Europe's anthem and its meaning
The article presents research on the anthem of the Europe. The author investigates its origins, argues about other possible variants for the Europe’s anthem, and provides critical analysys of the meaning, functions and prospects of the Ode to Joy.
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| Дата: | 2011 |
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Інститут філософії імені Г.С. Сковороди НАН України
2011
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| Назва видання: | Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія |
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| Цитувати: | Europe's anthem and its meaning / M. Januszewska-Warych // Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія: Зб. наук. пр. — Суми: ДВНЗ "УАБС НБУ", 2011. — № 2(2). — Бібліогр.: 7 назв. — англ. |
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irk-123456789-395382012-12-20T12:21:36Z Europe's anthem and its meaning Januszewska-Warych, M. Філософія The article presents research on the anthem of the Europe. The author investigates its origins, argues about other possible variants for the Europe’s anthem, and provides critical analysys of the meaning, functions and prospects of the Ode to Joy. У статті проводиться дослідження про гімн Європи. Автор розглядає історію виникнення гімну, його інші можливі варіанти та наводить критичний аналіз значення, функцій та перспектив існування Оди до Радості. 2011 Article Europe's anthem and its meaning / M. Januszewska-Warych // Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія: Зб. наук. пр. — Суми: ДВНЗ "УАБС НБУ", 2011. — № 2(2). — Бібліогр.: 7 назв. — англ. XXXX-0108 http://dspace.nbuv.gov.ua/handle/123456789/39538 342.228.5(4) en Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія Інститут філософії імені Г.С. Сковороди НАН України |
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Філософія Філософія Januszewska-Warych, M. Europe's anthem and its meaning Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія |
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The article presents research on the anthem of the Europe. The author investigates its origins, argues about other possible variants for the Europe’s anthem, and provides critical analysys of the meaning, functions and prospects of the Ode to Joy. |
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Januszewska-Warych, M. |
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Januszewska-Warych, M. |
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Europe's anthem and its meaning |
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Europe's anthem and its meaning |
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Europe's anthem and its meaning |
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Europe's anthem and its meaning |
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Europe's anthem and its meaning |
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europe's anthem and its meaning |
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Інститут філософії імені Г.С. Сковороди НАН України |
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2011 |
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Філософія |
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http://dspace.nbuv.gov.ua/handle/123456789/39538 |
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Europe's anthem and its meaning / M. Januszewska-Warych // Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія: Зб. наук. пр. — Суми: ДВНЗ "УАБС НБУ", 2011. — № 2(2). — Бібліогр.: 7 назв. — англ. |
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Світогляд - Філософія - Релігія |
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AT januszewskawarychm europesanthemanditsmeaning |
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1836662944076660736 |
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УДК 342.228.5(4)
Maria JANUSZEWSKA-WARYCH
EUROPE’S ANTHEM AND ITS MEANING
The article presents research on the anthem of the Europe. The author investigates its origins,
argues about other possible variants for the Europe’s anthem, and provides critical analysys of the
meaning, functions and prospects of the Ode to Joy.
Keywords: anthem, Europe, Ode to Joy, Romanticism, Bethoven.
Problem Statement. Since the first structure of the Union’s community
emerged, every next step of its development cause arguments and numerous
controversies. Nonetheless, before Ode to Joy was announced as the Europe’s
anthem, discussion concerning that concept was rather peaceful. Perhaps it was the
effect of the fact that the discussion was made without wider participation of the
most interested – the Europe’s nations. It took long to compose the Europe’s
symbols, starting from the flag, through announcing the Europe’s Day, ending with
the anthem. Questions arise what motives preceded this decision and what are the
consequences?
What values were taken into account by announcing the Ode as the
Europe’s anthem, important for nations of our continent? What were the
decision-makers counting for? And why did they succeed, because they really
succeeded, as the Ode has already firmed place in European political culture.
Previous research. The problem of the Europe’s anthem was previously
partialy described by such scientists as C. Clark, F. Boedeltje, G. Lewis, I.
Berlin, Einstein A. and others. Nevertheles this issue was not enough
highlighted and demands further research.
The aim of the paper is to investigate origins of the Europe’s anthem, to
provide arguments about other possible its variants, and to provide critical analysys
of the meaning, functions and prospects of the Ode to Joy.
Main body. The Ode was a child of cultural epoch distant in its features from
the contemporary one. It was effect of pre-Romanticism, simultaneously
stimulating romantic creation, with preference of ideals and values specific for the
epoch. Does present-day in the cultural sphere live up to the romantic epoch?
Creation of romantic artists not only contributed to new values in cultural life, but
also was opposition to cold culture of the Enlightenment Age. In today’s world
the Enlightenment’s mechanism is alive. Progress and development would not be
possible without that. But this situation forces to make alternative choice and
abandon one or the other tradition.
Romantics were opened to values of former cultures, i.e. antique, but also to
the beauty of the medieval culture which was standing point for the
Enlightenment’s ideas. Does postmodernism with its continuous negation of values
of the previous humanistic experience and the entire thought and art inherits
romantic method or is it Romanticism’s caricature? And if – as I think – it is so,
©
Maria Januszewska-Warych, 2012
this postmodernist separation from creative achievements of predecessors makes
postmodernists unable to relate to the Ode in general, and to Ode as anthem of all
Europeans and for all Europeans.
Formally Romanticism is described as ideological and cultural trend, in the
time 1789–1848, i.e. from the French Revolution to the Spring of Nations. Polish
Romanticism is different in the time of later beginning, i.e. in 1822 (Adam
Mickiewicz’s Ballads and Romances) and later end – the January Uprising 1863–
1864. S. Jarociński writes – and he is not the only one – that … Romanticism, in
selected spheres of cultural actions of nations lasts to present-day [4, s. 6]. It is
much harder to determine the essence of Romanticism than the essence of the
Enlightenment. S. Jarociński, referring to W. Tatarkiewicz, writes that the
phenomenon of Romanticism is not easy to define precisely, because it is too …
diversified, elusive, indefinite [4, s. 5]. Next, in practice, we may assume that in
social scale it is artistic and intellectual trend, dominating in the 19
th
century, and
in the individual scale it is expressed in idealistic attitude to life, which is contrary to
realistic attitude promoted by pragmatics [4, s. 5]. Political background of
Romanticism is diversified and has different dimensions – revolutionary, integration,
independence. The last one was specific for Polish Romanticism, in which
Messianic and soteriological aspect were present in vision of regenerated Poland
and its role in world because Poland was to be the … Christ of nations Andrzej
Walicki perceives … Mickiewicz’s Messianism as one of many romantic
attempts to point Poland’s way to national and religious regeneration, and which
could be different from secularization and traditional Catholicism with traditional
Polishness [7, s. 9].
Romantic artists, contrary to the Enlightenment ones, turned to new areas of
interest and points of reference – culture of the East, folk culture, tradition. They
rediscovered artistic values of medieval ages and the irrational – just like radical
negation of rationalism – myth, fairytale and religion in Messianic interpretation. It
was definitely new horizon of creative inspiration. Abandoning the primacy of
reason, science and knowledge resulted in primacy of emotion with its wide range,
impulsive and intuitional – love, hate, suffer, joy, sacrifice, usually those expression
that go beyond shallowness of stabilized every day.
Seeking the closeness between content of culture and ideas of the
Romanticism Age and the time when L. Beethoven’s works were made a symbol
of united Europe, it is necessary to turn to values recognized by the European
predecessors of present-day as the most important ones. Those values were
opposed to that priced in the 18
th
century. Among those are values important for
individual and those important for society – values embedded in slogans of
revolution of 1789 (freedom, equality, brotherhood) and values directly connected
with artistic work and creator – beauty, intuition, spontaneity, honesty, creative
freedom, tolerance.
The main assumption of Romanticism was synthesis of arts. Implementation
of this was, amongst others, Ode to Joy, work that in the beginning was a poem,
but shortly after its announcement became inspiration for L. Beethoven to find
musical form of expression ideas of the Ode.
Usually when talking about the hierarchy of arts, music is situated at the top.
With reference to A.W. Schlegel, Goethe, Novalis and other authorities of that
time, Alfred Einstein wrote that Like borders between art and religion are
obliterated, between conscious thought and poetic imagination, the same is with
lines dividing individual arts. […] music always is the end and final effect. […] all
of them [the authorities mentioned above] point to supremacy of instrumental music
because it cannot transfer any real terms, because of its indeterminacy, but music is
the art of sub-consciousness. In the end the sense of music stays in junction with
pantheism [2, s. 471].
After those general remarks we must assume that Beethoven’s work, based on
the philosophical Ode to Joy written by F. Schiller contains group of values that
are objective grounds for choosing this work as possible to be accepted by
everyone in Europe as standing point.
The importance of Beethoven in count of great composers of all time is
unquestionable. How great composer he was, also in opinion of other artists almost
as great as he, proves opinion of R. Wagner. On the occasion of the centennial
anniversary of Beethoven’s birth Wagner published study where he… incorporated
Beethoven into count of saints, because contrary to Haydn and Mozart, Beethoven
“released” music: … he was himself unable to be servant of luxury, but he also felt
the necessity to release his own music from every sign of submission to frivolous
taste [2, s. 118].
In the 20
th
century Isaiah Berlin described Beethoven in a way that needs to
be thoroughly cited. The person – he said during his lectures – whose picture is
dominating in the 19
th
century is character of torn and messy Beethoven, sitting
on his attic. Beethoven is a man who makes real what flows from inside. He is poor,
crude, he is gruff. His manners are awful, he does not know much and he is perhaps
character not very interesting, if inspiration is not taken into account that pushes
him forward. But Beethoven did not sell himself. He is sitting on his attic and works.
He works in harmony with world, that burns inside him, and this is all what human
being should do: this makes human a hero. […] he was gifted with the most heroic,
resulting from sacrifice, traits that human can be [1, s. 37].
In Beethoven’s biographies, authors underline, that when he was a young
man, just 20-years-old, he was so fascinated with Schiller’s poem, that he wanted
to compose music to the Ode. But because of other compositions of symphonies,
he temporarily resigned. However simultaneously in his other works motives
specific for the 9
th
symphony were present.
Finally, the Ode – prelude to the 9
th
symphony, was recognized as anthem by
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe at 8
th
July 1971 and Herbert
Karajan was asked to elaborate on instrumental version for symphonic orchestra,
wind-instruments and piano. But Schiller’s text was abandoned as too idealistic,
saying about people who become brothers. Texts of the Ode to Joy – in views of
Europe’s authorities – concerns general human values, not the European ones,
moreover there could be difficulties in playing the anthem in so many national
languages. Few years later, in 1985, during meeting of Presidents and Prime
Ministers of many countries a decision was made to recognize the anthem of the
Council of Europe as official anthem of the European Union.
Currently the function of the Ode is changing by sociological reasons,
because the Union’s societies’ expectations are changing but not for the anthem
itself or the EU but for the history that is to happen and which brings more anxiety
than hope. Content of the poem must remind of general values embedded in
Schiller’s work. Those values should still be respected not only in rhetoric, but also
in actions, practice.
During my correspondence via Internet with Wiktor Iwanowicz Garadża,
member of the Russian Educational Academy in Moscow and Professor of the
Łomonosow University in Moscow, I received a letter, where he commented on the
idea of a paper discussing the meaning of the Ode to Joy as the European anthem.
Among other he wrote:
Choosing the Ode to Joy as the anthem is a good reason for turning back to
the 1950’s, to post-war period and compare hopes of that time with present-day. I
think that shortly after the war people understood that Europe has gone through not
only economic but also political catastrophe. But anxiety arose that moral basis of
the European civilization has been destroyed. People wanted peace and normal
life but new post-war conflict broke out and the “cold war” started. People
expected optimistic look for the future, there was hope for unity and overcoming
former hostility. The European organization for economic co-operation needed
cultural signposts. Perhaps choice the Ode, work of two Germans, was a symbol of
the fact, that uniting Europe should leave behind hostility and that Europe has
common base – cultural heritage as a way of changes? And music was always a key
factor in changing the way of viewing the world. General cultural (and
philosophical) context of post-war Europe is interesting, incorporating the
meaning and place of music. I write this because the idea of the paper should be
put into practice and important and interesting problems should be discussed. [text
of that letter in author’s own archive – MJW] Coming back to present functions of
the Ode as an anthem in systemically globalized world it seems that the content (it is
being brought to many presentations of the anthem) creates illusion of reaching
values that are less and less real to reach in capitalistic world. This world seems to
achieve new phase dominated not by progress but rather degeneration, that usually
reveals in swirl in value system recognized by societies, and politicians as well.
Is the 9
th
symphony to old? And does public life agree with values promoted
by Romanticism? The symphony is rather getting younger, partly owing to wide
popularization of it as a symbol of Europe. But does it suit to culture of
contemporary societies, where middle-class is dominating? Societies are very
differentiated. The Western ones, … based on rational bounds and cold
calculation and those Eastern ones, communities based on … emotional and
irrational bounds. Paweł Kubicki referring to luminaries of sociology divides
societies into opened and closed, that could be described as … lacking rational
political debate, where state is strongly interventional, were thinking in
categories of authority dogmas, xenophobia, lack of autotelic relations is
dominating, and especially lack of sound competition of place in social
structure. He argues that history shaped Polish society … rather as closed
model [5, s. 7–8]. Rationalism and cold calculation are features of the
Enlightenment culture In Polish journalism there are many voices in favour of
Polish society as rational and of enlightenment community. Many regret that …
some ideas were eliminated from culture, ideas which were based on working
civil society that in Poland was called positivist, Enlightenment, sometimes liberal
conservatism [6].
Romantic origin of the Ode is not close to that ideal. It seems to be closer to
those who prefer emotional basis for social bounds, as well as religion, national
idea and local xenophobia. It is not far away from values preferred by many
romantics.
As an anthem the Ode was recognized in the time when in European
community were Western states, with societies oriented at rational and
Enlightenment ideas. Why then the Ode was perceived in those societies as factual
or even warm? Perhaps because the idea of building the Great European
Community, motivated rationally, is in fact dreamy, romantic, visionary.
Including the Ode to this vision, as some kind of logo of the project, has logic
grounds. Romanticism ended formally after the Spring of Nations but in reality it
lasts. Outstanding philosopher and cultural anthropologist, Isaiah Berlin, was
saying during his lectures, that … Romanticism is interesting not only as historical
phenomenon. Many contemporary phenomena – nationalism, existentialism,
admiring great people, admiring non-personal institutions, democracy,
totalitarianism – are influenced by Romanticism. Romanticism infiltrate them all
[1, s. 12].
The Ode lost its confrontational function, when the utopia of building
communist society collapsed. Degradation of structures of so called Eastern
sodrużestwo does not mean wiping from human memory what many members of
Eastern Europe’s societies claimed true, i.e. existential values, and erasing
animosity or even hostility for those charged with fault for suffered harm.
European symbols, if it really assumes the openness to the whole continental
Europe, cannot preserve things that should be eliminated from nations’ life. The
Ode in its double role has a chance to some, small perhaps degree, break
prejudices in new system of international relations through adaptation of different
social groups into artistic culture.
The Ode is work of two Germans, but Polish trauma to Germans, as a result of
history, strengthened so much during the World War II and Hitler’s occupation are
not transferred to the German culture. Appreciation for the Ode’s creators does
not mean transferring appreciation to all Germans, but at least it gives rise to
recognition of the German culture.
What scale of influence of the Ode to Joy on people’s behavior and their way
of thinking is to be foreseen? According to view of K. Guczalska concerning
formative issues of art, the influence would probably be small. Guczalska states that
In modern world art is no longer a place where reconciliation of human being with
social reality is possible, as well as abolition of aporia of the epoch and funding
freedom in state. The modern art does not release humans from inevitable conflicts
with ethical reality and does not fund harmonic co-existence of citizens with the
state [3].
Tragedy of growing social stratification, defiant pride of the richest, anger of the
marginalized, create great dissonance to ideals of the Ode to Joy. Difference in
income growing every year, and following difference in life quality, makes major
gaps in social structures. Tabloids, television, popularize sophisticated forms of
strange luxury in everyday living of many richest, and become ground of social
rebel. Because of that many may find inspiration in Schiller’s works but not in the
Ode, rather in the earlier The Robbers…
Conclusions. Music provides esthetical experience, but music reflecting reality,
as in Beethoven’s works, shapes moral attitudes and release different behavior. Music
of the Romanticism epoch is still present, but overwhelmed by new styles, means of
expression, trends which lose tradition of Romanticism or re-shape it into parody
of old-time romantic values e.g. in Satanic music. The European Union
recognized the Ode to Joy as anthem. Will European leaders step further and
prepare effective promotion of art, specially music, which can bring into European
culture climate close to that left by music composed by romantic creators? Some
actions are taken but there is some anxiety that even the highest engagement in it,
in collision with crisis of social co-existence may result in depreciation of high
values, specific for the music and make it powerless.
References
1. Berlin I. Korzenie romantyzmu. Wykłady Mellonowskie w zakresie sztuk pięknych,
wygłoszone / I. Berlin // Narodowej Galerii Sztuki w Waszyngtonie / red. H. Hardy. – Poznań,
2004. – S. 12–37.
2. Einstein A. Muzyka w epoce romantyzmu / przekład M. i S. Jarocinscy / A. Einstein. – Kraków,
1964. – S. 118–471.
3. Guczalska K. Rewolucja estetyczna. Schiller i Hegel / K. Guczalska // http://www.
guczalska.pl/teksty/rewolucja_estetyczna.html
4. Jarociński S. Ideologie romantyczne / S. Jarociński. – Kraków, 1979. – S. 5–6.
5. Kubicki P. Nowi mieszczanie w nowej Polsce / P. Kubicki. Raport, wyd. internetowe, Instytut
Obywatelski. – S. 7–8.
6. Łagowski B. Polska wzorem? / B. Łagowski. – Przegląd z 21.08.2011 r.
7. Walicki A. Mesjanizm Adama Mickiewicza w perspektywie porównawczej / A. Walicki.
– Warszawa, 2006. – S. 9.
Отримано 01.02.2012
Анотація
Янушевська-Варіх Марія. Гімн Європи та його значення.
У статті проводиться дослідження про гімн Європи. Автор розглядає історію
виникнення гімну, його інші можливі варіанти та наводить критичний аналіз
значення, функцій та перспектив існування Оди до Радості.
Ключові слова: гімн, Європа, Ода до Радості, романтизм, Бетховен.
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