Wedekind, << VAY duh kihnt, >> Frank (1864-1918), was a German playwright who savagely attacked the smugness, hypocrisy, and corruption he saw in middle-class morality. His characters are overdrawn and sometimes grotesque symbols of the individual’s sexual freedom and physical vitality. They scorn the conformity of the middle class. The plays Earth Spirit (1894), Pandora’s Box (1894), and The Marquis von Keith (1900) are variations on Wedekind’s view of society. An earlier play, Spring’s Awakening (1890-1891), established Wedekind’s reputation as a controversial playwright. In this play, Wedekind says the torments of youth are caused by the cruelty and narrow-mindedness of the adult world.
Wedekind was born on June 24, 1864, in Hanover and grew up in Switzerland. In 1912, he formed a theater company that toured Germany performing his plays. He died on March 9, 1918.
