Bahr was an active member of the Austrian avant-garde, producing both criticism and Impressionist plays. His association with the coffeehouse literati made him one of the main targets of Karl Kraus's satirical journal Die Fackel ( The Torch) after Kraus fell out with the group.
In 1901, after accusing Bahr and Emmerich Bukovics,
Bahr was the first critic to apply the label modernism to literary works, and was an early observer of Expressionism. His theoretical papers were important in the definition of new literary categories. His 40 plays and around 10 novels never reached the quality of his theoretical work. He died, aged 70, in Munich.
Selected fiction
Plays
-
The New People ( Die neuen Menschen – 1887)
-
The Mother ( Die Mutter – 1891)
-
Das Tschaperl (1897)
-
Der Star (1899)
-
Wienerinnen (1900)
-
Der Krampus (1902)
-
Ringelspiel (1907)
-
The Concert ( Das Konzert – 1909)
-
The Children ( Die Kinder – 1911)
-
Das Prinzip (1912)
-
Der Querulant (1914)
-
The Master ( Der Meister – 1904)
Short stories and novellas
-
The School of Love ( Die gute Schule. Seelenstände – 1890)
-
Fin de siècle (1891)
-
Die Rahl (1908)
-
O Mensch (1910)
-
Österreich in Ewigkeit (1929)
Selected nonfiction
Essays
Books
-
Theater (1897)
-
Drut (1909)
-
Himmelfahrt (1916)
-
Die Rotte Korahs (1919)
-
Self-Portrait ( Selbstbildnis – 1923), an autobiography
See also
External links
