Geibel, Emanuel von

views updated

Emanuel von Geibel (āmä´nōōĕl fən gī´bəl), 1815–84, German poet. Although at first a revolutionary poet, he gradually became more conservative, reflecting the growing German nationalistic spirit. His poems (1840, 1857, tr. of selections from both volumes 1864), which aimed at formal perfection rather than profundity of thought, were very popular, although not particularly original. His dramas include Brunhild (1858, tr. 1879) and Sophonisba (1869).