Viktor von Strauß und Torney

Friedrich Viktor Strauß (Victor Strauss),[1] from 1852 von Strauß, and from 1872 von Strauß und Torney (Bückeburg, 18 September 1809 – 1 April 1899 in Dresden) was a princely minister, church poet, and Ehrenbürger of Dresden. He had a D. theol. degree from Leipzig University, and was known as a scholar of religious history and translator from Chinese. In 1870 he published the first scientifically recognized German translation of the Tao Te Ching,[2] and in 1880 the first complete German translation of the Classic of Poetry.

He made a contribution to Germany gypsy romance literature genre with the story of Tuvia Panti, in the tragicomic novella Mitteilungen aus den Akten betreffend den Zigeuner Tuvia Panti aus Ungarn (1871).[3]

Selected works

  • Victor von Strauss: Laò-Tsè’s Taò Tĕ Kīng. Friedrich Fleischer, Leipzig 1870; new edition as "Victor von Strauß: Lao-Tse. Tao Tê King", edited and introduced by W. Y. Tonn. Manesse, Zürich 1951. (translation and comments revised)

References

  1. ^ A standardization of the 'ß' spelling only took place with the German Orthographic Conference of 1901. Therefore, in older writings, Victor (von) Strauss may be correct.
  2. ^ The first complete edition was (just shortly before) by Reinhold von Plaenckner: Lao-tse Táo-tĕ-king. Der Weg zur Tugend. F.  A. Brockhaus, Leipzig 1870 – strongly criticized for their subjectivity. Wilhelm Grube, for instance, judged that this book should best be left unmentioned (Geschichte der chinesischen Litteratur. C. F. Amelangs Verlag, Leipzig 1902, p. 145).
  3. ^ Nicholas Saul Gypsies and Orientalism in German Literature 2007 1900755882 p.80 "Strauss also wrote a noteworthy contribution to the corpus of German-Gypsy literature, the tragicomic novella Mitteilungen aus den Akten betreffend den Zigeuner Tuvia Panti aus Ungarn (1871).69 Set in large part in a Gypsy's prison cell, ..."