Gustav Meyrink Austrian expressionist writer, playwright, translator and banker Date of Birth: 19.01.1868 Country: Austria

1. Biography of Gustav Meyrink
2. Early Life and Education
3. Life and Work in Prague
4. Banking Career and Family Life
5. Early Works
6. Career and Later Life

Biography of Gustav Meyrink

Gustav Meyrink was an Austrian writer, expressionist, playwright, translator, and banker. He gained worldwide fame with his novel "The Golem," which became one of the first bestsellers of the 20th century. Meyrink, along with Kafka and Perutz, made the literary Prague School famous.

Early Life and Education

Gustav Meyrink was born on January 19, 1868, in Vienna. He was the illegitimate son of state minister Karl Warnbüller von Hemmingen and actress Maria Wilhelmina Adelheid Meyer. In 1919, when Meyrink had already become a famous writer, the Warnbüller family offered him their family name, but Gustav politely declined. Interestingly, on the same day, sixty years earlier, another mystical author, Edgar Allan Poe, was born. Meyrink's role in Austrian literature is similar to Poe's role in American literature.

During his childhood and youth, Meyrink traveled constantly due to his mother's occupation as an actress. He attended various gymnasiums in Munich, Hamburg, and Prague. Literary scholars and biographers believe that Meyrink's mother had a rather cold relationship with him, and the boy grew up without maternal warmth. Some speculate that this is why the author excelled in portraying vampiric and demonic female characters while his positive figures appeared quite flat.

Life and Work in Prague

In 1883, Meyrink moved to Prague, where he lived for twenty years and depicted the city in his works multiple times. Prague not only served as a backdrop for his stories but also played a significant role in his most important novel, "The Angel of the West Window." The city is vividly portrayed through abstract architecture in the novel "The White Dominican." It was in Prague that an event occurred that had a significant impact on his life, which he wrote about in his autobiographical story "The Pilot," published posthumously.

In 1892, when Meyrink was 24 years old and going through a deep spiritual crisis, he decided to take his own life. He stood on a table with a gun in his hand, ready to part with life, when he heard something rustling under the door. He saw a thin booklet with a strange title, "Life After Death," being slipped through the gap. This made a profound impression on him, and he abruptly changed his mind. This mystical coincidence had a great influence on his future. Afterward, Meyrink immersed himself in the study of theosophy, Kabbalah, and Eastern mystical teachings. Until his death, he practiced yoga, which helped him cope with severe back pain. The results of his research are evident in his works, which almost always incorporate occult traditions. However, it should be noted that Meyrink remained an amateur in mysticism. Gershom Scholem, an expert in Jewish mysticism, stated that Meyrink's works were based on superficial sources and had no connection to genuine traditions.

Banking Career and Family Life

In 1889, Meyrink, together with his nephew, the poet Christian Morgenstern, founded a trading bank called "Meyer and Morgenstern," which functioned successfully for some time. While not fully committed to banking, Meyrink led a high society life in Prague. He even engaged in a duel with an officer due to an inappropriate and insulting insinuation about his illegitimacy. In the same important year of 1892, Meyrink married Hedwig Maria Certl, whom he had known since 1896. Despite quickly becoming disillusioned with the marriage, he did not divorce her until 1905 due to his wife's persistence and legal details.

In 1902, Meyrink faced a slanderous accusation of using spiritualism and witchcraft in his banking activities, which led to his arrest and two and a half months in prison. Although his innocence was eventually proven, this incident had a negative impact on all his endeavors, and he was forced to leave his business. His experience in confinement proved useful when writing his novel "The Golem."

Early Works

In the early 1900s, Meyrink began publishing satirical short stories in the magazine "Simplicissimus," using his mother's surname as a pseudonym. These stories already showed his significant interest in mysticism and Eastern religions. During this time, Meyrink closely interacted with the Prague group of neoromantics, including A. Kubin, R. Teschner, R. Lepin, and O. Weiner. In the spring of 1903, his first book, "The Hot Soldier and Other Stories," was published. Around the same time, he moved to Vienna. His new collection of stories, "The Orchid: Strange Tales," was published almost immediately.

Career and Later Life

On May 8, 1905, Meyrink married Philomene Bernt, whom he had known since 1896. With his new wife, they frequently traveled across Europe. In Vienna, Meyrink published the satirical magazine "Der lieber Augustin" while continuing to collaborate with the Prague "Simplicissimus." They had a daughter, Felicitas Sybilla, born on July 16, 1906, and a son, Harro Fortunat, born in Munich in 1908. In the same year, Meyrink's third collection of stories, "Wax Figures," was published. Unable to support his new family solely with his stories, Meyrink had to work as a translator. He became quite prolific in this field, translating five volumes of Charles Dickens' works within five years. He continued to translate until his death, including various occult texts and even the "Book of the Dead."

In 1911, Meyrink and his family moved to the small Bavarian town of Starnberg. In 1913, his book "The Magic Horn of the German Bourgeoisie" was published, which included the best stories from his first three collections, as well as several new ones. In 1915, his most famous novel, "The Golem," was published. The novel tells the legend of a Jewish rabbi who creates a living creature called the Golem from clay and animates it through a Kabbalistic spell. The novel was a huge success, and an unprecedented number of copies were printed. It was soon adapted for the screen twice. In 1916, another collection of stories, "Bats," was published, followed by his second novel, "The Green Face." "The Green Face" sold 40,000 copies, and "The Golem" reached 100,000 copies. In 1917, Meyrink's third novel, "Walpurgis Night," was published.

By 1920, Meyrink's financial situation significantly improved, and he was able to buy a villa in Starnberg. The villa became known as the "House by the Last Lantern," named after the house in "The Golem." Here, Meyrink lived with his family for the next eight years and wrote two more novels, "The White Dominican" and "The Angel of the West Window." In the winter of 1932, Meyrink's son, Fortunat, suffered a severe spinal injury while skiing. As a result, he was destined to spend the rest of his days in a wheelchair. Unable to come to terms with this, on June 12, 1932, at the age of 24, Fortunat took his own life, the same age at which his father had attempted suicide. Meyrink survived his son by only six months. He passed away on December 4, 1932, in Starnberg, Bavaria. Meyrink was buried next to his son's grave in the Starnberg cemetery.