Johan Andreas Dèr Mouw (24 July 1863 – 8 July 1919) was a Dutch poet and philosopher. During Dèr Mouw's life only some of his poems were published in literary journals.

Life and career

Dèr Mouw was born in

Westervoort Westervoort () is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. The town has two rivers inside its borders, the Rhine and the IJssel. It is a commuter town closely linked to Arnhem, the capital of Gelderland, which is situated on the west b ...

. His father Jacob Cornelis der Mouw (orig. Dermauw) was for a short period insurance agent and bookseller; his mother Anna Elisabeth Zillinger was director of a school in

Deventer Deventer (; Sallands: ) is a city and municipality in the Salland historical region of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands. In 2020, Deventer had a population of 100,913. The city is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, bu ...

. Dèr Mouw attended the Gymnasium (grammar school) in Deventer and studied at

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...

from 1883 up to 1887, where he took up Greek, Latin, Sanskrit and philosophy. After graduating, Dèr Mouw got a job as teacher at the Gymnasium in

Doetinchem Doetinchem (; Low Saxon: ) is a city and municipality in the east of the Netherlands. It is situated along the Oude IJssel (Old IJssel) river in a part of the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek. The municipality had a population of in ...

. He defended his doctoral dissertation (''Quomodo Antiqui Naturam mirati sunt?'') at Leiden University in 1890. In 1893 Dèr Mouw married Hendrika van Enst. Their stepdaughter Teuntje Vink was later renamed Hetty der Mouw. Dèr Mouw's companionship with the son of the headmaster of the Gymnasium in Doetinchem led to a conflict. He was sued and convicted for insulting the headmaster. (His attorney was

Pieter Jelles Troelstra Pieter Jelles Troelstra (20 April 1860 – 12 May 1930) was a Dutch lawyer, journalist and politician active in the socialist workers' movement. He is most remembered for his fight for universal suffrage and his failed call for revolution at the ...

). In the course of the scandal Dèr Mouw tried to commit suicide. Afterwards, Dèr Mouw moved to

Rijswijk Rijswijk (), formerly known as Ryswick ( ) in English, is a city and municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. Its population was in , and it has an area of , of which is water. The municipality also includes th ...

in 1904, and later to

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

, where he supported his family by giving private tuition. He devoted the rest of his life to writing poetry and studying philosophy. He published two books on philosophy, with special attention to

Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (; ; 27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a German philosopher. He is one of the most important figures in German idealism and one of the founding figures of modern Western philosophy. His influence extends a ...

Poetry

The poetry of Dèr Mouw is special, because he manages to express his mystical view on the world in clear words, that have a down-to-earth appeal. This can be seen in one of his most famous poems: ''I'm Brahman. But we are without a maid''. Dèr Mouw published some of his poems in literary magazines, and was immediately recognised as an important poet by writers like

Frederik van Eeden Frederik Willem van Eeden (3 April 1860, Haarlem – 16 June 1932, Bussum) was a late 19th-century and early 20th-century Dutch writer and psychiatrist. He was a leading member of the Tachtigers and the Significs Group, and had top billing a ...

and

Albert Verwey Albert Verwey (May 15, 1865 – March 8, 1937) was a Dutch poet belonging to the " Movement of Eighty". As a translator, staffer, and literary historian he played an important role in the literary life of The Netherlands in the late 19th and ...

. Poets like P.C. Boutens and J.H. Leopold shared his interest for eastern mysticism. Dèr Mouw's didn't live to see his first book, ''Brahman I'', come to light. It was published within a few weeks after his death, in July 1919. Letters and manuscripts of J.A. Dèr Mouw are being kept in the Nederlands Letterkundig Museum in The Hague. DerMouwDoetinchem.jpg, Johan Andreas Dèr Mouw DerMouwBrahman.jpg, Manuscript DerMouwHetty.jpg, Dèr Mouw & his foster-daughter Hetty

Publications (selection)

* J.A. Dèr Mouw: ''Verzamelde Werken'' (vol. 1-6). (Ed. by Victor van Vriesland). Amsterdam, G.A. van Oorschot, 1947-1949 * (in Latin) J.A. Dèr Mouw: ''Quomodo Antiqui Naturam mirati sunt?'' Daventriae, Kreunen, 1890 * J.A. Dèr Mouw: ''I'm Brahman. 15 sonnets''. (Transl.: Paul Claes). Sonnega, Regulieren Uitgeverij, 1999 * Two translations by Tanis Guest, in: 'I'll Call You God, You Powers’ Fifteen Poems Selected by Jozef Deleu' In: ''The Low Countries'', vol. 10 (2002) & in: 'Solid and Volatile Twelve Poems Selected by Jozef Deleu' In: ''The Low Countries''. vol. 11 (2003). (Resp.: I'm a Brahmin & Dull violet is the west (both transl. by Tanis Guest) * Johan Andreas dèr Mouw : ''Zes gedichten / Six poems''. Transl. into English by John Irons. Bredevoort, Poëziecentrum Nederland & Dèr Mouwgenootschap, 2013. No ISBN

External links

*
Information & publications at dbnl.org
*
''Adwaita''
Dèr Mouw's poetry (Project Laurens Jz Coster)
''Full of God and tiny pancakes. Sixteen poems by J.A. dèr Mouw'', translated by John Irons. Nederlands Letterfonds Amsterdam, 2015. No ISBN. Online version

{{DEFAULTSORT:DerMouw, Johan Andreas 1863 births 1919 deaths Dutch male poets 20th-century Dutch philosophers Dutch literary historians Leiden University alumni Hegelian philosophers 19th-century philosophers People from Westervoort 20th-century Dutch poets 20th-century male writers 19th-century Dutch educators