Christian Enzensberger (24 December 1931 – 27 January 2009) was a German Professor of

English studies English studies (usually called simply English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries; it is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which ...

, author and a translator of

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

into German.

Life

Born in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

, Enzensberger was one of the more enigmatic figures in German letters. Younger brother of the literary celebrity and political figure

Hans Magnus Enzensberger Hans Magnus Enzensberger (11 November 1929 – 24 November 2022) was a German author, poet, translator, and editor. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Andreas Thalmayr, Elisabeth Ambras, Linda Quilt and Giorgio Pellizzi. Enzensberger was regarde ...

, he maintained a relatively low media profile throughout his career, in spite of being embroiled in one of the more interesting literary scandals of early 70s Germany. From 1969 until 1994, Enzensberger held a post as Professor of English Literature at the

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...

. He is today chiefly known in Germany for his 1963 translation of Lewis Carroll's

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland), Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a ...

and Alice through the Looking-Glass. In 1970, Enzensberger became the only author ever to refuse the

Literaturpreis der Stadt Bremen The Bremen Literature Prize (german: link=no, Literaturpreis der Stadt Bremen, literally: Literature Prize of the city of Bremen) is a German literary award. The prize money is €25,000 (Förderpreis: €6,000). Recipients *1954 Heinrich Schmi ...

, offered in the wake of the publication of ''Größerer Versuch über den Schmutz'' (translated by Sandra Morris and published by Calder & Boyars in 1972 as ''Smut: An Anatomy of Dirt''). The book generated a furore when it was first published in Germany, not least due to its linking of personal cleanliness with totalitarianism. ''Smut'' is an experimental work in which dirt is described scientifically, personally and perversely by a panoply of narrative voices, including fragments from the anthropologist

Mary Douglas Dame Mary Douglas, (25 March 1921 – 16 May 2007) was a British anthropologist, known for her writings on human culture and symbolism, whose area of speciality was social anthropology. Douglas was considered a follower of Émile Durkhei ...

alongside writers from

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...

through

William S. Burroughs William Seward Burroughs II (; February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American writer and visual artist, widely considered a primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodern author who influenced popular cultur ...

Jean Genet Jean Genet (; – ) was a French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. In his early life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but he later became a writer and playwright. His major works include the novels ''The Thief's ...

. It has since then fallen into neglect and remains out of print in both English and German. He died in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

in January 2009.

Published works (selection)

* ''Größerer Versuch über den Schmutz''. 1968 (''Smut: An Anatomy of Dirt''. 1972, translated by Sandra Morris) published in the U.S. by Continuum Books in 1974. * ''Viktorianische Lyrik.

Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of his ...

und

Swinburne Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet, playwright, novelist, and critic. He wrote several novels and collections of poetry such as ''Poems and Ballads'', and contributed to the famous Eleventh Edition ...

in der Geschichte der Entfremdung''. Hanser Verlag, München 1969 * ''Literatur und Interesse – Eine politische Ästhetik mit zwei Beispielen aus der englischen Literatur. Band 1: Theorie. Band 2: Beispiele, Shakespeare ‚Der Kaufmann von Venedig’, Dickens ‚Oliver Twist’''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1977 (Zweite, fortgeschriebene Fassung 1981, ) * ''Brief an Herbert Marcuse''. Akzente. Issue 1, Volume 25. February 1978 * ''Was ist was''. Greno Verlag, Nördlingen 1987,

Translations (selection)

* ''Von

Hopkins Hopkins is an English, Welsh and Irish patronymic surname. The English name means "son of Hob". ''Hob'' was a diminutive of ''Robert'', itself deriving from the Germanic warrior name ''Hrod-berht'', translated as "renowned-fame". The Robert spell ...

bis

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

. Englische Gedichte und deutsche Prosaübertragungen''. Gemeinsam mit Ursula Clemen, Fischer Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1961 * George D. Painter: ''

Marcel Proust Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust (; ; 10 July 1871 – 18 November 1922) was a French novelist, critic, and essayist who wrote the monumental novel ''In Search of Lost Time'' (''À la recherche du temps perdu''; with the previous Eng ...

. Teil 1''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1962 *

Giorgos Seferis Giorgos or George Seferis (; gr, Γιώργος Σεφέρης ), the pen name of Georgios Seferiades (Γεώργιος Σεφεριάδης; March 13 – September 20, 1971), was a Greek poet and diplomat. He was one of the most important G ...

: ''Poesie. Gedichte. Griechisch und deutsch''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1962, 4. Auflage 2005 *

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...

: '' Alice im Wunderland''. Insel Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1963, TB * Lewis Carroll: '' Alice hinter den Spiegeln''. Insel Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1963, TB *

Edith Sitwell Dame Edith Louisa Sitwell (7 September 1887 – 9 December 1964) was a British poet and critic and the eldest of the three literary Sitwells. She reacted badly to her eccentric, unloving parents and lived much of her life with her governess ...

: ''Gedichte. Englisch und deutsch''. Übersetzt von Christian Enzensberger,

Erich Fried Erich Fried (6 May 1921 – 22 November 1988) was an Austrian-born poet, writer, and translator. He initially became known to a broader public in both Germany and Austria for his political poetry, and later for his love poems. As a writer, he mo ...

und Werner Vordtriede, Insel Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1964 *

Ogden Nash Frederic Ogden Nash (August 19, 1902 – May 19, 1971) was an American poet well known for his light verse, of which he wrote over 500 pieces. With his unconventional rhyming schemes, he was declared by ''The New York Times'' the country's best ...

: ''I’m a Stranger Here Myself. Selected Poems – Ich bin leider hier auch fremd. Ausgewählte Gedichte''. Nachdichtungen von Christian Enzensberger,

Walter Mehring Walter Mehring (29 April 1896 – 3 October 1981) was a German author and one of the most prominent satirical authors in the Weimar Republic. He was banned during the Third Reich, and fled the country. Early life He was the son of the trans ...

und Ulrich Sonnemann, Rowohlt Verlag, Reinbek 1969 *

Edward Bond Edward Bond (born 18 July 1934) is an English playwright, theatre director, poet, theorist and screenwriter. He is the author of some fifty plays, among them '' Saved'' (1965), the production of which was instrumental in the abolition of the ...

: ''Trauer zu früh''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1969 * Edward Bond: ''Lear''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1972 * T. S. Eliot: ''Gesammelte Gedichte 1909–1962. Zweisprachige Ausgabe''. Aus dem Englischen von Christian Enzensberger u. a., Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1972, TB 2002 * Edward Bond: ''Bingo. Szenen von Geld und Tod''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1975 *

Ian McEwan Ian Russell McEwan, (born 21 June 1948) is an English novelist and screenwriter. In 2008, ''The Times'' featured him on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945" and ''The Daily Telegraph'' ranked him number 19 in its list of th ...

: '' Der Zementgarten''. Aus dem Englischen von einer studentischen Arbeitsgruppe unter Leitung von Christian Enzensberger,

Diogenes Verlag The Diogenes Verlag (short: Diogenes) is a Swiss publisher in Zurich, founded in 1952 by , with a focus on literature, plays and cartoons. It has been managed since 2012 by the founder's son, Philipp Keel. History Daniel Keel, who founded the ...

, Zürich 1980, TB *

: ''Mehr Prügel als Flügel''. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1989, TB

Secondary literature (selection)

* Review of Größerer Versuch über den Schmutz by

Wolfgang Hildesheimer Wolfgang Hildesheimer (9 December 1916 – 21 August 1991) was a German author who incorporated the Theatre of the Absurd. He originally trained as an artist, before turning to writing. Biography Hildesheimer was born of Jewish parents in Hambu ...

published in

Der Spiegel ''Der Spiegel'' (, lit. ''"The Mirror"'') is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of 695,100 copies, it was the largest such publication in Europe in 2011. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...

, issue 1, 1969 page 96 under the headline ''Sauber ist nicht Schön''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Enzensberger, Christian 1931 births 2009 deaths English–German translators Writers from Nuremberg Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni Academic staff of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich 20th-century German translators 20th-century German male writers German male non-fiction writers