Karoline von Günderrode (1780-1806) was a dramatist, philosopher, and poet who made distinctive contributions to German romanticism and idealism. Günderrode’s writings come in various forms, such as philosophical fragments and notes, essays, dramas, and poetry. Additionally, her writings draw content from philosophy, world religions and mythologies, ancient languages, and the natural sciences.
The variety of form and content is indicative of Günderrode’s critique of bourgeois society that offered no space for intellectual women and their aspirations. It is also indicative of Günderrode’s syncretism that sought to make philosophy more poetic and poetry more philosophical.
In her writings, Günderrode’s novel approach engaged with fundamental philosophical questions, including the question concerning the “human vocation,” and the related questions of (female) self-determination, autonomy, and cross-cultural understanding. She argued that the human vocation must not be understood in purely human terms but must also consider the larger community of which human beings are part: the earth and all its inhabitants. For Günderrode, human morality is not solely for the achievement of human ends, but also for the realization of the earth’s ends.