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閱讀卡爾·麥 Karl May在小说之家的作品!!! |
1842年出生於德國薩剋遜郡一個貧苦工人家庭，出生時什麽也看不見，母親多方求醫，直到6歲纔得以復明。在失明階段，他不得不憑藉聽力和觸覺感知周圍的世界，想象力由此得到了超常的發展。
他的前半生充滿不幸--頭六年患弱視幾成瞎子、大學時因經濟睏難輟學、當了小學教員後又遭誣陷失去工作，以後又多次捲入法律糾紛，然生活的坎坷、心靈的痛苦使他發奮讀書、立志成纔。
1875年他成了當地幾傢雜志社的編輯，在那裏他找到了自己的發展道路。在已具備寫作域外風情小說、登上成功小說傢之路的紮實基礎後，他於1878年毅然辭去編輯工作，開始了專業創作，幾年中以其“對奧斯曼帝國的遊歷回憶”和“溫內圖的故事”脫穎而出，成了德國文壇一顆耀眼的新星。
1900年前後，他到東方作了一次實地遊歷，此時他已成為歐洲最暢銷、獲讀者最多的作傢之一，並因版稅而成了大富翁。他的豪華別墅裏擺滿了他收集的各類文物和紀念品，其中尤以印第安人文物為多，他的收藏品被人稱為是其“偉大探險的紀念品”。
如今，卡爾•麥在德國薩剋遜的故居已被改成一座紀念館，卡爾•麥的半身銅像裝點了那座城市的廣場；他在德勒斯登附近的別墅一一“老鐵手別墅”也已成為一座博物館，裏頭陳列了大量珍貴的美洲印第安文物，以及卡爾•麥的全部著作和他收集的大量紀念品；他的許多故事已被改編成電影、戲劇、連環畫。根據卡爾•麥的遺願，那兒的雷迪伯爾大學已成為負責“卡爾•麥慈善基金”的專門機構。
卡爾·麥 - 職業生涯
卡爾·麥
卡爾•麥在美國缺乏知名度，他的許多書籍，似乎讓人們感覺是不是自相矛盾。他敘述了印度人和牛仔從來沒有看過任何的；事實上，他沒有涉足過美國，直到1908年，他走過的衹有據西尼亞加拉大瀑布在那個時間。當他訪問了阿拉伯世界的數年之前，他經歷了令人失望的，它並沒有很多相似的世界，他創造了在他的著作。卡爾•麥的作品，反映民意的態度，在德國的文化，他的時間，但除此之外，他們的成功在於證明了純粹的權力想象。
在利欲熏心的童年
卡爾•麥顯示想象力，從很早就年齡，但它花了很多年之前，他學會了直接到社會可以接受的渠道。他出生於德國中部，在小城鎮ernstthal附近開姆尼茨。家庭遭受了可怕的貧窮在可能的青年作為德國布貿易的受害者競爭從英語的工廠。人在卡爾•麥的循環，有時沒有吃的，但土豆，以及當他一歲時，他開始受到視力問題。他盡快到完全失明，可能是因維生素A缺乏癥。數年卡爾•麥的教訓，以解釋在世界的很大一部分通過童話故事，告訴他的祖母。可能是由於他未來的成功，以他的童年的盲目性。“對我來說，當時衹有靈魂，衹不過是靈魂”，他引述他的話說：對澳洲的朋友卡爾可能的網站。“因此，留，甚至後，我學到看到，從我的青年，直到現今，這之間的區別是自己和他人的，這是關鍵，我的書籍”。
卡爾·麥
卡爾•麥的盲目性，治愈後，他的母親找培訓，以成為一個助産士，並詢問醫生是誰指使她看看她兒子的眼睛是雪亮的。他上過學了好幾年，特別是entranced一天由一個木偶劇來到透過城市演出，為家庭的織布協會。反面的想象力為本的教育，這可能期間所接獲的他多年的盲目性，來時，他的父親操練的事實和數字，到他，支持他的教訓，與黨黨鞭，可能所謂的約翰尼該樺木。在他父親的遺志，可能擔任鼓手的男孩，在當地民兵。可能被迫背誦500頁的地理書，一演習沒有幫助他學習，保留了大量的描述性的景觀細節。
西方故事，美國作傢庫柏流行在德語翻譯，並有可能嘗試他的手在寫作的故事，印度人早在1858年。家庭的計劃，他在這個時候，不過，他將參加在一個教師培訓學校在城市的waldenburg。他收到了若幹警告，有失蹤教會服務和被拋出在1859年底後，竊取六蠟燭，給他仍然貧窮的家庭，把他們的聖誕樹。之後，干涉他的本堂司鐸，他被允許完成班級另一所學校。他得到一份工作在一所學校，但被解雇後，作出了通過在他的妻子業主。另一項教學工作證明不成功時，可能被指控偷了室友奇摩觀賞；抗議，雖然他自己的清白，他被判入獄六個星期。監獄有一個大型圖書館，並有可能在廣泛的閱讀他的監禁。
之間的1862和1864年卡爾•麥似乎已被引誘離城市，以城市與戰區組，進行關係與舞者的一部分的時間。他被囚禁的兩倍以上，從1865年初通過1868年和1870年通過1874年，這兩個時代之後，低品位詐騙，其中他假扮成一名政府官員或其他主管當局的數字。卡爾•麥似乎不太關心，在經濟上的獲益比在尊嚴。當他從監獄獲釋，他告訴官員，他計劃移民到美國。他隨後通過與這個故事，最終，美化它有這麽多的細節，有些人認為他來相信自己。但他並沒有離開德國在這個時候，他得到一份工作在一個鐵匠的商店和設置工作，作為一個作傢。不久，他産生了一個演義，玫瑰ernstthal。
降落的編輯工作
在1875年卡爾•麥，他重新認識與出版社汞münchmeyer，並在考慮出版的玫瑰ernstthal，是提供了就業作為一個編輯器。該公司專門在書籍和雜志，德國的新識字的中下階層，並有可能的寫作擊中甜蜜點，為münchmeyer。他是令人難以置信的生産力，寫作的故事，連載小說，散文。晚於1875年他還介紹了數字winnetou，Apache的行政，為第一次在很短的故事。münchmeyer，留下深刻的印象，試圖建立更密切的關係，專業與可能。他的妻子了，可一首鋼琴。家庭租住的房間在德纍斯頓附近的新流行的作者，並使它衆所周知，他將研究對良性如果他想結婚，他們的女兒明娜。但可能是對他的方式在文學世界，忽略了這些序麯。離開他的編輯工作一年後，嫁給一個女孩從ernstthal，愛瑪pollmer，於1880年。
münchmeyer沒有讓他失望，干涉了一個機會，分享在利潤由卡爾•麥的工作，不過，和該公司公佈的幾個可能的小說在今後十年中。他們中的一些原本出現在串行（或事件）的形式在雜志上所謂的明鏡德意志hausschatz在麥汁und圖片報（德國首頁庫務署的字和圖片）。卡爾•麥的第一本小說集在美國西部是即時通訊fernen西方（在遠東西）1879。在19世紀80年代，他撰寫了一係列巨大的冒險小說（約2000頁）認為，銷售情況很好，永遠杜絶他有必要舉行一天的工作。最成功的，他們負有令人印象深刻的標題之waldröschen奧得死verfolgungrund這個模具erde：grosserenthüllungsromanüber模具geheimnisse明鏡menschlichengesellschaft（小森林玫瑰，或追逐世界各地的：一個偉大啓示小說的秘密人類社會）。
卡爾·麥
也可以開始工作，兩個大型係列小說，有時引入已經完成短篇小說酌情。該fehsenfeld出版社出版發行的這些工程和約束，他們與可觀的說明，包括讓一嘗的冒險中包含的。一個家庭可能沒有自己的大型圖書館的書籍，這些小說有吸引力的家庭財産。卡爾•麥開始，這兩個係列，在1892年，根據集體的標題gesammeltereiseromane（收集旅行小說）和補充，他們通過19世紀90年代及以後的;由時間，他的死亡gesammeltereiseromane組成的32捲，和他們繼續出售，以及通過20世紀。
其中兩個係列彌補了gesammeltereiseromane構成小說的美國西部，往往具有出生在德國的英雄，所謂舊shatterhand。（意義的名稱是性格可以摧毀對手在打架，一個單一的力度。）卡爾•麥的最成功的西方小說，和最好的賣方之間的所有他的書，是winnetou，明鏡死記硬背君子（winnetou，紅君子），其中出現在1893年，但沒有翻譯成英語，直到1977年。小說精選1歲之間的友誼shatterhand和winnetou，培養印度行政誰抵製剝削白色侵略者。不像在美國西部，壞人在卡爾•麥的書籍，通常是白人;winnetou代表了“高尚的野蠻人”的數字，可以進行自我改善與歐洲的文化。在winnetou，印度行政不肯透露地點一個大型金礦床，並在以後的預訂在一係列他轉換了基督教。至於舊shatterhand，卡爾•麥，有時隱含在演講指出，冒險的性質有經驗的人，其實他自己。與利潤從winnetou書籍，可能建起了大型農村地産，他所謂的別墅shatterhand。他儲存的，它包括一個大型的集合西方的文物，他顯示了參觀者。
卡爾·麥
穿過伊斯蘭世界
卡爾•麥的其他主要係列小說事件都發生在中東和北非。像winnetou的故事，他們精選一個數字，卡拉本nemsi（或卡爾，德國）誰是潛在的立場，在為自己可能;小說，可讀性較強的冒險紗綫的陰謀，捕捉，逃跑，和欺騙。卡拉本nemsi了一本漫畫sidekick，hadschihalef奧馬爾。可能基於許多細節在這些小說中對他的教訓，從他的大圖書館的書籍約伊斯蘭世界，但是，當作者最後走過的一些土地，他寫道約他發現的景觀幾乎沒有相似性，他富有想象力的建設。卡爾•麥journeyed通過中和到東據印度尼西亞在1900年;當他返回，他的前景改變。
回到傢裏，可能會遇到的問題。雖然他是旅行，他的批評者發起一場運動對他在德國報紙，就抓住了部分的幻想，他晉升，並指出他已采取的標題醫生沒有受惠任何醫療或學術學位。還可以奮鬥，為大部分的休息，他的生活，反對盜版的版本，他的書籍。卡爾•麥的最終成功的誹謗訴訟，記者魯道夫lebius跨距幾年來，和他的婚姻破裂。他的妻子站在他的對手在訴訟中和公衆的爭議。
在1903年卡爾•麥再次結婚，他的妻子klara是遺孀他的一位朋友。他的作品在過去十年，他一生為代表的重大轉變，在方向，從他的西式和中東小說。ardistanunddschinnistan（1909）仍精選卡拉本nemsi作為英雄，但描繪了虛構的對東部的境界，一個美麗的而開明的，其他在抓地力的唯物論和暴力。他的新書籍充滿了象徵和寓言，並在講課，他開始宣稱，他先前的書籍，也有象徵意義；作為一個整體，他說，他們所代表的崛起，人類從原始的迷信，以啓示。他的民望下滑，但它一直如此巨大，首先，他發現一大型水庫的讀者誰願意追隨他的新路徑。
Karl May(1974)
在1908年卡爾•麥訪問美國，為第一次，也是唯一的時間。他講課，以德美集團，但也許意識到他的失望，在中東，他又衹據西水牛和尼亞加拉大瀑布。他的巡回演講的題目是“三個問題，為人類：我們是誰？哪裏，我們從何而來？在哪裏，我們將走嚮何方？”這個時候，可能開始患有各種健康問題，醫生勸他取消了晶狀體上皮-真在維也納，奧地利，題為“引起的境界，該名男子的貴族”。他無論如何，和廣受觀衆，其中包括年輕的希特勒（1欽佩可能，儘管卡爾•麥的殷切希望，和平主義）。
1912年3月30日卡爾•麥去世後。他的小說不斷發出的新版本的一名官員卡爾•麥出版社出版，以及他們的版權後，終於在1962年屆滿，一連串的平裝書出版商重印工程。一個世紀之後，卡爾•麥的小說仍然是一個啓示德國兒童誰用他們的想象力和打扮成牛仔和印第安人。
卡爾·麥 - 主要作品
《老母塔之夜》、《????沼逃生》、《洞窟幽靈》、《雅庫布的珠寶店》、《峽𠔌追捕》、《老母塔之夜》、《魔鬼峽》、《印第安酋長》、《荒原追蹤》、《溫內圖之死》、《恐怖的大漠》、《埃斯塔的緑洲》、《老鐵手》、《沙漠秘井》《智闖蓄奴島》、《凱曼船長》、《溪𠔌莊園》、《真假享特》、《護身符》、《藏金潭奪寶》、《銀湖寶藏》、《石油王子》、《奴隸商隊》等。
卡爾·麥 - 文學成就
卡爾·麥
卡爾·麥故事中最精彩的是北美探險故事和中東、巴爾幹探險故事。前者表現了印第安人和白人移民之間的衝 突，後者則生動描繪了正義和邪惡之間的鬥爭。迭起懸念、生動的情節、迷人的自然景觀和風情文化、悠遠的歷史感，以及揉神話、探險、遊記和哲理小說於一體的獨特手法，這便是卡爾•麥說的魅力所在。書中處處閃現的智慧、人道精神和正義感、對美好人生的堅定信念，使人在欣喜入迷之餘，獲得許多教益啓迪；而其中勇與罪惡、災唯和自身弱點搏鬥的主人公，會使你覺得這是最生動、最引人註目的文學主人公了。
除了驚人的發行量，卡爾·麥的小說還受到了衆多世界名人的贊譽。已被譯成，三十六種文字，在一百多個國傢行銷一億三千萬册，卻一直沒有中文版。現在已經獨傢授權中國，並翻譯出版這套膾炙人口的小說，實會給中國讀者帶來難得的享受和收穫!在此套叢書的翻譯編校過程中，曾得到歐美同學會副會長羅婉華女士、歐美同學會婦女分會副會長張蝶麗女士的大力支持，以及潘海峰、王泰智、李昌柯、楊鑒、李張林等先生在校譯、資料收集等方面廢寢忘食的努力。
卡爾·麥 - 名人贊譽
卡爾·麥
德國著名詩人說傢、1946年諾貝爾文學奬獲得者赫曼恩•赫塞(Hermann hesse，1877-1962)說：“他書中鮮明的 色彩和扣人心弦的懸念顯示了虛構小說的一種不可或缺的永恆魅力。他是實現願望類小說的創始人和最偉大的作傢。”
曾獲1952年諾貝爾和平奬的法國哲學家阿爾伯特•史懷哲(Albert Schweitzer，1875-1965)評論他說：“我最喜歡他書中幾乎通篇隱含的為爭取和平和共同理解而顯示的勇氣。”
1921年獲諾貝爾物理奬的美國著名物理學家阿爾舊特•愛因斯坦(Albert Einstein，1879～1955)說：“真的，我的整個青：少年時代都受他影響，即使在今天，每當我感到孤寂無望時，他仍是那麽的親近於我。”
美國西巴利(The Seabury Press)出版社評論說：“卡爾•麥書之暢銷，證明他是文學史上最偉大的虛構小說傢。在他的時代充斥了大量暢銷探險小說和人物，但卡爾•麥的小說具有完全不同的特色，他關註的是人類的根本問題，以及現代人失去的靈魂。”
Karl May was born into a family of poor weavers in Ernstthal, Schönburgische Rezessherrschaften (later part of the Kingdom of Saxony). He was the fifth child out of fourteen, nine of them died within several months. According to his autobiography, he suffered from visual impairment shortly after birth and regained his eyesight after treatment at the age of five. Possibly a lack of vitamin A led to night blindness, which got worse.
During his school time he got private music and composition lessons. 1856 he started his teacher training in Waldenburg, but was excluded 1859, because he embezzled six candles. After a petition he was allowed to continue his education in Plauen. His career as a teacher ended 1861 abruptly after few weeks when he was accused by his roommate of stealing a pocket watch. Therefore he had to be in gaol in Chemnitz for six weeks and his license to teach was revoked permanently.
During the following years he tried to earn a living by giving private education, writing tales, composing and declaiming. But these did not secure his livelihood. As consequence he started thefts and frauds. He was sentenced to four years in a workhouse. From 1865 to 1869 he was in gaol in the workhouse Osterstein Castle (Zwickau). Because of good behaviour he became administrator of the prison’s library and had the chance to read much including travel literature. He planned to become an author and made a list of titles named Repertorium C. May. After his release he failed starting a good existence and continued with thefts and frauds. Compared to the effort the loot was meagre. He got caught, but during judicial investigation, when he was transported to the crime scenes, he freed himself. May fled beyond Saxon boundaries to Bohemia, where he was detained for vagabondage. He was in gaol again in Waldheim from 1870 to 1874. There he met the catholic prison’s catechist Johannes Kochta, who’s influence helped May to find to himself.
After May’s release in May 1874 he went back to his parents in Ernstthal and started writing. The first known publish of a Karl May tale (Die Rose von Ernstthal) was in November 1874. It was a time when the German press was on the move. Industrialisation, increasing literacy and economic freedom lead to many startups of presses (especially in the field of light fiction). Already in the time between his both long imprisonments he had contact with the publisher Heinrich Gotthold Münchmeyer in Dresden. Now he engaged May as editor in his press. For the first time his livelihood was secure. He stewarded several entertainment papers (e. g. Schacht und Hütte) and wrote and edited with or without naming the name numerous articles (e. g. Geographische Predigten, 1875/76). May quit in 1876, because his employer tried to bond him on his company by marriage with Münchmeyer’s sister-in-law and the firm had a bad reputation. After a second engagement as editor in the press of Bruno Radelli, Dresden, in 1878 he became freelance writer and moved to Dresden together with his girlfriend Emma Pollmer, whom he married 1880. But his publications did not result in a regular income yet; there were rent and other arrears.
In 1879 Deutscher Hausschatz, a catholic weekly journal from the press of Friedrich Pustet in Regensburg, published the tale Three carde monte. After some more stories, they made the offer May should present them all of his tales first: In 1880 he started the Orient Cycle, which ran with interruptions until 1888. But at the same time he also wrote for other journals, used pseudonyms and different titles to get multiple payment for his texts. Until his death more than one hundred tales were published in instalments in diverse journals. Another important journal was Der Gute Kamerad of Wilhelm Spemann, Stuttgart, resp. later on Union Deutsche Verlagsgesellschaft, which was a magazine for boys in secondary school. There his first tale was published in 1887 (Der Sohn des Bärenjägers) and it printed one of his most famous stories: Der Schatz im Silbersee (1890/91). In 1882 there was new contact with H. G. Münchmeyer and May started the first of five very large colportage novels for his former employer. Das Waldröschen (1882–1884) was many hundred thousandfold reprinted until 1907. But May made just a verbal agreement with his friend Münchmeyer and later on this should become a problem.
Karl May as Old Shatterhand, 1896
In October 1888 May moved to Kötzschenbroda (a part of Radebeul) and 1891 into Villa Agnes in Oberlößnitz (another part of Radebeul). The key breakthrough came in 1891 by contact with Friedrich Ernst Fehsenfeld, who offered to print the Deutsche Hausschatz-stories as books. With the start of the new book series Carl May’s Gesammelte Reiseromane in 1892 (since 1896 Karl May's Gesammelte Reiseerzählungen) for the first time May experienced financial security and glory. But after a short time he had problems to differ between reality and fiction and went as far as to say he had experienced himself as Old Shatterhand resp. Kara Ben Nemsi what he had written. This was the so called "Old-Shatterhand-Legend". A gunsmith in Kötzschenbroda manufactured the legendary guns of the heroes in his novels for him, first the "Bärentöter" (Bear Killer) and the „Silberbüchse“ (The Silver Gun), later on the "Henrystutzen" (Henry rifle). The readers followed the equalisation of author and protagonist and sent numerous letters to him. In the following years he took talk tours in Germany and Austria, let print autograph cards and let take costume photos. In December 1895 he moved into the Villa "Shatterhand" in Alt-Radebeul, which he bought from the Ziller Brothers.
1899/1900 May travelled to the Orient. In the first part he was for nearly three-quarter year alone just accompanied by his servant Sejd Hassan and came from Egypt to Sumatra. In 1900 he met his wife and his friends, the couple Klara and Richard Plöhn. Together they continued the journey and got back to Radebeul in July 1900. During the year and a half May wrote a travel diary, which is extent in fragments and transcription parts. According to his second wife Klara (widowed Plöhn, see below) May had two times a nervous breakdown during the journey, which lasted both times over a week. Hans Wollschläger and Ekkehard Bartsch belief that this was due to an irruption of the reality into May’s dream world. He overcame the crisis without medical benefit.
While May was on his Orient journey, attacks in the press set in, especially pursued by Hermann Cardauns and Rudolf Lebius. They criticised – with different motivations – May’s self promotion and the associated Old-Shatterhand-Legend. Simultaneously they reproached him religious sham (he wrote as protestant for the catholic Deutscher Hausschatz and several Marian calendars), immorality and later on his criminal history. These polemics and several trials about unauthorized book publications lasted until his death. His broken matrimony was dissolved 1903 by May’s endeavour. According to May, Emma, who was a friend of adversary Pauline Münchmeyer (widow of H. G. Münchmeyer), embezzled documents, which could have verified the verbal agreement with Münchmeyer. In the same year he married the widow Klara Plöhn.
Since his first employment as editor May added illegally a doctoral degree to his name. 1902 he got an Doctor honoris causa by the Universitas Germana-Americana in Chicago for his work Im Reiche des Silbernen Löwen. Christian Heermann assumes, this happened on endeavour of May or Klara Plöhn to give the false doctoral degree a legal basis. This university was a known diploma mill, where degrees could be bought for money.
Karl May and Sascha Schneider, 1904
In 1908 Karl and Klara May travelled for six weeks to North America. They visited among others Albany, Buffalo, the Niagara Falls and some friends in Lawrence. But he did not reach the Wild West. May used the journey as inspiration for his book Winnetou IV.
Tomb of Karl and Klara May
Since his Orient journey May wrote in another way. He called his former works "preparation" and started then writing complex, allegoric texts. He was convinced to solve or at least to discuss the "question of mankind". He turned deliberately to pacifism and wrote several books about the raising of humans from "evil" to "good". The friendship to the artist Sascha Schneider lead to new symbolistic covers for the Fehsenfeld edition. An exultant approval May experienced on the March 22, 1912; he was invited by the Academic Society for Literature and Music in Vienna to hold the talk Empor ins Reich der Edelmenschen ("Upward to the realm of noble men"). Thereby he met his friend the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Bertha von Suttner. Karl May died one week later on March 30, 1912. According to the register of deaths, the cause was "cardiac arrest, acute bronchitis, asthma". Today an (unrecognised) lung cancer is not excluded. May was buried on the graveyard Radebeul-East. The tomb was inspired by the Temple of Athena Nike Klara had seen on the Orient travel.
[edit]Works
[edit]Introduction
May used many different pseudonyms, including Capitan Ramon Diaz de la Escosura, D. Jam, Emma Pollmer (name of his first wife), Ernst von Linden, Hobble-Frank (figure of his work), Karl Hohenthal, M. Gisela, P. van der Löwen, Prinz Muhamel Lautréamont and Richard Plöhn (name of his friend). Today most pseudonymously or anonymously published works are identified.
Karl May as Kara Ben Nemsi, 1896
For the novels set in America, May created the characters of Winnetou, the wise chief of the Apache Tribe, and Old Shatterhand, the author's alter ego and Winnetou's white blood brother. Another successful series of novels is set in the Ottoman Empire. Here the narrator-protagonist calls himself Kara Ben Nemsi, i.e. Karl, son of Germans, and travels with his local guide and servant Hadschi Halef Omar through the Sahara desert and the Near East, experiencing many exciting adventures.
There is a development from an anonymous first-person narrator, who is just observer and reporter (e. g. Der Gitano, 1875), over addition of heroic skills and equipment (e. g. Old Firehand, 1875, later within Winnetou II) to the full formed first-person-narrator-heroes Old Shatterhand (Deadly dust, 1880, later within Winnetou III) and Kara Ben Nemsi (”Giölgeda padiśhanün”, 1881, later within Durch Wüste und Harem). Some first-person-narrator-heroes are called “Charley” (English for Karl) by friends and fellows. For a long time equipment (e. g. Henry rifle and Bear Killer) and skills (e. g. dash struck) were the same for all first-person-narrator-heroes. Then in Die Felsenburg / Krüger Bei (1893/94, later Satan und Ischariot I/II) May let occur the first-person narrator in the American Old West, in the Orient and in Germany. Therefore he identified Old Shatterhand, Kara Ben Nemsi and Charley with Dr. Karl May in Dresden.
With some exceptions later on (Und Friede auf Erden!, 1904, and Winnetou IV, 1910), May had not visited the places he described. He compensated successfully for his lack of direct experience with these places by a combination of creativity, imagination, and factual sources including maps, travel accounts and guide books, as well as anthropological and linguistic studies. Also the work of writers such as James Fenimore Cooper, Gabriel Ferry, Friedrich Gerstäcker, Balduin Möllhausen and Mayne Reid served as models.
Non-dogmatic Christian feelings and values play an important role, and May's heroes are often described as being of German ancestry. In addition, following the Romantic ideal of the "noble savage" and inspired by the writings of writers like James Fenimore Cooper or George Catlin, his Native Americans are usually portrayed as innocent victims of white law-breakers, and many are presented as heroic characters. He also wrote about the fate of other suppressed peoples. Karl May and his works are deeply rooted in the belief that all mankind should live together peacefully; all of his main characters try to avoid killing anyone, except when necessary to save other lives.
May deliberately made himself stand out of ethnological prejudices and also wrote against the public opinion (e. g. Winnetou, Durchs wilde Kurdistan, Und Friede auf Erden!). Nevertheless in his work are some phrasings, which today are seen as “racialistic”. These phrasings underlay the paradigms of his time. For example there are broad-brush pejorative statements about Armenians, black people, Chinese people, Irish people, jews and mestizos. Therefore May was not uninfluenced by the nationalism and racism, which were characteristics of Wilhelmine Germany at that time. But in his novels there are also positive depicted Chinese people and mestizos, who contradict the common clichés. In a letter to a young jew, who planned becoming a Christ after he had read May’s books, he advised him first to understand his own religion, which is holy and exalted, until he is experienced enough to choose.
In his late work (since 1900) May turned away from the adventurous style and wrote symbolic novels with religious and pacifistic content. The break is best shown in Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen. Herein the first two parts are adventurous and the last both parts belong to the late work. In the context of this literarily developmental stage the friendship with art nouveau painter and sculptor Sascha Schneider is important, who painted symbolic covers for May’s books. Karl May himself repeatedly enhanced the importance of his late work.
For a long time, literary critics tended to regard May's literature as trivial, but recent research has reversed this assessment, at least partially.
[edit]Early work
In his early work Karl May tried several genres until he show his proficiency with travel stories. During his time as editor he published many of this works within the periodicals, for which he was responsible. The time of the early work lasted until about 1880.
Das Buch der Liebe (1875/76, educational work)
Geographische Predigten (1875/76, educational work)
Der beiden Quitzows letzte Fahrten (1876/77, not finished by Karl May)
Auf hoher See gefangen (1877/78, also entitled as Auf der See gefangen, parts later revised for Old Surehand II)
Scepter und Hammer (1879/80)
Im fernen Westen (1879, revision of Old Firehand (1875), later revised for Winnetou II)
Der Waldläufer (1879, revision for the youth of "Le Coureur de Bois", a novel by Gabriel Ferry)
Die Juweleninsel (1880–82)
Im fernen Westen and Der Waldläufer are the first book editions of Karl May texts known.
Beside these texts there are many shorter stories, which can be divided into categories. There are village stories from the Erzgebirge (e. g. Die Rose von Ernstthal, 1874), novellas (e. g. Wanda, 1875), humoresques (e. g. Die Fastnachtsnarren, 1875) and historical stories such as the series about „the Old Dessauer“ Leopold I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau (e. g. Ein Stücklein vom alten Dessauer, 1875), as well as the first travel stories. Especially in his early work May used home settings, but there are also exotic scenes. His first non-European tale Inn-nu-woh, der Indianerhäuptling (1875) contains a rough draft of Winnetou. Later some of these tales were published in anthologies, e. g. in Der Karawanenwürger und andere Erzählungen (1894), Humoresken und Erzählungen (1902) and Erzgebirgische Dorfgeschichten (1903).
Also to the early work belong articles such as natural philosophic tractates or popular scientific works about history and technology (e. g. Schätze und Schatzgräber, 1875), published answers to letters send to him as editor as well as poems (e. g. Meine einstige Grabinschrift, 1872).
[edit]Colportage novels
There are five large (many thousands of pages) colportage novels May wrote mostly under the pseudonym Capitan Ramon Diaz de la Escosura for the press of H. G. Münchmeyer from 1882 to 1888. When May's authorship of these works emerged, he was publicly confronted, because contemporaneously the novels were seen as indecent, especially as they were written parallel to the commendable works in Deutscher Hausschatz.
Das Waldröschen (1882–84, a part was later revised for Old Surehand II)
Die Liebe des Ulanen (1883–85)
Der verlorne Sohn (1884–86)
Deutsche Herzen – Deutsche Helden (1885–88, also entitled as Deutsche Herzen, deutsche Helden)
Der Weg zum Glück (1886–88)
From 1900 to 1906 Münchmeyer’s successor Adalbert Fischer published the first book editions. These were revised by third hand and published under May’s real name instead of using the pseudonym. This edition was not authorised by May.
[edit]Travel stories
In the book series Carl May's Gesammelte Reiseromane, later entiteld Karl May’s Gesammelte Reiseerzählungen, 33 volumes were published from 1892 to 1910 in the press of Friedrich Ernst Fehsenfeld. Most of them were published before in Deutscher Hausschatz, but some of them were directly written for this series. The most famous titles are the Orient Cycle (volume 1–6) and the Winnetou-Trilogy (7–9). Generally there is no reading order, because May himself produced unintentionally chronological inconsistencies. Most of them arose, when he revised earlier texts for the book edition (e. g. within the Winnetou-Trilogy).
1. Durch Wüste und Harem (1892, since 1895 entitled as Durch die Wüste)
2. Durchs wilde Kurdistan (1892)
3. Von Bagdad nach Stambul (1892)
4. In den Schluchten des Balkan (1892)
5. Durch das Land der Skipetaren (1892)
6. Der Schut (1892)
7. Winnetou I (1893, temporarily also entitled as Winnetou der Rote Gentleman I)
8. Winnetou II (1893, temporarily also entitled as Winnetou der Rote Gentleman II)
9. Winnetou III (1893, temporarily also entitled as Winnetou der Rote Gentleman III)
10. Orangen und Datteln (1893, an anthology)
11. Am Stillen Ocean (1894, an anthology)
12. Am Rio de la Plata (1894)
13. In den Cordilleren (1894)
14. Old Surehand I (1894)
15. Old Surehand II (1895)
16. Im Lande des Mahdi I (1896)
17. Im Lande des Mahdi II (1896)
18. Im Lande des Mahdi III (1896)
19. Old Surehand III (1897)
20. Satan und Ischariot I (1896)
21. Satan und Ischariot II (1897)
22. Satan und Ischariot III (1897)
23. Auf fremden Pfaden (1897, an anthology)
24. „Weihnacht!“ (1897)
26. Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen I (1898)
27. Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen II (1898)
25. Am Jenseits (1899)
28–33 are travel stories, which belong to the late work
There are some shorter travel stories, which were not published within this series. On this edition (so called “green volumes”) bases the series Karl May’s Illustrierte Reiseerzählungen (illustrated “blue volumes”, since 1907). This edition was revised by May himself and is the definitive edition. It contains just the first thirty volumes which have partly another numbering.
After foundation of the Karl May Press in 1913 in the new series "Karl May's Gesammelte Werke" many volumes were revised (partly radically) and many got new titles. Texts from others than Fehsenfeld Press were added to the new series.
[edit]Stories for the youth
These stories were written from 1887 to 1897 for the magazine Der Gute Kamerad. He intentionally wrote for young readers. Most of the stories are set in the Wild West, but here Old Shatterhand is just a figure and not the first-person narrator as he is in the travel stories. The most famous volume is Der Schatz im Silbersee. In the broadest sense the early works Im fernen Westen and Der Waldläufer belong to these category.
Der Sohn des Bärenjägers (1887, since 1890 within Die Helden des Westens)
Der Geist des Llano estakata (1888, since 1890 correctly entitled as Der Geist des Llano estakado within Die Helden des Westens)
Kong-Kheou, das Ehrenwort (1888/89, since 1892 entitled as Der blaurote Methusalem)
Die Sklavenkarawane (1889/90)
Der Schatz im Silbersee (1890/91)
Das Vermächtnis des Inka (1891/92)
Der Oelprinz (1893/94, since 1905 entitled as Der Ölprinz)
Der schwarze Mustang (1896/97)
Between 1890 and 1899 Union Deutsche Verlagsgesellschaft published them as illustrated book edition.
Parallel to this major work May also published shorter stories and some puzzles anonymously or pseudonymously from 1887 to 1891. These were written mostly to given illustrations. One of the pseudonyms was “Hobble-Frank”, which was a popular character in his stories for the youth with Wild West setting. Also his answers to letters by the readers were published within Der Gute Kamerad.
[edit]Late work
Ardistan und Dschinnistan, 1909, cover by Sascha Schneider showing Marah Durimeh
To the late work belong the publications after May’s Orient travel from 1900 on. Many of them were published in the press of Fehsenfeld. Within the series Karl May’s Gesammelte Reiseerzählungen the volumes 28-33 belong to the late work.
Himmelsgedanken (1900, poem collection)
28. Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen III (1902)
29. Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen IV (1903)
30. Und Friede auf Erden! (1904)
Babel und Bibel (1906, drama)
Drei Menschheitsfragen: Wer sind wir? Woher kommen wir? Wohin gehen wir? (1908, talk)
31. Ardistan und Dschinnistan I (1909)
32. Ardistan und Dschinnistan II (1909)
Sitara, das Land der Menschheitsseele (1909, talk)
33. Winnetou IV (1910)
Mein Leben und Streben (1910, autobiography)
Empor ins Reich der Edelmenschen (1912, talk)
To the late work belong also shorter stories (e. g. Sonnenscheinchen, 1903), essays and articles (e. g. Briefe über Kunst, 1906/07) as well as texts for trials and defence (e. g ”Karl May als Erzieher” und “Die Wahrheit über Karl May” oder Die Gegner Karl Mays in ihrem eigenen Lichte, 1902).
[edit]Other works
Karl May wrote also musical compositions, especially when he was member of the singing society “Lyra” about 1864. Well known is his version of Ave Maria (together with Vergiss mich nicht collected within Ernste Klänge, 1899).
After May’s death there were publishings of his residue: Fragments of stories and dramas, lyrics, musical compositions, his self made library catalogue and mostly letters.
[edit]Reception
[edit]Influence
Karl May had a substantial influence on a number of well-known German-speaking people - and on the German population itself. The popularity of his writing, and indeed, his (practically always German) protagonists, are considered by some as having filled a lack in the German psyche which had few popular heroes until the 19th Century. His readers longed to escape from an industrialised, capitalist society, an escape which May offered them. He was noted as having "helped shape the collective German dream of feats far beyond middle-class bounds" – and criticised as having offered those dreams for later exploitation by the Nazis.
Adolf Hitler was an admirer, who noted that the novels "overwhelmed" him as a boy, going as far as to ensure "a noticeable decline" in his school grades. According to an anonymous friend, Hitler attended the lecture given by May in Vienna in March 1912 and was enthusiastic about the event. Ironically, the lecture was an appeal for peace, also heard by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Bertha von Suttner. Claus Roxin doubts the anonymous description, because Hitler had told much about May, but not that he had seen him. Hitler defended May against critics in the men's hostel where he lived in Vienna, as the evidence of May's earlier time in jail had come to light; although it was true, Hitler confessed, that May had never visited the sites of his American adventure stories, this made him a greater writer in Hitler's view since it showed the author's powers of imagination. May died suddenly only ten days after the lecture, leaving the young Hitler deeply upset. Hitler later recommended the books to his generals and had special editions distributed to soldiers at the front, praising Winnetou as an example of "tactical finesse and circumspection", though some note that the latter claims of using the books as military guidance are not substantiated. However, as told by Albert Speer, "when faced by seemingly hopeless situations, he [Hitler] would still reach for these stories," because "they gave him courage like works of philosophy for others or the Bible for elderly people." This influence on the German 'Fuehrer' was later castigated by Klaus Mann, a German writer who accused May of having been a form of 'mentor' for Hitler. In his admiration Hitler ignored May's Christian and humanitarian approach and views completely, not mentioning his – in some novels – relatively sympathetic description of Jews and persons of non-white race. Several novels of Karl May were re-edited in an antisemitic style during the years of Nazism and led to serious misunderstandings about May's original intentions.
The wider influence on the populace also surprised post-WWII occupation troops from the US, who realised that thanks to Karl May, "Cowboys and Indians" were familiar concepts to local children (though fantastic and removed from reality). The new Eastern Germany was less favouring of his work, and officially considered him a "chauvinist" - though this could not break his popularity, and eventually, even the communist state allowed free publication of his books and created its own Karl May museum.
Famous physicist Albert Einstein was a great fan of Karl May's books and is quoted as having said My whole adolescence stood under his sign. Indeed, even today, he has been dear to me in many a desperate hour….
[edit]Number of copies and translations
It is stated that Karl May is the “most read writer of German tongue”. The total number of copies published is about 200 millions, half of this are German copies.
The first translation of May’s work was the first half of the Orient Cycle into French 1881 (just ten years after the French-German War), which was published in Le Monde. Since that time May’s work has been translated into more than thirty languages including Latin, Esperanto and Volapük. In the 1960s the UNESCO stated May being the most translated German writer. Outside the German-speaking area he is most popular in the Czech language area, Hungary and the Netherlands. In France, Great Britain and the USA he is nearly unknown.
List of languages: Afrikaans, Brazilian, Bulgarian, Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English (British), English (American), Esperanto, Finnish, French, Greek, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malay, Modern Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Slovakian, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, Volapük, Yiddish
There are also braille editions and editions read for visually impaired or blind people.
[edit]Adaptations
After Karl May published the whole poem Ave Maria in 1896 at least 19 other persons wrote musical versions. Other poems, especially from the collection Himmelsgedanken were set into music. As present for May Carl Ball wrote “harp clangs” for the drama Babel und Bibel. The Swiss composer Othmar Schoeck made an opera from Der Schatz im Silbersee in the age of eleven. Others wrote music inspired by May’s works (e. g. around Winnetou’s death).
The first stage adaptation was Winnetou by Hermann Dimmler in 1919. Revisions by him and Ludwig Körner were played in the following years. After the Second World War first adaptations were conducted in Austria. In East Germany they started not before 1984. Different novel revisions are played on outdoor stages since the 1940s. The most famous “Karl May Festivals” are held every summer in Bad Segeberg (since 1952) and in Lennestadt-Elspe (since 1958). At both places movie actor Pierre Brice played Winnetou. Another festival is on the rock stage in Rathen, in the Saxon Switzerland near Radebeul (1940, then since 1984). Many other stages in Austria and Germany show or showed plays after Karl May. In 2006 these were 14 stages. May’s own drama Babel und Bibel has not been played on a bigger stage yet.
Main article: Karl May movies
Karl May’s friends Marie Luise Fritsch and her husband Adolf Droop among others founded in cooperation with the Karl May Press the production company “Ustad-Film” (the name refers to May himself in Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen III/IV) in 1920. They produced three silent movies (Auf den Trümmern des Paradieses, Die Todeskarawane and Die Teufelsanbeter) after the Orientcycle in 1920, which are lost. Due to the low success “Ustad-Film” went bankrupt in the following year. The first sound movie Durch die Wüste was shown in 1936. “Die Sklavenkarawane” (1958) and its sequel “Der Löwe von Babylon” (1959) were the first colour movies. Famous is the Karl May movie wave from 1962–1968, which was the one of the most successful German movie series. While most of the 17 movies were Wild West movies (beginning with “Der Schatz im Silbersee”), three were based on the Orientcycle and two on Das Waldröschen. Most of these movies were made separately by the two competitors Horst Wendlandt and Artur Brauner. Following actors played main characters in several movies of the series: Lex Barker (Old Shatterhand, Kara Ben Nemsi, Karl Sternau), Pierre Brice (Winnetou), Stewart Granger (Old Surehand), Milan Sdorč (Old Wabble) and Ralf Wolter (Sam Hawkens, Hadschi Halef Omar, André Hasenpfeffer). The film score by Martin Böttcher has also become famous and together with the landscape of Yugoslavia, where most movies were shot, it participate to the great success of the series. After the series more movies for cinema (“Die Spur führt zum Silbersee”, 1990) or TV (e. g. “Das Buschgespenst”, 1986) and TV-series (e. g. “Kara Ben Nemsi Effendi”, 1973) were produced. Most Karl May movies are far from the original, some even contain nothing more than May’s main figures.
No other German writer has more audio dramas than Karl May, which have a number of about 300. Günther Bibo wrote the first one (Der Schatz im Silbersee) in 1929. A greater wave was during the 1960s. There are also Czech and Danish audio dramas.
After the ending of the term of copyright and with the success of the Karl May movie series of the 1960s the first German comic wave occurred. A second comic wave came during the 1970s. The first and qualitative best German comic was Winnetou (# 1-8) / Karl May (# 9-52) (1963–1965). It was drawn by Helmut Nickel and Harry Ehrt and published by Walter Lehning Verlag. The most comprehensive comic was published by the press Standaard Uitgeverij. This Flemish comic Karl May was drawn by the studio of Williy Vandersteen in 87 issues from 1862–1987. Also in other countries comics were produced: e. g. Czechoslovakia (often reduced to the wild west plot), Denmark, France, Mexico, Spain and Sweden.
In 1988 Der Schatz im Silbersee was read by Gert Westphal and published as audiobook. “Wann sehe ich dich wieder, du lieber, lieber Winnetou?“ (1995) is a compendium of Karl May texts read by Hermann Wiedenroth. Since 1998 different presses (e. g. Karl May Press) have released an increasing number of about 50 audiobooks. Another famous reader is movie actor Peter Sodann.
Karl May and his life were basis for screen adaptations: Freispruch für Old Shatterhand (1965, dir. Hans Heinrich) and Karl May (1974, dir. Hans-Jürgen Syberberg) as well as a 6-episode TV series Karl May (1992, dir. Klaus Überall). There are also novels with or about Karl May, e. g. “Swallow, mein wackerer Mustang” (1980) by Erich Loest, “Vom Wunsch, Indianer zu werden. Wie Franz Kafka Karl May traf und trotzdem nicht in Amerika landete“ (1994) by Peter Henisch, “Old Shatterhand in Moabit” (1994) by Walter Püschel and “Karl May und der Wettermacher” (2001) by Jürgen Heinzerling. A stage adaptation is “Die Taschenuhr des Anderen“ by Willi Olbrich.
[edit]Copies, parodies, and sequels
Already during May’s lifetime he has been copied or parodied. While some just wrote similar wild west stories to participate on his literarily success (e. g. Franz Treller), others even used May’s name to publish their works. Also today novels with May figures are published. In “Hadschi Halef Omar” (2010) Jörg Kastner describes the first contact of the titular character with Kara Ben Nemsi. Franz Kandolf wrote “In Mekka” (1923) a sequel to Am Jenseits, which is official part of Karl May’s Gesammelte Werke as vol. 50. An alternative to Im Reiche des silbernen Löwen III/IV by Heinz Grill (“Die Schatten des Schah-in-Schah”, 2006) has been written in the adventurous style of the first parts. As sequel to Winnetou IV May had planned Winnetous Testament. A series of eight volumes with this title has been written by Jutta Laroche and Reinhard Marheinecke. Other famous writers of sequels are Friederike Chudoba, Otto Emersleben, Thomas Jeier, Edmund Theil and Iris Wörner (Her pseudonym Nscho-tschi refers to Winnetou’s sister).
The 2001 film Der Schuh des Manitu by Michael Herbig is a parody on the Karl May Films of the 1960s and spoof extensively the characters and motives of May's Winnetou trilogy.
[edit]Karl May institutions
[edit]Karl May Foundation
By will May made his second wife Klara to his sole heiress. He conditioned that after her death all of his property and the following earnings of his work should go to a foundation. This foundation should support poor gifted people for their education and help writers, journalists and editors, who had got into straits through no fault of their own. Klara May established the "Karl May Foundation" ("Karl-May-Stiftung") already one year after May’s death on March 5, 1913. Contributions are made since 1917. With contracts of inheritance and wills of Klara May the whole property of both went to the Karl May Foundation. After her conditions the foundation had to establish a Karl May Museum with the Villa “Shatterhand“, the real estates and the collections (foundation of the museum already took place during Klara May’s lifetime) as well as to maintain the tomb. In 1960 the Karl May Foundation leaved the Karl May Press, which belonged to her by two-thirds. Thereby the press got parts of May’s properties.
[edit]Karl May Press
July 1, 1913 Klara May, Friedrich Ernst Fehsenfeld (May’s main publisher) and the jurist Euchar Albrecht Schmid established the “Foundation Press Fehsenfeld & Co.” (“Stiftungs-Verlag Fehsenfeld & Co.“) in Radebeul. In 1915 the name changed into “Karl May Press“ (”Karl-May-Verlag“ = KMV). They ended the civil disputes (e. g. about the colportage novels) and got the rights of works from others presses (e. g the colportage novels and the stories for the youth). Third hand revisions of these texts were added to the series Karl May’s Gesammelte Reiseerzählungen, which was renamed to Karl May’s Gesammelte Werke (und Briefe). The existing 33 volumes of the original series also were (partly radically) revised. Until 1945 there were 65 volumes. The press nearly only publishes works of Karl May and secondary literature. Beside the Gesammelte Werke (the classical “green volumes”), which have 91 volumes today, the press has a huge reprint programme. Other targets of the young press were rehabilitation of May against literary criticism and support of the Karl May Foundation. Since the contractual quitting of Fehsenfeld in 1921 and the separation from the Karl May Foundation (as Klara May’s heir) in 1960 the press lies in hands of the Schmid family. Due to the attitudes of the authorities of the Soviet occupation zone and East Germany towards May (his works should not be printed) the press moved to Bamberg (West Germany) in 1959. After the German reunification the press has a second place of residence in Radebeul since 1996. When in 1963 the term of copyright ended the press lost its monopoly. The press started a commercialisation of May. The name “Karl May” is registered trade mark of the “Karl May Verwaltungs- und Vertriebs-GmbH”, which belongs to the Karl May Press.
[edit]Museums
[edit]Radebeul
Villa Bärenfett
The “Karl May Museum” in Radebeul started December 1, 1828 in “Villa Bear Fat” (Villa Bärenfett) as museum about history and life of Native Americans. This villa was build as log house in the garden of Villa “Shatterhand” after ideas of the widely travelled artist Patty Frank (Ernst Tobis). Karl May’s collection about Native Americans, which was added by Klara May, and the whole collection of Patty Frank were joined, therefore Frank became the first curator and got life estate in “Villa Bear Fat”. During the time of the GDR the museum was renamed “Native Americans Museum of the Karl May Foundation” in 1956 and Karl May related exhibits were removed in 1962.
After rethinking of the GDR authorities the museum got its former name back and the street even was renamed “Karl May Street” in 1984. While “Villa Bear Fat” further on contains the exhibition about Native Americans, where the fireplace room today is used for events, Villa “Shatterhand” shows an exhibition about Karl May since 1985. Beside the library, which can be used for research, the work room and parlour (so called “Sascha Schneider Room”) are originally arranged. Among others the replicas of the “famous guns” and a bust of Winnetou are shown. Opposite to Villa “Shatterhand” May’s fruit garden has become the “Karl May Grove” (“Karl-May-Hain”).
[edit]Hohenstein-Ernstthal
The “Karl May House” (“Karl-May-Haus”) is the about 300 year old weaver house, where May was born. During the May renaissance in the GDR it has become a memorial and museum since March 12, 1985. Beside the permanent exhibition about May’s life rebuild rooms like a weaver chamber and non-German book editions are shown. The garden has been arranged according to May’s description in his biography. Opposite the house lays the “International Karl May Heritage Center” (“Karl-May-Begegnungsstätte”), which is used for events and special exhibitions. In Hohenstein-Ernstthal, which is called “Karl May Home Town” since 1992, every May related place has a commemorative plaque. These places are connected by a “Karl May Path” (“Karl-May-Wanderweg”). Outside the city lays the “Karl May Cave” (“Karl-May-Höhle”), where May found shelter during his criminal time.
[edit]Societies
Some associations have been founded during Karl May’s lifetime, e. g. “Karl May Clubs” in the 1890s. Today, various work groups, societies, and clubs are devoting their activities to Karl May's life and work, and organize related events. While early associations often understood their role as rendering homage to the writer or defending him against critics, they focus today more on research. Most societies are in German-speaking areas (e. g. booster clubs of the museums), but some can also be found in the Netherlands, Australia and Indonesia. While the societies are responsible for the release of most Karl May-related periodicals (e. g Der Beobachter an der Elbe, Karl-May-Haus Information, Wiener Karl-May-Brief, Karl May in Leipzig), the magazine Karl May & Co. is published independently.
The “Karl May Society” (“Karl May Gesellschaft e.V.” = KMG) is the largest society with approximately 1800 members. The KMG was founded on March 22, 1969. One of its main objectives is to conduct research on Karl May’s life and work and to promote his recognition in the official history of literature and the general public. Among the various publications of the society are the Jahrbuch, the Mitteilungen, the Sonderhefte der Karl-May-Gesellschaft, and the KMG-Nachrichten as well as a huge reprint programmme. Since 2008 and in cooperation with the Karl May Foundation and the Karl May Press, the KMG publishes the critical edition of “Karl Mays Werke”. This project had been initiated by Hans Wollschläger and Hermann Wiedenroth in 1987. After initial disruptions and changes also regarding the printing the project is now conceptualized to more than 99 volumes.