The Book of Hours

Rilke, Rainer Maria, 1875-1926Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.6

Word count: 103K words
Chapters: 11

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Das Stunden-Buch by Rainer Maria RilkeAuthor: Rilke, Rainer Maria, 1875-1926,Language: German, Class: PT: Language and Literatures: Germanic, Scandinavian, and Icelandic literatures, Release Date: Jan 15, 2008

Editor's review

Das Stunden-Buch (The Book of Hours) is a major early poetry collection by Rilke. The German original is freely available from Project Gutenberg as a public-domain ebook. The book consists of three poetic sections spoken in the voice of a pray-er, meditating on God, faith, art, and life. Its language is highly musical and its imagery profound, making it an important bridge for understanding Rilke's development from lyric poet to the intellectual depth of the Duino Elegies. This edition presents the original German text and is suited to readers who wish to encounter the texture of Rilke's poetic language directly, especially those who can read slowly and recite repeatedly in a quiet setting. For readers studying German literature or researching early twentieth-century European poetry, this work offers a valuable text for observing the evolution of Rilke's religious and aesthetic ideas. The electronic edition is convenient for searching and comparative reading, but lacks translation notes and an introduction, requiring some ability to read German and patience for poetry appreciation.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers with intermediate to advanced German reading ability who wish to savor Rilke's original poetry directly
Students and researchers of German literature or early twentieth-century European poetry
Readers interested in religious poetry, prayer-form poetry, and mystical literature
Poetry lovers who enjoy slow reading, repeated recitation of short poems, and keeping reading notes

Not a good fit for

General readers with no German who wish to read a Chinese translation
Readers expecting plot-driven narrative or a novel-like reading experience
Beginners who need detailed notes, introductions, and background analysis

Reading tips

Read through once to feel the overall rhythm and tone; do not look up every word. Then read closely a second time, focusing on difficult German passages.
Read in the order of the three sections. Pause briefly after each section and record the images and lines that leave the deepest impression.
You may consult an early Rilke biography or introductory materials on German poetry to understand the writing background, then return and reread.
Read only a small number of poems each day and read them aloud to appreciate the sound and prayer-like tone of German poetry.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book in German or English?

According to the information, the book's language is German. It is the original German electronic text of Rilke's Das Stunden-Buch. Readers need some ability to read German poetry before starting; the book provides no Chinese or English parallel translation.

Does this edition include notes or an introduction?

The information indicates that this is a public-domain ebook released by Project Gutenberg, mainly providing the original text; no notes, introduction, or translator's remarks are mentioned. For background analysis, consult separate Rilke research materials or an annotated print edition.

Is Das Stunden-Buch suitable for readers new to Rilke?

It is an important early poetry collection by Rilke, and its language is more lyrical and prayer-like than his later works. However, because it is the original German text without notes, it poses some difficulty for complete beginners. It is better suited to readers who have already encountered Chinese translations of Rilke and wish to go further into the original.

Related on WeRead

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Rilke, Rainer Maria, 1875-1926 Author

Rilke, Rainer Maria (1875–1926) is one of the most influential poets in German-language literature. Publicly available information is limited, and details of his life should not be overstated. Judging from the thirteen works held in the collection, his writing spans poetry, prose and essays on art: Neue Gedichte and its sequel Der Neuen Gedichte: Anderer Teil are known for their distilled imagery and the "thing poem" approach, drawing existential experience from concrete objects; Das Stunden-Buch and Das Marien-Leben show a strong religious and meditative character; Die Aufzeichnungen des Malte Laurids Brigge portrays urban loneliness and perception through fragmentary narration; and Auguste Rodin reflects his close observation of the visual arts. His delicate, symbolic language has had a lasting influence on modern poetry in Chinese and on the German poetic tradition.