Schiller’s Formative Project in the Briefe über “Don Carlos”

Abstract

The article intends to examine Friedrich Schiller’s theoretical text, the Briefe über “Don Carlos” (Letters upon “Don Carlos”). The main objective it proposes is to show one of the main questions throughout the work: the education of a statesman. In order to accomplish that, it has been necessary to approach to the mentioned source from the point of view of its autonomy with regard to the play to which it refers, Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien, represented and published the previous year. The Briefe über “Don Carlos”, rather than a defense against drama critics, constitute an essay with a great philosophical complexity, characterized by the purpose of showing the formation of a future political leader. Likewise, the work exhibits an outline of a citizen created by Schiller for his own period.