[

, 1853], a collection of six stories by Austrian writer Adalbert Stifter, contains several of Stifter's most powerful narrative texts, as well as one of the most important poetological statements in nineteenth-century German literature. The collection is prefaced with a controversial theoretical manifesto, which claims that poetic inspiration can be found in the slight and trivial, rather than in the earth-shattering events of nature: “The flowing of air, the trickling of water, the growing of grain, the surge of the ocean, the greening of the earth, the shining of the sky, the shimmering of the stars – these I consider great; the magnificently approaching storm, the lightning bolt that splits houses, the storm that drives the surf, the fire-spewing…

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Citation: Macleod, Catriona. "Bunte Steine". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 July 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=15112, accessed 23 November 2024.]