Weltschmerz (German:[ˈvɛltʃmɛɐ̯ts]ⓘ; literally "world-pain") is a literary concept describing the feeling experienced by an individual who believes thatreality can never satisfy the expectations of themind,[1][2] resulting in "a mood of weariness or sadness about life arising from the acute awareness ofevil and suffering".[3]
The term was coined by the GermanRomantic authorJean Paul in his 1827 novelSelina,[1] and in its original definition in theDeutsches Wörterbuch by theBrothers Grimm, it denotes a deep sadness about the insufficiency of the world ("tiefe Traurigkeit über die Unzulänglichkeit der Welt"). The translation can differ depending on context; in reference to the self it can mean "world-weariness", while in reference to the world it can mean "the pain of the world".[4]
Theworldview ofWeltschmerz has been retroactively seen as widespread among Romantic anddecadent authors such as Jean Paul, theMarquis de Sade,Lord Byron,Giacomo Leopardi,William Blake,Charles Baudelaire,Paul Verlaine,François-René de Chateaubriand,Oscar Wilde,Alfred de Musset,Mikhail Lermontov,Nikolaus Lenau,[5]Hermann Hesse,[6] andHeinrich Heine.[5]
The modern meaning ofWeltschmerz in the German language is thepsychological pain caused bysadness that can occur when realizing that someone's own weaknesses are caused by the inappropriateness and cruelty of the world and (physical and social) circumstances.[7]
InTropic of Cancer,Henry Miller describes an acquaintance, "Moldorf", who has prescriptions forWeltschmerz on scraps of paper in his pocket.John Steinbeck wrote about this feeling in two of his novels; inEast of Eden, Samuel Hamilton feels it after meeting Cathy Trask for the first time, where it is referred to as theWelshrats, it is also mentioned inThe Winter of our Discontent.Ralph Ellison uses the term inInvisible Man with regard to the pathos inherent in the singing of spirituals: "Beneath the swiftness of the hot tempo there was a slower tempo and a cave and I entered it and looked around and heard an old woman singing a spiritual as full ofWeltschmerz asflamenco".Kurt Vonnegut references the feeling in his novelPlayer Piano, in which it is felt by Doctor Paul Proteus and his father.InJohn D. MacDonald's novelFree Fall in Crimson, Travis McGee describesWeltschmerz as "homesickness for a place you have never seen".InEdward Abbey's novelThe Fool's Progress, page 243 discusses protagonist Henry Lightcap's despair and "the Weltschmerz of Europe", amongst other depressing and gloomy states of the world.In September 2020, Scottish singerFish[8] released his final studio album ‘Weltschmerz’. He said "It’s been over 5 years since I first came up with the title which is a German word that translates to ‘world weariness’ or ‘world pain’. In this present day and age never has an album title become so apt."
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The dictionary definition ofWeltschmerz at Wiktionary| Emotions |
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