Why did Gotthold Ephraim Lessing criticize the tragedies of Pierre Corneille and Voltaire?

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing criticized the tragedies of Pierre Corneille and Voltaire primarily because he believed their courtly, mannered style of drama was alien to the German mentality.1

Lessing argued that the French neoclassical tradition, which emphasized rigid rules and aristocratic themes, did not resonate with the German people. Instead, he advocated for a truly national drama rooted in faithfulness to nature and reality. To achieve this, he urged German playwrights to look toward William Shakespeare as a model rather than the French tragedians.1

In his influential work, the Hamburgische Dramaturgie, Lessing further developed these ideas, seeking to reinterpret Aristotle in a way that accommodated a more naturalistic approach to theater. He maintained that tragedy should not merely preach morality but should instead arouse pity and fear in the audience, ultimately transforming those emotions into virtuous action.21