Johann Gotthelf Lindner (11 September 1729 – 29 March 1776) was a German university teacher and writer at the time of the eighteenth century

Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...

. Johann Gotthelf Lindner was the elder brother to Ehregott Friedrich Lindner, also born in Schmolsin, and to Gottlob Immanuel Lindner (1734–1818), born in the city of Königsberg. He was therefore also an uncle to the journalist-doctor

Friedrich Ludwig Lindner Friedrich Ludwig Lindner (23 October 1772 - 11 May 1845) was a German writer, journalist and physician. Life Family provenance Friedrich Ludwig Lindner was born in Mitau, a prosperous midsized town in Courland (modern day Latvia) which at that t ...

(1772–1845).

Life

Lindner was born in the village of Schmolsin a short distance inland from the north coast of

East Pomerania Eastern Pomerania can refer to distinct parts of Pomerania: *The historical region of Farther Pomerania, which was the eastern part of the Duchy, later Province of Pomerania *The historical region of Pomerelia including Gdańsk Pomerania, located ...

. His father, Georg Friedrich Lindner, was the local protestant minister. He attended the Albertus University of Königsberg, where he studied

protestant theology Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

and

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

, becoming a

Master of Philosophy The Master of Philosophy (MPhil; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. In the United States, an MPhil typically includes a taught portion and a significant research portion, during which a thesis project is conducted under supervision. An MPhil m ...

''"Magister der Philosophie"'' in 1749 or 1750. He was soon giving lessons himself: subjects included the French language, oratory, history, philosophy and mathematics. He also took to exercising his skills as a preacher. He obtained a position as a teacher at the Cathedral School in

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

in 1753, becoming Rector and Inspector at the school in 1755. In 1765 he became a full professor of Poetry (''"Dichtkunst"'') at Königsberg, and in 1766 he became director of the newly re-established German Society (Königsberg). Lindner received a doctorate of theology in 1773 for a 47-page dissertation concerned with poetry in Holy Scripture. In 1775 he became a church and school inspector as well as a protestant minister in the

Löbenicht View of Löbenicht from the Pregel, including its church and gymnasium, as well as the nearby Propsteikirche Löbenicht ( lt, Lyvenikė; pl, Lipnik) was a quarter of central Königsberg, Germany. During the Middle Ages it was the weakest of ...

parish of Königsberg. As director of the German Society Lindner became an important member of Königsberg's close circle of

philosophers. Other members included

Johann Georg Hamann Johann Georg Hamann (; ; 27 August 1730 – 21 June 1788) was a German Lutheran philosopher from Königsberg known as "the Wizard of the North" who was one of the leader figures of post-Kantian philosophy. His work was used by his student J. G. ...

, Theodor Gottlieb von Hippel and

Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (, , ; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and ...

. Lindner was also a member of the "Three Crowns Lodge" (''"Freimaurerloge Zu den drei Kronen"'') of the city's

Freemasons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. Lindner published his poetic writings in various journals including the weekly ''Rigische Anzeiger'' and Königsberg's ''Gelehrte und Politische Zeitung''. He also produced school dramas.

Publications

* Lehrbuch der schönen Wissenschaften, insbesondere der Prosa und Poesie in 2 volumes * Kurzer Inbegriff der Ästhetik , Redekunst und Dichtkunst. 2 volumes, 1771/1772. * De eo, quod est poeticum in Sacra Scriptura. Dissertation 1773, 47 pages. * Abhandlung von der Sprache überhaupt, und insbesondre eines Landes, nebst einer Sammlung einiger Liefländischen Provinzialwörter und Ausdrücke. In: Beitrag zu Schulhandlungen. Königsberg 1762, pp. 207–256.

Life

Publications

References

Further reading