German Literature In the Post WWII World By Brian Briggs

Heinrich Böll Never Joined the Hitler Youth Received the prize in 1972 for helping to revitalize German Literature Works include –The Train was on Time(1949) –Traveler if you come to the Spa(1950) –And Never Said a Word(1953) –Portrait of a Lady(1971) –The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum(1974)

Guenter Grass 1927-still alive Nobel Prize in Literature for Tin Drum –Was published in 1959, but was awarded the prize in 1999 –The “Tin Drum” is the first In set of three books called the Danzig Trilogy. The other two works are “Cat and Mouse” and “The Dog Years”. Argued against the Reunification –Cited that a united Germany has caused some of the most brutal periods of history –“Our unified state filled the history books of the world with suffering, ruin, defeat, millions of refugees, millions of dead and a burden of crimes which we will never be able to throw off."

Literature In the FDR Immediately after the war, was mostly short stories and poetry. –Heinrich Boll was a major writer of short stories during this early period. –Major poets were Wolfgang Weyrauch, Karl Krolow, and Gunter Eich The Literary group “Groupe 47” was founded as a sort of Cultural Association. Was not allowed to meet for a couple of years till the FDR was founded.

Literature in the GDR East German Literature was of a lower quality than its Western counterpart. –The GDR claimed to support realist authors, but often harassed them. Favored Soviet Realism over actual Realist views. The Government used Literature contests as a way to squelch opposition writers in the fledgling days. The novels of the GDR often pitted a good socialist farmer struggling against one or two westerners or a member of the bourgeois such as a scientist. East German Books –Menschen an unserver Seite by Eduard Claudius –Die Spur der Steine by Erik Neutsch –Beschreibung eines Sommers by Karl-Heinz Jakobs

Bibliography Fisher, Marc. Guenter Grass Wins Nobel Prize in Literature. The Washington Post. September 30,1999. Kirjasto. Heinrich Boll Moos, Detlev, ed. Cultural Life in the Federal Republic of Germany. Inter Nationes Bonn.1993.