Walter Rheiner (18 March 1895 – 12 June 1925; born Walter Heinrich Schnorrenberg in Cologne, Germany) was a writer and poet associated with the German post-expressionists.

Early life

Walter Rheiner was born in Cologne, Germany to his mother Ernestine Schnorrenberg and father. He married Amalie Friederike Schnorrenberg, who he affectionately called 'Fo'. They divorced in 1925. He published poems and prose works throughout his life. His work drew comparisons to contemporaries such as

Georg Trakl Georg Trakl (3 February 1887 – 3 November 1914) was an Austrian poet and the brother of the pianist Grete Trakl. He is considered one of the most important Austrian Expressionists. He is perhaps best known for his poem " Grodek", which he wr ...

and

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It ...

. Rheiner was at his most productive, literarily, from 1916-1920. In his last five years, Rheiner's poetic output decreased. This may be due to factors such as poverty and drug addiction. He fought on the Eastern Front during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. One of Rheiner's most fertile artistic, relationships was with the German expressionist painter

Conrad Felixmüller Conrad Felixmüller (21 May 1897 – 24 March 1977) was a German Expressionism, expressionist painter and printmaker. Born in Dresden as Conrad Felix Müller, he chose Felixmüller as his ''Art-name, nom d'artiste''. Early life and career He a ...

. Through connections due to this relationship, Rheiner's work was able to be published. Felixmüller illustrated Rheiner's novella. Following Rheiner's death, Felixmüller honoured his friend with a well-known portrait, 'Der Tod des Dichters Walter Rheiner'.

Drug Use

Rheiner is often-remembered for his tragic association with substance abuse. This is exemplified in his major prose work ''Kokain'' (cocaine). ''Kokain'' was written in the summer of 1918 and serves as a typical example of, an autobiographical theme running through Rheiner's work. He became addicted to

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...

in 1915. He used

morphine Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a pain medication, and is also commonly used recreationally, or to make other illicit opioids. T ...

heavily. This led to his demise in 1925.

Publications

*''Kokain'', novella, 1918. *''Das schmerzliche Meer'', poems, 1918. *''Der bunte Tag'' poems, 1919.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rheiner, Walter 1895 births Writers from Cologne 1925 deaths German poets