Peter Paars ein comisches Heldengedicht - Holberg, Ludvig 1684-1754; Scheibe, Johann Adolph 1708-1776 (Leipzig Mumme, 1750)
Title page has emblem "In Spe et Labore"
Peder Paars is a comic-epic poem that appeared in four parts in the years 1719-20 under the pseudonym of Hans Michelsen. The poem is a parody of the heroic epics of antiquity and Renaissance. Holberg particularly alludes to Vergil's great Roman epic Aeneid.
The poem enjoyed great success, but the description of conditions on Anholt prompted the then owner, Frederik Rostgaard, to complain to the king, demanding that the book be burned by the executioner. The king nevertheless decided that the writing - although it "could rather have been omitted than written" - could be accepted, as it was a "fictitious sketch."
Holberg was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway, during the time of the Dano-Norwegian dual monarchy. He was influenced by Humanism, the Enlightenment and the Baroque. Holberg is considered the founder of modern Danish and Norwegian literature. He is best known for the comedies he wrote in 1722–1723 for the Lille Grønnegade Theatre in Copenhagen.
Paars was a breakthrough in Holberg's writing in the direction of satire and the many comedies for which he is still known.
The composer J.A. Scheibe translated Peder Paars into German. In 1740 he became kapellmeister at the court of the danisch king Christian IV, and remained in Denmark until his death. He had a very sharp pen, evident in his satirical writings or political pamphlets, but also in the first biography of his friend Baron Ludvig Holberg, The biography not only provides information on Holberg but also indirectly on Scheibe.
Keywords: Vergilius -- 70 BC-19 BC; 18th Century (1701-1800); Poetry; Comedy