Kunstmärchen - Wackenroder's A Wondrous Oriental Tale of a Naked Saint

Wackenroder's A Wondrous Oriental Tale of a Naked Saint, unlike many traditional fairy tales, is not perfectly clear on the moral message of the story. One gets the idea that the message is to enjoy life and not dwell upon the aging process, but this is debatable at best. And although the character is described as a Saint, the theme is not overtly Christian, if it even is at all. It emphasizes the significance and power of love. Although the ending is not particularly unhappy, as many Kunstmärchen endings are, it is not particularly happy either. The Naked Saint just moves on with his life, for the first time ever.

In my opinion, the music written on the the page is extremely weak. It evoked little emotion and thus the Naked Saint's strong reaction to it seemed out of sync with the story to me. Poetic language is never as powerful as music, however, when the music must be read rather than heard, poetic language is superior.