EWALD, JOHANNES

(1743-1781)

A Danish poet and dramatist, Ewald was plagued by ill health most of his life. A transitional figure between neoclassicism andromanticism, his work is marked both by adherence to the formal strictures of the neoclassicists and by romanticism's focus on the individual. Ewald's dramatic debut was a neoclassical play about the Fall entitledAdam og Ewa eller Den ulykkelige Prøve(1769; Adam and Eve, or, The Unlucky Test). It was followed byRolf Krage(1770), an action drama with the subject taken from the Danish history written by Saxo Grammaticus, a 13th-century historian.Another drama on an Old Norse theme isBalders Død(1774; tr.The Death of Balder, 1889), which inspiredAdam Oehlenschlager. The playFiskerne(1779; The Fishermen) tells about a daring rescue and contains one of Ewald's best-known poems, "Kong Christian stod ved højen Mast" (King Christian Stood by Lofty Mast).

Ewald's fragmentary autobiography bears the titleLevnet og Meeninger(1773—1777; published 1804—1808; Life and Opinions), and it gives the reader a good sense of the challenges he had to face in his personal life. He is, however, remembered chiefly for his poetry. He was a master of the occasional poem, one of which is the ode "Rungsteds Lyksaligheder" (1775; The Joys of Rungsted), which not only celebrates a country place to which his mother had sent him in order to help him overcome his alcoholism, but which also expresses his religious faith. "Poenitenten" (1777; The Penitent One), "Følelser ved den hellige Nadvere" (1777; Feelings at Holy Communion), and "Til Sielen. En Ode" (1777; Ode to the Soul) all express his religious feelings. The ode "Til min Moltke" (1777; To My Moltke), on the other hand, expresses his gratitude toward an earthly benefactor.

See alsoTheater.