''The German Lesson'' (original title: ') is a

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

by the German writer

Siegfried Lenz Siegfried Lenz (; 17 March 19267 October 2014) was a German writer of novels, short stories and essays, as well as dramas for radio and the theatre. In 2000 he received the Goethe Prize on the 250th Anniversary of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's bi ...

, published in 1968 in Germany. The English translation by

Ernst Kaiser Ernst David Kaiser (3 October 1911 – 1 January 1972) was an Austrian writer and translator. Early life Ernst David Kaiser was born in Vienna. His father, a Jewish merchant, came from the Slovak part of Hungary, and his mother from Brno. At bir ...

and

Eithne Wilkins Eithne Wilkins (born Ethne Una Lilian Wilkins; 12 September 1914 – 13 March 1975) was a Germanic Studies scholar, translator and poet from New Zealand. Life and work She was born in Wellington to Edgar Wilkins, an Irish doctor, and his wife Eve ...

, titled ''The German Lesson'', was first published in London by Macdonald & Co. in 1971 and later by New Directions in 1986. ' was translated into several languages and is considered to be one of the defining works of German post-war literature.

Plot

Siggi Jepsen (the first-person narrator), an inmate of a juvenile detention center, is forced to write an essay with the title "The Joy of Duty." In the essay, Siggi describes his youth in

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

where his father, the "most northerly police officer in Germany," does his duty, even when he is ordered to debar his old childhood friend, the

expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

painter Max Nansen, from his profession, because the Nazis banned expressionism as " degenerate art" (''entartete Kunst''). Siggi, however, is fascinated by Nansen's paintings, "the green faces, the Mongol eyes, these deformed bodies ... " and, without the knowledge of his father, manages to hide some of the confiscated paintings. Following the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Jepsen senior is interned for a short time and later reinstalled as a policeman in rural

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...

. When he then obsessively continues to carry out his former orders, Siggi brings Nansen paintings that he believes to be in danger to safety. His father discovers his doings and dutifully turns him in for art theft. When forced to write the essay on "The Joy of Duty" during his term in the juvenile detention center near Hamburg, the memories of his childhood come to the surface and he goes far beyond the "duty" of writing his essay by filling several notebooks with caustic recollections of this entire saga.

Characters

* Siggi Jepsen * Jens Ole Jepsen, Siggi's father, a police officer * Max Nansen, a painter, pursued by the Nazis, whom Lenz based on the expressionist painter

Emil Nolde Emil Nolde (born Hans Emil Hansen; 7 August 1867 – 13 April 1956) was a German-Danish painter and printmaker. He was one of the first Expressionists, a member of Die Brücke, and was one of the first oil painting and watercolor painters of the ...

* Gudrun Jepsen, Siggi's mother * Klaas, Siggi's brother * Hilke, Siggi's sister

Adaptations

In 1971

Peter Beauvais Peter Beauvais (September 9, 1916, Weißenstadt, Germany – December 17, 1986, Baden-Baden, Germany) was a German television film director and scriptwriter. As a director for three decades, he helped pioneer and significantly influenced the devel ...

filmed ' for the German TV-broadcaster ARD section SFB. In 2019

Christian Schwochow Christian Schwochow (; born 23 September 1978) is a German film director. He has directed more than ten films since 2005, including TV movie ' on the ARD channel, a tragicomedy about the fall of the Berlin Wall. Schwochow also directed episodes o ...

directed ' as a cinema adaption. The film stars

Tobias Moretti Tobias Moretti (; born Tobias Bloéb; 11 July 1959) is an Austrian actor. Biography Born in Gries am Brenner, Tyrol, Moretti is the eldest of four brothers, including Thomas, Christoph and fellow actor Gregor Bloéb. Since 1997, he has been marr ...

as Max Nansen and

Ulrich Noethen Ulrich Noethen (born 18 November 1959) is a German actor who has appeared in many movies and TV films. He starred in ''Comedian Harmonists''. He also played Heinrich Himmler twice, in ''Der Untergang'' and '' Mein Führer – Die wirklich wahrs ...

as Jens Jepsen, with

Johanna Wokalek Johanna Wokalek (born 3 March 1975) is a German stage and film actress. A student of Klaus Maria Brandauer, she received critical recognition and three newcomer awards for her performance in the play ''Rose Bernd''. Wokalek is best known for her ...

Louis Hofmann Louis Hofmann (born 3 June 1997) is a German actor. He first gained attention as the lead in the 2011 German film ' and won the Bodil Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a teenage German prisoner of war in the 2015 Danish film '' La ...

and

Sonja Richter Sonja Richter (born 4 January 1974) is a Danish actress. She is best known for her performance in the 2002 film ''Open Hearts'' by Susanne Bier, for which she was nominated for both the Bodil Award and the Robert Award. In a career which has so ...

in further roles.

Releases details

* German: ''Deutschstunde'' (1968). Hamburg:

Hoffmann und Campe Hoffmann is a German surname. People A * Albert Hoffmann (1846–1924), German horticulturist * Alexander Hoffmann (born 1975), German politician *Arthur Hoffmann (politician) (1857–1927), Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Coun ...

, (First edition) ** German: ''Deutschstunde'' (2006). Hamburg: Hoffmann und Campe, (20th ed., hardcover) ** German: ''Deutschstunde'' (2006). Munich: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, (37th ed., paperback) * Chinese: ''De yu ke''. (2008) Taibei Shi: Yuan liu chu ban shi ye gu fen you xian gong si, * French: ''La leçon d'allemand'' (2001). Paris: R. Laffont, * Korean: ''Togirŏ sigan'' (2000). Sŏul Tʻŭkpyŏlsi : Minŭmsa, * Danish: ''Tysktime'' (1996). København: Gyldendal, * Portuguese: ''A lição de alemão'' (1991) Lisboa: Publ. Dom Quixote, * Spanish: ''Lección de alemán'' (1990) Madrid: Debate, * Estonian: ''Saksa keele tund'' (1975). Translated by Rita Tasa. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat. * Finnish: ''Saksantunti'' (1974). Helsinki: Uusi kirjakerho, * Romanian: ''Ora de germană'' (1972). București: Editura Univers. * Russian: ''Урок немецкого'' (1970). Москва: Прогресс, * Slovak: ''Hodina nemčiny'' (1972). Bratislava: Slovenský Spisovatel', * Czech: ''Hodina němčiny'' (1974). Praha: Odeon, * Hebrew: השיעור בגרמנית (1978) * Vietnamese: ''Giờ Đức văn'' (2019). Translated by Hoàng Đăng Lãnh: Nhã Nam Books. * Catalan: ''Lliçó d'alemany'' (2016). Translated by Joan Ferrarons. Barcelona: Club Editor,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:German Lesson, The 1968 novels German novels adapted into films Novels set in Hamburg