Von Hofmannsthal's play takes place in seventeenth century Poland. Learn more about the history of Poland. What significant events and changes took place in Poland in the seventeenth century? What about the eighteenth to twentieth centuries? What recent events have occurred in Polish history?

Von Hofmannsthal was born and lived in the city of Vienna, the capital and cultural center of Austria, around the turn of the century. Learn more about Viennese culture in the fin-de-siecle era. What changes have taken place in Vienna over the course of the twentieth century?

Von Hofmannsthal lived and worked in Vienna over the same time period in which Sigmund Freud became prominent as the father of modern psychology. Learn more about the life and work of Freud. What were some of his major theories about human psychology and childhood development? What impact has Freud had...