FRANZ WERFEL. - German writer, born in Prague to a Jewish family on 10 September 1890, died in Beverly Hills (California) on 27 August 1945.
He made his debut at a very young age with collections of poetry, such as *Weltfreund* (1911), *Wir sind* (1912), *Einander* (1914), which, in an intellectual search for spiritual values, generally reflect the expressionist environment and the atmosphere of taste of Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Even his first novel *Nicht der Mörder, sondern der Ermordete ist schuldig* reveals the same influences. His plays *Spiegelmensch* (1912), which is a magical trilogy, and *Paulus unter den Juden* (1926), which is rather a dramatic legend, are lyrical visions rather than true dramas; technically better constructed is *Suarez und Maximilian*, a historical drama written in 1924. But WERFEL found his most personal expression in the novel. In *Verdi, der Roman der Oper* (1923) he polemicizes, albeit subtly, against Wagner; in *Barbara oder die Frömmigkeit* he succeeds in finding sincere and convincing tones in the treatment of a theme dear to him, that of humble, humanly simple and pure faith, in contrast to the perversity of the world. Following these are works inspired by the same ideal: *Der Abituriententag* (1928), *Das Reich Gottes in Böhmen* (1930), *Die Geschwister von Neapel* (1931); but in the novel *Die vierzig Tage des Musa Dagh* (1934), which recounts the epic struggle of a small Armenian community fighting the Turks in the name of their faith, Werfel reached the full maturity of his writing. Of his later works: *Aus der Dämmerung einer Welt* (1936); *Der veruntreute Himmel* (1939); *Das Lied von Bernadette* (1941); *Jakobowsky und der Oberst* (1943); *Stern der Ungeborenen* (1946), *Bernadette* represents the noblest lyrical exaltation of that pure and naive faith, whose call he felt so powerfully.