Hebbel, Friedrich (1813-1863), was a German playwright. His early life of poverty gave him the bitter outlook reflected in his works. Hebbel was obsessed with the theme of the loneliness people feel in a universe controlled by blind fate. His characters are never completely innocent or completely guilty. But they bring disaster on themselves by disturbing the predestined order of events in the universe. Hebbel often centered his violent tragedies around famous historical or Biblical persons in extreme moral and emotional crises. His first play Judith (1840) retells the Biblical story of Judith and Holofernes. Maria Magdalena (1844) is a realistic tragedy symbolically based on the life of the famous repenting sinner of the New Testament.
Hebbel was born in Wesselburen. His full name was Christian Friedrich Hebbel. His youth was a constant struggle against poverty. Hebbel studied law, but decided to become a writer.
