Albert Steffen

Albert Steffen (1884 - 1963) is a poet Suisse of German language. He was vice-president of the universal anthroposophic Société then president with died of his founder Rudolf Steiner.

Biographical elements

Albert Steffen was born in Obermurgenthal (commune of Wynau, canton of Bern) on December 10th, 1884. He was the third of a family of six children, whose father was doctor in an important village of Bernese Mitteland. At fourteen years, he studied in Bern, where in 1904, he obtained his baccalaureat. Answering the wish of his father, who wanted to transmit his doctor's office to him, he undertook studies of medicine in Lausanne (1904/1905). In contact with the courses of medicine, it became aware that it was not a doctor who it wanted to be, but poet. It is by the verb that he wanted to exert a therapeutic effect. At that time, it was interested highly in Nietzsche and Dostoïevsky.

In 1906, it settled in Berlin where it made publish its first novel “ Ott, Alois und Warelsche ” with the Editions Samuel Fischer, who published then others of his works. It placed in a miserable district of the " big city; to know the abysses of the vie".

In 1907, he heard for the first time a conference of Rudolf Steiner, but he met it personally only three years later with Munich where he lived of 1908 with 1920.

During its life in Munich Albert Steffen became acquainted with the painter Stanislas Stückgold and his Elisabeth wife. Their daughter was an epileptic hemiplegic. In 1920 Elisabeth Stückgold accompanied Albert Steffen in Dornach, in order to request council for her daughter from Rudolf Steiner. On this occasion, Steffen agreed to deal with at the request of Steiner the drafting of the very new weekly magazine “Das Goetheanum”, which it did besides conscientiously until its death. It settled in Dornach, and towards 1923/1924, it accepted the vice-presidency of the Company Anthroposophique Universelle. Because of his increasingly close connection with the Anthroposophie, since 1919, its literary works were not published any more by the editions Samuel Fischer. He founded in 1928 his own publisher “Verlag für schöne Wissenschaften” (Editions of the Beautiful Letters”.

In 1925, after the death of Steiner, he became president of the Company Antroposophique Universelle until his death, after having made exclude Ita Wegman and Elisabeth Vreede in 1935, then even Marie Steiner in 1948, of Vorstand (~Comity directing). (Initial Vorstand was composed of the members according to: Albert Steffen, Marie Steiner, Elisabeth Vreede, Ita Wegman, Günther Wachsmuth and Rudolf Steiner) .br> In 1933, Albert Steffen married Elisabeth Stückgold, who died in 1961.
Albert Steffen died itself on July 13rd, 1963 at the 79 years age to Dornach.

Its novels, news, tests, collections of poetries, dramas and books of notes (more than 80 titles) embrace vast domains of the history and sound époque.
Albert Steffen expressed itself in an open language, concise and picturesque. Its main themes are the metamorphosis of the Evil on the basis of renewed knowledge of the spirit and metamorphose it knowledge in the life.

Random links: