Jugend (1938)

Germany, 1890. In the small rural town of Rosenau, in the province of West Prussia, Hans has passed his school-leaving exams and, before heading to Heidelberg to study, wants to make a brief visit to his uncle, Pastor Hoppe. Here, in this remote place, time seems to stand still. Hans encounters Annchen again, a wheat-blonde, 17-year-old girl—his cousin and childhood friend, whom he has not seen for a long time. In the eyes of many bigoted people, Annchen bears a stigma: she was born out of wedlock, and her mother, Pastor Hoppe’s sister, died young. The pastor cares for this “endangered soul” with Christian charity and great kindness, and has made his rectory a cosy home for her. Also staying at the rectory is Gregor von Schigorski, a grim curate of Polish origin. He believes that, for her own good, Annchen should enter a convent, to escape the hostility directed at “sin” and atone for her mother’s “guilt.” Annchen wants to get away from the intrusive pastor, since a convent would be entirely at odds with her joie de vivre. When she sees Hans, Annchen begins to hope for a better life, and the two revive their old feelings, which had lain dormant since he left. When Schigorski, who has his eye on the blonde innocent, learns of Annchen’s relationship with Hans, he subjects her to such moral pressure that the young, inexperienced girl comes to believe she has no way out except to take her own life. At least her kind foster father, Pastor Hoppe, should not be disappointed in her. A devastated Hoppe blames Schigorski for Annchen’s suicide and makes it clear that he is no longer welcome there. Having matured inwardly, Hans sets off for Heidelberg, carrying the memory of his beloved Annchen in his heart.