Der Hürnen Seufried

The late medieval and sixteenth-century German cities saw the development of a peculiar literature that expressed the taste and interests of the lower and middle bourgeoisie. It is a mixture of the medieval popular genres' ill-digested classical themes and a sharply realistic observation of urban life. Hans Sachs was the most important of those Meistersingers and was as such celebrated in Richard Wagner's (see Vol. 3) opera of that name. Sachs's productivity was enormous: biblical and classical drama takes an important place in it, and he wrote more than 1,000 Lent farces (Fastnachspiele). He is best in those earthy farces, which excel in satirical observation of the daily scene. 020