''Der geteilte Himmel'', known in English as either ''Divided Heaven'' or ''They Divided the Sky'', is a 1963 novel by the East German writer

Christa Wolf Christa Wolf (; née Ihlenfeld; 18 March 1929 – 1 December 2011) was a German novelist and essayist.
Barbara Gard ...

. The author describes society and problems in the

German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

(GDR) in the early 1960s, in a "quest for personal integrity within a flawed system". The book won the

Heinrich Mann Prize The Heinrich Mann Prize () is an essay prize that has been awarded since 1953, first by the East German Academy of Arts, then by the Academy of Arts, Berlin. The prize, which comes with a €10,000 purse, is given annually on 27 March, Heinrich Ma ...

, and has been translated into many languages.

History

Wolf wrote the work in the early 1960s, with the novel beginning as a story about romance and the characters' experiences in a socialist work "brigade". From there it develops into a more complex plot prompted by political events. It was published in 1963 by Mitteldeutscher Verlag in Halle, became a bestseller in the GDR and was also widely distributed and discussed in the West. The title became a metaphor for the divided Germany. The novel was awarded the

. In 1987,

Suhrkamp Verlag Suhrkamp Verlag is a German publishing house, established in 1950 and generally acknowledged as one of the leading European publishers of fine literature. Its roots go back to the "arianized" part of the S. Fischer Verlag. In January 2010 the ...

published it in its ''BasisBibliothek'' (Basic Library), with historic background and commentary. The book's title was first translated into English as ''Divided Heaven'', and in 2013 (50 years after the first publication) interpreted by Luise von Flotow as ''They Divided the Sky''.

Plot

The main characters are Rita Seidel, age 19, and Manfred Herrfurth, a chemist ten years older, who meet at a dance event in a village and become a couple, although they are different. Rita comes from a rural background and is emotional, while Manfred is a rational city-dweller. The action begins in East Germany in June 1961, shortly before the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government ...

is built. They live together with Manfred's parents in Halle, where he works and she studies to be a teacher, which includes training in a socialist work "brigade" at the company Waggonbau Amendorf, building rail wagons. Manfred, who grew up in a difficult family, becomes disillusioned about the future in the GDR, after one of his engineering designs is refused by economics officials. He moves to West Germany via

East Berlin East Berlin was the ''de facto'' capital city of East Germany from 1949 to 1990. Formally, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet sector of Berlin, established in 1945. The American, British, and French sectors were known as ...

. Rita visits him there and tries to persuade him to return, but without success. Shortly after her return, the Wall is built. Rita tries to take her life. She wakes up from unconsciousness in hospital and tells the story from that perspective.

Style

Wolf begins the novel like a love story, but soon introduces the divided Germany as a reason for tension. She describes the western lifestyle as commercial and materialistic, while she idealises the eastern society as harder, rigid, moral-oriented and demanding faith. Some elements of Rita's biography are similar to the author's, such as growing up without a father and work in the specific brigade. She describes negative aspects of life in the east with factual precision and was criticised for it. Her tenor was described as an "introspective, autobiographical voice", her trademark in a "quest for personal integrity within a flawed system".

Legacy

The novel was filmed as ''

Der geteilte Himmel ''Der geteilte Himmel'', known in English as either ''Divided Heaven'' or ''They Divided the Sky'', is a 1963 novel by the East German writer Christa Wolf. The author describes society and problems in the German Democratic Republic German(s) may ...

'' in 1964. A stage version premiered in Dresden in 2013.

References

External links

*
''Encyclopedia Britannica'', ''Divided Heaven''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geteilte Himmel, Der 1963 German novels Novels by Christa Wolf East German novels German political novels Novels set in Germany German novels adapted into films