Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Table of Contents
References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images
Gotthold Lessing, detail of an oil painting by Georg May, 1768; in the Gleimhaus, Halberstadt, Ger.
For Students
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing summary
Quizzes
Illustration of "The Lamb" from "Songs of Innocence" by William Blake, 1879. poem; poetry
A Study of Poetry
4:043 Dickinson, Emily: A Life of Letters, This is my letter to the world/That never wrote to me; I'll tell you how the Sun Rose/A Ribbon at a time; Hope is the thing with feathers/That perches in the soul
Famous Poets and Poetic Form
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) only confirmed photograph of Emily Dickinson. 1978 scan of a Daguerreotype. ca. 1847; in the Amherst College Archives. American poet. See Notes:
Poetry: First Lines
Agathon (centre) greeting guests in Plato's Symposium, oil on canvas by Anselm Feuerbach, 1869; in the Staatliche Kunsthalle, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Philosophy 101
Read Next
poem. A poet in a Heian period kimono writes Japanese poetry during the Kamo Kyokusui No En Ancient Festival at Jonan-gu shrine on April 29, 2013 in Kyoto, Japan. Festival of Kyokusui-no Utage orignated in 1,182, party Heian era (794-1192).
World Poetry Day
Close up of books. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”
Aristotle (384-322 BC), Ancient Greek philosopher and scientist. One of the most influential philosophers in the history of Western thought, Aristotle established the foundations for the modern scientific method of enquiry. Statue
Philosophers to Know, Part I
Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), German philosopher. Print published in London, 1812. Profile portrait surrounded by Ouroboros ancient Egyptian-Greek symbolic serpent with tail in mouth devouring itself representing unity of material and spiritual in eternal...
Philosophers to Know, Part II
Discover
Santa Claus flying in his sleigh, christmas, reindeer
Was Santa Claus a Real Person?
The Cheshire Cat is a fictional cat from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. (Alice in Wonderland)
11 Banned Books Through Time
Close up of books. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”
Thumbnail for flags that look alike quiz Russia, Slovenia, Iceland, Norway
Flags That Look Alike
An ancient egyptian hieroglyphic painted carving showing the falcon headed god Horus seated on a throne and holding a golden fly whisk. Before him are the Pharoah Seti and the goddess Isis. Interior wall of the temple to Osiris at Abydos, Egypt.
11 Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
Woman tied to a ducking stool, a method of punishment by means of humiliation, beating, or death. (cucking stool)
8 Unusual Punishments Inflicted on Women Throughout History
Rural Irish landscape, Sligo, Ireland.
Why Is Ireland Two Countries?

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing: Facts & Related Content

verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/facts/Gotthold-Ephraim-Lessing
Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Born January 22, 1729 • Germany
Died February 15, 1781 (aged 52) • Braunschweig • Germany
Founder “Beiträge zur Historie und Aufnahme des Theaters” • “Theatralische Bibliothek”
Notable Works “Der Junge Gelehrte” • “Die Juden” • “Emilia Galotti” • “Fragmente eines Ungenannten” • “Hamburg Dramaturgy” • “Laocoon” • “Minna von Barnhelm” • “Miss Sara Sampson” • “Nathan the Wise” • “The Education of the Human Race”
Subjects Of Study dramatic literature

Photos

Gotthold Lessing, detail of an oil painting by Georg May, 1768; in the Gleimhaus, Halberstadt, Ger.
See All Images →

Related Topics and References

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic
Friedrich Schiller, painting by Anton Graff, c. 1785.
Friedrich Schiller
German writer
Johann Christoph Gottsched
German literary critic
D.H. Lawrence
D.H. Lawrence
English writer
Hofmannsthal, photograph by Thea Sternheim, 1911; in the Schiller-Nationalmuseum, Marbach, Ger.
Hugo von Hofmannsthal
Austrian author
Atterbom
Per Daniel Amadeus Atterbom
Swedish author
Saint John Ervine
British dramatist
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
German author
Andreas Gryphius, 17th-century engraving.
Andreas Gryphius
German author
Platen, August, Graf von
August, Graf von Platen
German writer
Sachs, Hans
Hans Sachs
German poet and composer
Gerstenberg, engraving
Heinrich Wilhelm von Gerstenberg
German writer
Georg Philipp Harsdörfer
German poet
Paul Ernst
Paul Ernst
German writer
Philipp Nikodemus Frischlin
German philologist
Johann Elias Schlegel
German author and critic
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
English author
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
Irish dramatist and critic
T.S. Eliot
T.S. Eliot
American-English poet, playwright, and literary critic
Matthew Arnold
Matthew Arnold
British critic
Poet John Dryden
John Dryden
British author

Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) only confirmed photograph of Emily Dickinson. 1978 scan of a Daguerreotype. ca. 1847; in the Amherst College Archives. American poet. See Notes:
Poetry: First Lines
4:043 Dickinson, Emily: A Life of Letters, This is my letter to the world/That never wrote to me; I'll tell you how the Sun Rose/A Ribbon at a time; Hope is the thing with feathers/That perches in the soul
Famous Poets and Poetic Form
Agathon (centre) greeting guests in Plato's Symposium, oil on canvas by Anselm Feuerbach, 1869; in the Staatliche Kunsthalle, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Philosophy 101
Illustration of "The Lamb" from "Songs of Innocence" by William Blake, 1879. poem; poetry
A Study of Poetry