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The Invisible Lodge

by Jean Paul (1763–1825)

  • Free to read
  • 10 hours to read
  • 59 chapters
  • Reading level: 10th to 12th grade

"The Invisible Lodge" by Jean Paul is a novel written in the late 18th century. The narrative begins in a whimsical and humorous tone, centered around the peculiarities and passions of its main characters, particularly the Head-forester von Knör and his daughter, Ernestina. The story unfolds through a series of comedic events involving chess, courtship, and a satirical commentary on society and relationships. At the start of the book, we are introduced to von Knör, who is obsessed with chess and intends to marry off his daughter, Ernestina, to the suitor who can defeat her at the game. With a host of suitors competing for her hand, the stage is set for a humorous exploration of courtship dynamics, expectations, and the quirks of love. As the chess match and ensuing romantic developments are described, the text uses playful language and intricate detail to depict the characters' interactions, while also foreshadowing deeper themes of choice and destiny as seen through the lens of their humorous situation. The opening sets up a rich comedic tapestry full of eccentric characters and societal observations, promising an engaging read.

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  • Fiction

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First Section

Courting by Chess.—Graduated Recruit.—Copulative Cat.

In my opinion, what made the Head-forester Von Knoer so incredibly sharp-set upon chess was, that from one year's end to the other, he had nothing to do but to be, once during that time, the guest, the Santa Hermandad or Holy Brotherhood and the Dispenser of Bulls to the rangers.

The reader can surely never have heard of an amateur with so extravagant a passion as his. The least he could do was to send for all his servants to the village of Strehpcnik, (where one gains as much immunity from taxation by chess as a nobleman does by a Saxon Diet,) in order that he might (though in a different sense from that of Cato) have as many opponents as servants. For another instance, he and a nobleman of Upper Yssel in Zwoll spent more postal money in writing than in riding, inasmuch as they played chess at a distance of 250 miles, not with fingers, but with pens. Still another fact may satisfy the reader, viz., that he and Kempele's Automaton Chess-player corresponded with each other, and that the fellow-lodger and adjutant of the wooden Moslem, Herr von Kempele, once in my presence wrote back to him from Hay street in Leipsic, in the name of the Mussulman, that the latter castled. The reader will have his own reflections on the subject, when told that the man, within two years, traveled away to Paris, to go to the Palais Royal and to the Societe du Salon des Echecs, and to sit down there as chess-combatant, and jump up again as chess-conqueror, although he was afterward cudgeled much too severely in a democratic street, for having cried out in sleep: Gardez la Reine! It may simply seem striking to one and another that his daughter never could win a new hat from him or a new dressing-maid (soubrette) to put it on for her, except by winning at the same time a game of chess. But one thing will astonish and vex all who read me, of either sex and of every age, namely, that the Head-forester had sworn he would give his daughter to no other beast in the whole knightly circle but the one who should win not only her heart but at the same time the victory over her in a game of chess—and that in seven weeks.

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Contents

Show all 59 chapters
  1. Front Matter
  2. First Section
  3. Second Section
  4. First Extra Leaf
  5. Third Section
  6. Fourth Section
  7. Fifth Section
  8. Sixth Section
  9. Second Extra Leaf
  10. Seventh Section
  11. Eighth Section
  12. Extra-Leaf
  13. Continuation of the Foregoing Section
  14. Ninth Section
  15. Tenth Section
  16. Eleventh Section
  17. Twelfth Section
  18. Thirteenth Section
  19. Fourteenth Section
  20. Fifteenth Section
  21. Sixteenth Section
  22. Extra-Leaf
  23. Seventeenth Section
  24. Eighteenth Section
  25. Number Sixteen
  26. Number Twenty-One
  27. Nineteenth Section
  28. Twentieth Section
  29. Twenty-First, or Michaelmas, Section
  30. Twenty-Second, or Xvii Trinity, Section
  31. Twenty-Third, or Xviii Trinity, Section
  32. Twenty-Fourth, or Xix Trinity, Section
  33. Twenty-Fifth, or Xx Trinity, Section
  34. Extra-Leaf
  35. Twenty-Sixth, or Xxi Trinitatis, Section
  36. Twenty-Seventh, or Xxii Trinitatis, Section
  37. Twenty-Eighth, or Simon and Judas, Section
  38. Twenty-Ninth, or Xxiii Trinitatis, Section
  39. Thirtieth, or Xxiv Trinitatis, Section
  40. Thirty-First, or Xxv Trinitatis, Section
  41. Thirty-Second, or Sixteenth of November, Section
  42. Thirty-Third, or Xxvi Trinitatis, Section
  43. Thirty-Fourth, or First Advent, Section
  44. Thirty-Fifth, or St. Andrew's, Section
  45. Thirty-Sixth, or Ii Advent, Section
  46. Thirty-Seventh, or Christmas-Eve, Section
  47. Thirty-Eighth, or New Year's, Section
  48. Forty-Fourth, or Septuagesima, Section
  49. Forty-Fifth, or Sexagesima, Section
  50. Forty-Sixth, or Esto-Mihi, Section
  51. Forty-Seventh, or Invocavit, Section
  52. Forty-Eighth, or May, Section
  53. Forty-Ninth Section, or First Section of Joy
  54. Fiftieth, or Second Joy, Section
  55. Fifty-First, or Third Joy, Section
  56. Fourth Joy Section
  57. Fifty-Fourth, or Sixth Joy, Section
  58. Last Section
  59. Footnotes

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About this edition

This free edition of The Invisible Lodge by Jean Paul comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #36353, released 2011-06-08. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Humour, Novels.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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