Chapter II
Ugly Juncture: Physiognomy and Morality in Schiller's Verbrecher
Introduction
One of the more puzzling developments of the Enlightenment
emerges and establishes itself paradoxically against the very values that
seem characteristic of this epoch. In 1775, Johann Caspar Lavater
published his highly acclaimed work in physiognomy, Physiognomische
Fragmente zur Beforderung der Menschenkenntnis und Menschenliebe,
which achieved enormous popularity across Europe. Lavater defines
physiognomy as the science of determining a person's character or their
soul through a semiotic reading of their facial features. He claims that by
observing a person's face, "Die Schonheit und HaSlichkeit des
Angesichts, hat ein richtiges und genaues Verhaltnis zur Schonheit und
Hafilichkeit der moralischen Beschaffenheit des Menschen. Je
moralischer; desto schoner. Je moralisch schlimmer; desto haSlicher"
(Lavater 1984). Lavater's skill and renown led many people to flock to his
parish for a physiognomic reading; there are even cases of people hiring
or firing servants according to physiognomy (Percival 2005). At the same
time, physiognomic principles are problematic; they are substantiated
through stereotypes and perpetuate superficially generated
discrimination.
The enormous popularity of physiognomy encapsulates the
paradoxical nature of this era. The Enlightenment is generally regarded
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