- Zweig, Stefan
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born Nov. 28, 1881, Vienna, Austro-Hungarian Empiredied Feb. 22, 1942, Petrópolis, near Rio de Janeiro, Braz.Austrian writer.He was deeply influenced by Sigmund Freud, whose theories on psychology informed Zweig's analyses of historical figures and his subtle portrayal of fictional characters. His essays include studies of Honoré de Balzac, Charles Dickens, and Fyodor Dostoyevsky, in Three Masters (1920); and Friedrich Hölderlin, Heinrich Kleist, and Friedrich Nietzsche, in Master Builders (1925). He achieved popularity with The Tide of Fortune (1928), five historical portraits in miniature. He also wrote biographies, poetry, short stories, dramas, and a novel. Driven into exile by the Nazis in 1934, Zweig and his second wife went to England and then Brazil, where, lonely and disillusioned, they committed suicide.
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▪ Austrian writerborn November 28, 1881, Vienna, Austro-Hungarian Empire [now in Austria]died February 22, 1942, Petrópolis, near Rio de Janeiro, BrazilAustrian writer who achieved distinction in several genres—poetry, essays, short stories, and dramas—most notably in his interpretations of imaginary and historical characters.Zweig studied in Austria, France, and Germany before settling in Salzburg in 1913. In 1934, driven into exile by the Nazis, he emigrated to England and then, in 1940, to Brazil by way of New York. Finding only growing loneliness and disillusionment in their new surroundings, he and his second wife committed suicide.Zweig's interest in psychology and the teachings of Sigmund Freud led to his most characteristic work, the subtle portrayal of character. Zweig's essays include studies of Honoré de Balzac, Charles Dickens, and Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Drei Meister, 1920; Three Masters) and of Friedrich Hölderlin, Heinrich von Kleist, and Friedrich Nietzsche (Der Kampf mit dem Dämon, 1925; Master Builders). He achieved popularity with Sternstunden der Menschheit (1928; The Tide of Fortune), five historical portraits in miniature. He wrote full-scale, intuitive rather than objective, biographies of the French statesman Joseph Fouché (1929), Mary Stuart (1935), and others. His stories include those in Verwirrung der Gefühle (1925; Conflicts). He also wrote a psychological novel, Ungeduld des Herzens (1938; Beware of Pity), and translated works of Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, and Émile Verhaeren.Additional ReadingElizabeth Allday, Stefan Zweig (1972); Donald Prater, European of Yesterday: A Biography of Stefan Zweig, rev. ed. (2003).* * *
Universalium. 2010.
