German Literature

Through the analysis of the works of Walther von der Vogelweide, it is evident that the German speaking poet has made significant contributions to the field of poetry through the implementation of self-expression. The presented technique is unique since he was among the first poets to achieve such a strategy in years. The poet’s feelings, theme and style are carefully outlined within his works therefore providing him with an opportunity of expressing his personality in the poem. Incidentally, Walther von der Vogelweide suggests attitude through considering himself as the direct theme. The presented analysis looks into two poems such as I've got my fief and Under the Lime Tree by Walther von der Vogelweide.

I’ve got my Fief

Looking at the presented attitude of the poem, I’ve got my Fief, it is apparent that Walther von der Vogelweide implements a loving attitude. The loving attitude is focused towards a woman of flesh and blood. Through the poet’s words, it is possible to understand his state of sweetness towards the woman alongside his lack of arrogance when addressing how he found his fief. The loving attitude is also brought out through the passion and detachment evident in the poet’s words when describing the fief. The loving attitude is also evident as the poet provides an indication that he is willing to give up his old ways just to maintain a positive one. Meeting his fief indeed transformed him to a better person. The presented fact is evident when Walther von der Vogelweide indicates that “ I’ve got my fief! Now I’m not afraid of February at my toes…. I’ve been poor too long without my consent; I was so full of abusive words that my breath stank…” (Oliver 125). The presented poem is about Walther’s triumph after being provided a fief by the emperor of Hohenstaufen in about 1220. His work is majorly about a courtly love that evident in his relationship with the fief (Watanabe-O'Kelly 70).

The most evident theme in the poem is the theme of love. Apparently, it is clear that the poet found his fief, an individual whom he is focused on courting and loving in the long run. The poem revolves around the feeling that the poet has as a result of finding love in the fief. The presented poem has an agenda. Evidently, the poet is trying to accomplish an agenda that the heart does not lie. People may lie about their feelings. Despite this, the heart is honest and pure when it comes to representing the feeling of love. The poem has been successful in achieving its agenda in that the audience can easily differentiate between the heart’s honesty when it comes to love.

Under the Lime Tree

Looking at the set mood of the poem, it is evident that the poet utilizes n emotional mood to communicate to the audience. It is apparent that the girl is not only proud but also modest. Additionally, she is quietly triumphant and coy at the same time. The poem Under the Lime Tree outlines a monologue about a young woman whose feelings are extensively controlled by the strokes of language.

The theme of love and religion is evident in the presented poem. The theme of love is clear as the poet has extensively provide what the feeling of love means. Additionally, Walther von der Vogelweide has related the aspect of love and beauty when he indicates that “Love makes a woman beautiful – but beauty does not have such power, beauty cannot make a woman worthy of love” (126). The theme of religion is evident when the poet indicates that God is the only one with the authority to join together the hearts of people in love to a single heart. In the presented poem, the main agenda of the author was to communicate a woman’s value when love is concerned.

It is evident that in both poems, Walther has constantly utilized a recurrent motif which forms a basis of Walther’s love poetry. Evidently, the poet insists that love is a mutual feeling which has to be reciprocated. The presented poems also relate to Walther’s life in that he expresses real feelings. In support of this, Oliver reveals that Walther von der Vogelweide’s poems deal with his own life (123). Despite this, the poet extends his psychological insight beyond himself as evident in Under the lime tree. Apparently, the author has utilized the voice of a woman other than his like in the case of I’ve got my Fief. In the former, the poet has utilized strokes of language to control feelings through outlining the monologue of a young girl.

Conclusion

To conclude, it is clear that German poetry is unique in its own way. The lyric art of self-expression is greatly magnified in the presented poetry with poets such as Walther von der Vogelweide implementing their themes and styles to express their personal feelings. Apparently, the poet has continually utilized himself as the theme in most of his works such as I've got my fief and Under the Lime Tree by Walther von der Vogelweide.

Works Cited

Oliver, Raymond. Poems Without Names: The English Lyric, 1200-1500. University of California Press, 1970.

Watanabe-O'Kelly, Helen. The Cambridge History of German Literature. Cambridge University Press, 2000.