On the afternoon of March 9, 2010, Professor Liu Haoming from Vassar College, America delivered a speech of “From the Individual to History—Friedrich Hölderlin, a Romanticistic Poet and His Times” in Zijingang Int’l Conference Center of ZJU. Professor Fan Jieping, Deputy Secretary General of ZJU and Director of Faculty of Humanities, ZJU chaired the lecture.
Friedrich Hölderlin, a famous Romanticistic poet of Germany, was valued by Germany in the mid 20th century and had his reputation recognized almost 100 years after his death in Europe. In the lecture, Professor Liu first analyzed the reasons for the attraction of Friedrich Hölderlin and his works from historical perspectives. He thought the core lay in the understanding of “Romance”, which did not mean breaking social etiquettes, exercising individual personality and resorting to individual heroic worship, but referred to the maintenance of priori, transcendent and experience knowledge to construct and design history in a spiritual layer after the destruction of traditional myth systems. It was the redefining of “romance” that the value of Friedrich Hölderlin was rediscovered in history.
Professor Liu Haoming, with his novel and up-to-date analysis, opened a door to the understanding of the thoughts of Friedrich Hölderlin. Later, Professor Liu answered questions from the audience. And he also shared with the audience his pursuit of Friedrich Hölderlin and the rationality and practical methods in his research. The two-hour lecture finally ended in a happy atmosphere.
