PLATEN-HALLERMUND, platen ier-mint, August, COUNT VON, German dram atist and poet, distinguished for his opposition to German Romanticism: b. Ausbach, Bavaria, 24 Oct. 1796; d. Syracuse, Sicily, 5 Dec. 1835. He received his education in the military acad emy at Munich; became a lieutenant in the Bavarian army and served throughout the cam paign against France in 1815; subsequently ob tained a furlough and took up the study of philology at Wiirzburg for two years and from 1819-25 at Erlangen. About this time he was awarded a stipend by the king of Bavaria which enabled him to satisfy his desire to study Oriental languages and literature by extensive travel. As regards Platen's writings much has been said both in praise and criticism; although in later years he became bitterly opposed to and often satirized Romanticism. Nevertheless his earlier works show to a great extent the effects of Romantic influence, and it is mostly for this contradiction that he is criticized. His
first works, published in 1821, were poems writ ten in the Persian form of the %well' under the title 'Ghaselen.' These poems were closely followed by 'Nene Ghaselen' (1824) • 'Der glaserne Pantoffel' (1824), a poem which more than the others shows the Romantic influence; 'Sonnette aus Venedig,' or 'Sonnets from Venice' (1825), as beautiful a collection of son nets as may be found in the German language; 'Der Schatz des Rhampsint> (1824) ; verhangnissvolle Gable,' 'The Fatal Fork' (1826), a satirical comedy attacking the *fate tragedy)); 'Der Romantische CEdipus) (1829), directed against Romanticism; an historic drama, 'Die Liga von CambraP (1833) • and the
epic,