恩格斯与文学期刊《德意志电讯》

Engels and the Literature Periodical“Telegraph für Deutschland”

"青年德意志"代表作家谷兹科创办的《德意志电讯》是青年恩格斯走上社会、接触政论活动的第一家媒体。1839年3月至1941年底,恩格斯在《德意志电讯》上共发表19篇文章,这些文章源于恩格斯对当时文学与社会政治局势变迁的思考,饱含渴望自由、反对专制的思想。以《德意志电讯》为政论论坛,恩格斯的民主革命思想快速成长,并在政论中呈现出温和、发展、激进、成熟四个阶段。其间,恩格斯对文学现实意义的要求与自身民主革命实践持续深化。随着德国民主运动的发展,"青年德意志"思想上的不成熟和政治上的不稳定逐渐暴露,谷兹科和《德意志电讯》思想上未跟上社会前进的步伐,思想上成熟起来的恩格斯在1842年以后与《德意志电讯》疏远,转向"青年黑格尔派"寻求民主革命的思想武器。

Telegraph für Deutschland, founded by the notable writer Gutzkow in the Young Germany, was the first media through which the young Engels stepped into the community and got access to the political commentary. Nineteen articles written by Engels were published in Telegraph für Deutschland from March, 1839 to the end of 1941. Those articles, full of desires for freedom and thoughts against autocratic, were originated from Engels' reflections on literature and what was happening in social and political situation.During this period, Engels' thoughts of democratic revolution which developed fast in his political commentary could be divided into four particular phases characterized by mildness, development, radicalness, and maturity. Among those phases, Engels' calling of literature to interactive with the social reality got further developed, so did his democratic evolutionary practice. Initially,Engels suggested moderately that the literature should reflect the fighting for freedom and against autocratic. Soon, he began to urge authors and writings to respond to current social issues, even to support the on-going social movement. At the radical phase,Engels took the lead in calling upon and inspiring the German youth to fight in his passionate comments, through which he actually devoted himself to the democratic evolutionary combat as well. Finally, attempting to find new ideological weapons, Engels turned to the Young Hegelians instead of the Young Germany, and became a mature democratic revolutionary.As the social movement developed, more and more underlying drawbacks in the Young Germany's thoughts and political stand were exposed. In addition, Gutzkow and Telegraph für Deutschland were left far behind the social revolutionary trends. Engels, a well-armed mature fighter, walked away from the Young Germany and Telegraph für Deutschland after 1842, and turned to the Young Hegelians in seek of ideological weapons for democratic revolution.