''Siebenkäs'' (Sevencheese) is a

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Romantic novel by

Jean Paul Jean Paul (; born Johann Paul Friedrich Richter, 21 March 1763 – 14 November 1825) was a German Romantic writer, best known for his humorous novels and stories. Life and work Jean Paul was born at Wunsiedel, in the Fichtelgebirge mountain ...

, published in

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in three volumes between 1796 and 1797. The novel's full title is ''Blumen-, Frucht- und Dornenstücke oder Ehestand, Tod und Hochzeit des Armenadvokaten F. St. Siebenkäs im Reichsmarktflecken Kuhschnappel'' — "Flower, Fruit, and Thorn Pieces; or, the Married Life, Death, and Wedding of the

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F. St. Siebenkäs in Reichsmarktflecken, ." However, the book is most commonly known simply as ''Siebenkäs''.

Plot

As the title suggests, the story concerns the life of Firmian Stanislaus Siebenkäs and is told in a comedic style. Unhappily married, Siebenkäs goes to consult his friend, Leibgeber (Bodygiver), who, in reality, is his

alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...

, or

Doppelgänger A doppelgänger (), a compound noun formed by combining the two nouns (double) and (walker or goer) (), doppelgaenger or doppelganger is a biologically unrelated look-alike, or a double, of a living person. In fiction and mythology, a doppelg ...

. Leibgeber convinces Siebenkäs to fake his own death, in order to begin a new life. Siebenkäs takes the advice of his alter ego, and soon meets the beautiful Natalie. The two fall in love; hence, the "wedding after death" noted in the title.

Trivia

Siebenkäs is the first novel in which a lookalike is described as a "

." It is a word of Jean Paul's own invention (originally spelled as "Doppeltgänger"). The sudden meeting of satire (in Jean Paul's description of life in a little town) and touching moments (in his poignant drawing of Siebenkäs' psychological pains), moves the reader to want to know about philosophical honesty as well as comfort of soul. The inconsistency and being torn apart of Siebenkäs is programatic, and still today a sign of sensitivities of bourgeois individuals. own translation from: https://www.getabstract.com/de/zusammenfassung/siebenkaes/6830

References

External links

''Siebenkäs''
at Projekt Gutenberg-DE (in German)
''Siebenkäs''
at

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(English translation of Volume 2)
''Siebenkäs''
at the Internet Archive 1796 novels 1797 novels 1790s fantasy novels 18th-century German novels Novels by Jean Paul {{18thC-novel-stub