Beshear was born in Munich on May 22, 1891. His father is a senior judge. He studied medicine, literature and philosophy in Berlin, Munich and Jena. He published works as early as college and participated in editing "Action" magazine in 1912.
He opposed World War I, supported the Russian October Revolution, and was an active member of the Spartak Regiment. Joined the German Communist Party in 1919. In 1925, the Weimar Communist authorities accused him of preparing for "treason", but he was later exempted from trial because of support at home and abroad. In 1928, he organized the establishment of the "German Proletarian Revolutionary Writers' Union" and was elected chairman. After Hitler seized power in 1933, Beshear went into exile in the Czech Republic and France, and went to the Soviet Union in 1935 until the end of World War II. While in the Soviet Union, he served as editor-in-chief of "International Literature" (German version). In 1945, he returned to the Soviet-occupied areas of Germany. In 1954, he served as Minister of Culture of the German Democratic Republic. Died in Berlin on October 11, 1958.
Beshear is a famous contemporary German poet. He was originally a rebel with anarchist ideas, and later became a revolutionary serving the cause of the proletariat. In terms of creation, he was originally a person who only expressed The expressionist poet who had personal feelings and wanted to break all literary traditions later became a revolutionary poet who reflected the major issues of the times and consciously inherited the tradition of classical poetry.
Beshear's original poetry collections "The Fighting Man" (1911) and "Decline and Triumph" (1911) are his most representative early works. After the First World War, calling for mass revolution became the theme of his poetry. But some poems are close to slogans, and he still uses expressionist techniques. The form of the poem cannot express the content well. The collection of poems "To All People" (1919) also called on "all people" to rise to revolution. In the early 1920s, he mainly exposed imperialism's preparations for war. His major works include "The Corpse on the Throne" (1925), the novel "Levisite, or the Only Just War" (1926), and the short story "The Banker Runs to "Battlefield" (1926) and so on. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, he absorbed nutrients from classical literature and created his own unique style. The collection of poems "The Hungry City" (1927) is a symbol of the change in creative tendencies. "The Man Who Believes Everything" (1935) is the best work of this period.
With the beginning of his exile life, Beshir's creation entered a new period, that is, the mature period of creation. Most of the excellent poems were produced in this period. The central themes of these poems are nostalgia, hatred and hope for the motherland. People call these poems "German poetry". His major poetry collections include "The Pursuit of Happiness and the Seven Burdens" (1938), "Sonnets from 1935 to 1938" (1939), "Germany is Calling" (1942), etc. He also wrote the play "Winter Campaign" (1952) and the novel "The Farewell" (1940). "Winter Campaign" describes the defeat of the German army on the outskirts of Moscow. "Farewell" is a novel with an autobiographical nature, describing the process of a young man from a bourgeois family becoming a Marxist, and showing the picture of German society from the 20th century until the outbreak of the First World War.
Beshear returned home in 1945, feeling pleased that Germany had new hope, but at the same time worried about the catastrophes suffered by the people and the difficulties they faced. This mood was the theme of his early postwar poetry.
In the 1950s, his poems showed great concern for Germany's future. His major poetry collections include "Homecoming" (1946), "German Sonnets, 1952" (1952), and "Mid-Century Steps" (1958). In addition, he also composed the lyrics for the national anthem of the German Democratic Republic. He was also committed to the study of literary theory, especially poetry theory, and published "In Defense of Poetry" (1952), "The Faith of Poetry" (1954), "The Power of Poetry" (1955), and "The Principles of Poetry" (1956). ) and other works.