SOURCE: An introduction to Grillparzer's Aesthetic Theory: A Study with Special Reference to His Conception of the Drama “Eine Gegenrawart,” Akademischer Verlag Hans-Dieter Heinz, 1979, pp. 1-23.

In the following excerpt, Mullan introduces Grillparzer's ideas regarding aesthetic theory, asserting that the dramatist's ideas were based on induction and his study of human psychology, rather than on philosophy.

The Unity of Grillparzer's Aesthetic Theory

Despite his lifelong reflection on aesthetic problems Grillparzer never produced a systematic account of his conclusions. His one and only half-hearted attempt to do so in 1820-21¹ did no more than touch on the fringes of the subject and was in any case very quickly abandoned. His ideas therefore remained in a fragmentary form to the end of his days, widely scattered throughout his essays and critical writings, his diaries, conversations and letters, his autobiography, his dramatic plans and sketches and a profusion of often very...