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“Magnificent Rebels” is an illuminating exploration of the life of the mind and the sometimes-fraught production of art¹. The book is set in Jena, a small German town that became the intellectual capital of Europe in the late 18th and early 19th centuries². This period saw the congregation of a group of novelists, poets, literary critics, philosophers, essayists, editors, translators, and playwrights, who were inspired by the French Revolution and placed the self at the center stage of their thinking³.

The book focuses on the “Jena Set”, a group of mainly young writers and poets, including the Schlegels, Friedrich von Hardenberg (“Novalis”), and the philosopher Friedrich Schelling². These individuals saw themselves as cleverer, wittier, and more poetic than anyone else². Their irreverence led to feuds, first between the upstart Schlegels and the venerable poet and playwright Friedrich Schiller, and later between Schelling and Fichte².

Wulf’s writing is clear and flowing, making the book a pleasure to read⁴. She provides vivid portraits of the characters and their dynamic narrative, sparking ideas⁴. The book is a spirited re-creation of the world of the German founders of the post-Enlightenment movement¹. It’s an exhilarating book that tells the story of what Wulf calls “the Jena set” in a lovely crazy little corner of the world².

Overall, “Magnificent Rebels” is a delightful and invigorating book that is attentive to Jena’s social as well as its intellectual glitter⁵. It’s a worthy successor to Wulf’s acclaimed study of Alexander von Humboldt, “The Invention of Nature”⁵. The book offers an ambitious, engaging, and effusive account of the first Romantics and the invention of the self⁶.

Author is Andrea Wulf

Here the Book Review of the Guardien

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