Rudolf Erich Raspe

Sarah Kareem (University of Chicago)

Ed. by Gerhard P. Knapp, University of Utah
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

Born Mar 1737
Died Nov 1794
Activity 1763-1794

Places

Born in Germany
Active in England; Germany

Genres and Modes

Science Fiction

Activities

Primary

Children's/Young Adult writer
Novelist
Story-writer

Other

Antiquarian/ Collector
Geologist
Humorist
Travel writer

Resources

The nineteenth-century antiquarian Robert Chambers observed of the life of Rudolf Erich Raspe: “there can hardly be a more curious piece of neglected biography”. The case remains today that for all the drama of his life, Raspe - translator; mining entrepreneur; geologist; curator; embezzler; essayist; possible industrial spy, and author of Baron Munchausen's adventures - is an oft-forgotten figure. As an innovator in remarkably diverse fields, including art history, geology, souvenir manufacturing, and fiction, Raspe had a unique passion for bringing art and science to the people, and a knack for harnessing the zeitgeist in his ephemeral productions.

Rudolf Raspe was born in Hanover in 1737 to Christian Theophilus Raspe, a…

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1780 words

Citation: Kareem, Sarah. "Rudolf Erich Raspe". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 06 October 2004 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5847, accessed 24 April 2024.]

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