Hans Magnus Enzensberger
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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 regarded as one of the literary founding figures of the
Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...
and wrote more than 70 books, with works translated into 40 languages. He was one of the leading authors in
Group 47 Gruppe 47 (Group 47) was a group of participants in German writers' meetings, invited by Hans Werner Richter between 1947 and 1967. The meetings served the dual goals of literary criticism as well as the promotion of young, unknown authors. In a de ...
, and influenced the 1968
West German student movement The West German student movement or sometimes called the 1968 movement in West Germany was a social movement that consisted of mass student protests in West Germany in 1968; participants in the movement would later come to be known as 68ers. Th ...
. He was awarded the
Georg Büchner Prize The Georg Büchner Prize (german: link=no, Georg-Büchner-Preis) is the most important literary prize for German language literature, along with the Goethe Prize. The award is named after dramatist and writer Georg Büchner, author of '' Woyzeck ...
and the
Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by Frederick the Great, King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Or ...
, among many others.


Life and career

Enzensberger was born in 1929 in
Kaufbeuren Kaufbeuren (; Bavarian: ''Kaufbeiren'') is an independent town in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Swabia, Bavaria. The town is an enclave within the district of Ostallgäu. Districts Kaufbeuren consists of nine districts: * Kaufbeuren (town core i ...
, a small town in
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
, as the eldest of four boys. His father, Andreas Enzensberger, worked as a telecommunications technician, and his mother, Leonore (Ledermann) Enzensberger a kindergarten teacher. Enzensberger was part of the last generation of intellectuals whose writing was shaped by first-hand experience of Nazi Germany. The Enzensberger family moved to
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 ...
in 1931.
Julius Streicher Julius Streicher (12 February 1885 – 16 October 1946) was a member of the Nazi Party, the ''Gauleiter'' (regional leader) of Franconia and a member of the '' Reichstag'', the national legislature. He was the founder and publisher of the virul ...
, the founder and publisher of the virulently antisemitic ''
Der Stürmer ''Der Stürmer'' (, literally "The Stormer / Attacker / Striker") was a weekly German tabloid-format newspaper published from 1923 to the end of the Second World War by Julius Streicher, the '' Gauleiter'' of Franconia, with brief suspensions ...
'', was their next-door neighbour. Hans Magnus joined the
Hitler Youth The Hitler Youth (german: Hitlerjugend , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth organisation of the Nazi Party in Germany. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. ...
in his teens, but was expelled soon afterwards. "I have always been incapable of being a good comrade. I can't stay in line. It's not in my character. It may be a defect, but I can't help it." In 1949, after completing his ''
Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...
'' in
Nördlingen Nördlingen (; Swabian: ''Nearle'' or ''Nearleng'') is a town in the Donau-Ries district, in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, with a population of approximately 20,674. It is located approximately east of Stuttgart, and northwest of Munich. It was b ...
, Enzensberger studied literature and philosophy at the universities of
Erlangen Erlangen (; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ''Erlang'', Bavarian language, Bavarian: ''Erlanga'') is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative d ...
,
Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...
, and
Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...
, and at the
Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...
in Paris, receiving his doctorate in 1955 for a thesis about
Clemens Brentano Clemens Wenzeslaus Brentano (also Klemens; pseudonym: Clemens Maria Brentano ; ; 9 September 1778 – 28 July 1842) was a German poet and novelist, and a major figure of German Romanticism. He was the uncle, via his brother Christian, of Franz ...
's poetry.Studienstiftung 90 Jahre, 90 Köpfe
/ref> Until 1957 he worked as a radio editor in
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
with
Alfred Andersch Alfred Hellmuth Andersch (; 4 February 1914 – 21 February 1980) was a German writer, publisher, and radio editor. The son of a conservative East Prussian army officer, he was born in Munich, Germany and died in Berzona, Ticino, Switzerland. Ma ...
; he criticized in a radio essay ''
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 ...
''s language style. He became one of the leading authors in the
Group 47 Gruppe 47 (Group 47) was a group of participants in German writers' meetings, invited by Hans Werner Richter between 1947 and 1967. The meetings served the dual goals of literary criticism as well as the promotion of young, unknown authors. In a de ...
, an institution that shaped the culture of Germany after World War II. In 1957 Group 47 member
Ingeborg Bachmann Ingeborg Bachmann (25 June 1926 – 17 October 1973) was an Austrian poet and author. Biography Bachmann was born in Klagenfurt, in the Austrian state of Carinthia, the daughter of Olga (née Haas) and Matthias Bachmann, a schoolteacher. Her fa ...
and Enzensberger began to exchange letters. His first literary publication was the poem collection ''verteidigung der wölfe'' (Defense of the Wolves) in 1957, followed by ''landessprache'' in 1960, both originally in all-lowercase. They were perceived as opposition to the establishment of those who had been on battle fields and in camps, described as "furious, elegant and of controlled rage" ("furios, elegant und von kontrollierter Wut"). He played the role "zorniger junger Mann" (angry young man) as British role models. In 1960, he was the editor of ''Museum der modernen Poesie'' (Museum of modern poetry), an anthology of poems by contemporary authors in a juxtaposition of original and translation, which was rare at the time. From 1960 to 1961, Enzensberger was a
literary editor A literary editor is an editor in a newspaper, magazine or similar publication who deals with aspects concerning literature and books, especially reviews.
() at
Suhrkamp 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 ...
in Frankfurt. He spoke several languages, intensified by travels: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish and some Russian. With a volume of essays published in 1962, ''Einzelheiten'', he entered the position of a critical intellectual which he held for life. Between 1965 and 1975 he lived briefly in the United States (Fellow of the Center for Advanced Studies
Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Epis ...
) and Cuba. He had the composer
Hans Werner Henze Hans Werner Henze (1 July 1926 – 27 October 2012) was a German composer. His large oeuvre of works is extremely varied in style, having been influenced by serialism, atonality, Stravinsky, Italian music, Arabic music and jazz, as well as ...
invited to Cuba in 1969, and wrote the libretto for his '' El Cimarrón'' for baritone and three instrumentalists based on the memories of the escaped slave Esteban Montejo. From 1965, Enzensberger edited the magazine '; his writings influenced the 1968
West German student movement The West German student movement or sometimes called the 1968 movement in West Germany was a social movement that consisted of mass student protests in West Germany in 1968; participants in the movement would later come to be known as 68ers. Th ...
. He was editor of the prestigious book series ', published in Frankfurt, from 1985; it reached almost 250 titles. He promoted the writers Ryszard Kapuscinski, Raoul Schrott, Irene Dische,
Christoph Ransmayr Christoph Ransmayr (born 20 March 1954) is an Austrian writer. Life Born in Wels, Upper Austria, Ransmayr grew up in Roitham near Gmunden and the Traunsee. From 1972 to 1978 he studied philosophy and ethnology in Vienna. He worked there as c ...
, and
W.G. Sebald Winfried Georg Sebald (18 May 1944 – 14 December 2001), known as W. G. Sebald or (as he preferred) Max Sebald, was a German writer and academic. At the time of his death at the age of 57, he was being cited by literary critics as one of the g ...
, among others. Together with
Gaston Salvatore Gaston Salvatore (29 September 1941 – 11 December 2015) was a Chilean writer living in Germany and writing in the German language. Salvatore was born in Valparaíso. Among other things, he is known for his collaborations with Hans Werner Henze, ...
, Enzensberger was the founder of the left-wing monthly '. The literary journal survived for only two years. In his 1987 book ''Ach Europa! Wahrnehmungen aus sieben Ländern'', Enzensberger used already the terms Ossi and Wessi.


Personal life

Enzensberger was the older brother of the author Christian Enzensberger. He was married three times, including
Masha In Russian, Masha () is a diminutive of Maria. It has been used as a nickname or as a pet name for women named Maria or Marie. An alternative spelling in the Latin alphabet is "Macha". In Serbo-Croatian and Slovene, "Maša" is a diminutive of "Mar ...
, and had two daughters, including . Mathematics was his passion. Enzensberger lived in
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
, Italy, Mexico, Cuba, the United States,
West Berlin West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under mi ...
, and since 1979 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 ...
where he died on 24 November 2022, at age 93.


Work

Enzensberger wrote in a sarcastic, ironic tone in many of his poems. For example, the poem "Middle Class Blues" consists of various typicalities of middle class life, with the phrase "we can't complain" repeated several times, and concludes with "what are we waiting for?". Many of his poems also feature themes of civil unrest over economic- and class-based issues. Though primarily a poet and essayist, he also ventured into theatre, film, opera, radio drama, reportage and translation. He wrote novels and several books for children (including ''
The Number Devil ''The Number Devil: A Mathematical Adventure'' (german: Der Zahlenteufel. Ein Kopfkissenbuch für alle, die Angst vor der Mathematik haben) is a book for children and young adults that explores mathematics. It was originally written in 1997 in ...
'', an exploration of mathematics, translated in 34 languages) and was co-author of a book for German as a foreign language, ''(Die Suche)''. He often wrote his poems and letters in lower case. ''Tumult'', written in 2014, is an autobiographical reflection of his 1960s as a left-wing sympathizer visiting the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and Cuba. His own work has been translated into more than 40 languages. Enzensberger also invented and collaborated in the construction of a machine which automatically composes poems (). This was used during the 2006 Football World Cup to commentate on games. Enzensberger criticized the German orthography reform, the dominance of the internet and the construction of the EU. Enzensberger translated
Adam Zagajewski Adam Zagajewski (21 June 1945 – 21 March 2021) was a Polish poet, novelist, translator, and essayist. He was awarded the 2004 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, the 2016 Griffin Poetry Prize Lifetime Recognition Award, the 2017 P ...
, Lars Gustafsson,
Pablo Neruda Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto (12 July 1904 – 23 September 1973), better known by his pen name and, later, legal name Pablo Neruda (; ), was a Chilean poet-diplomat and politician who won the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature. Nerud ...
,
W. H. Auden Wystan Hugh Auden (; 21 February 1907 – 29 September 1973) was a British-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in ...
and
César Vallejo César Abraham Vallejo Mendoza (March 16, 1892 – April 15, 1938) was a Peruvian poet, writer, playwright, and journalist. Although he published only two books of poetry during his lifetime, he is considered one of the great poetic innovators ...
. With Irene Dische he wrote the libretto for Sallinen's fifth opera ''
The Palace ''The Palace'' is a British drama television series that aired on ITV in 2008. Produced by Company Pictures for the ITV network, it was created by Tom Grieves and follows a fictional British Royal Family in the aftermath of the death of King ...
''. The theatre premiere of a drama after his long poem ''
Der Untergang der Titanic ''Der Untergang der Titanic'', or, in English, ''The Sinking of the Titanic'', is an epic and allegorical poem by the German poet Hans Magnus Enzensberger, first published by Suhrkamp Verlag in 1978. The poem is primarily about the failure of W ...
'' on 7 May 1980 was directed by
George Tabori George Tabori ( György Tábori; 24 May 1914 – 23 July 2007) was a Hungarian writer and theatre director. Life and career Tabori was born in Budapest as György Tábori, a son of Kornél and Elsa Tábori. His father Kornél (Cornelius) was m ...
at the Werkraumtheater Munich.


Honors and awards

In 2009, Enzensberger received a special lifetime recognition award given by the trustees of the Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry, which also awards the annual
Griffin Poetry Prize The Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. Before 2022, the awards went to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language. ...
. * 1951–1954 Grant from the Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes * 1963
Georg Büchner Prize The Georg Büchner Prize (german: link=no, Georg-Büchner-Preis) is the most important literary prize for German language literature, along with the Goethe Prize. The award is named after dramatist and writer Georg Büchner, author of '' Woyzeck ...
* 1980 Golden Wreath of Struga Poetry Evenings * 1985
Heinrich-Böll-Preis The Heinrich-Böll-Preis is a literary prize of Germany, awarded by the City of Cologne in memory of Nobel Prize winner Heinrich Böll. The prize money is €30,000. The prize is awarded "for outstanding achievements – even by still unknown au ...
* 1993 ; ''see also''
Erich Maria Remarque Erich Maria Remarque (, ; born Erich Paul Remark; 22 June 1898 – 25 September 1970) was a German-born novelist. His landmark novel ''All Quiet on the Western Front'' (1928), based on his experience in the Imperial German Army during World ...
* 1997
Ernst-Robert-Curtius-Preis Ernst-Robert-Curtius-Preis was a German literary prize, named after the literary scholar Ernst Robert Curtius. It was founded in 1984, and recognizes outstanding essay writers. The prize was awarded until 2015 at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms- ...
* 1998 Heinrich Heine Prize of Düsseldorf * 1999 Pour le Mérite for Sciences and Arts * 2002
Prince of Asturias Prince or Princess of Asturias ( es, link=no, Príncipe/Princesa de Asturias; ast, Príncipe d'Asturies) is the main substantive title used by the heir apparent or heir presumptive to the monarchy of Spain, throne of Spain. According to the Sp ...
Communications and Humanities award * 2002
Ludwig Börne Prize The Ludwig Börne Prize (german: Ludwig-Börne-Preis, links=no) is a literary award that is awarded annually by the Frankfurt-based Ludwig-Börne-Stiftung. It is one of the most important of its kind in German-speaking countries. Objective and ...
* 2009
Griffin Poetry Prize The Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. Before 2022, the awards went to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language. ...
Lifetime Recognition Award * 2009
Sonning Prize The Sonning Prize ( da, Sonningprisen) is a Danish culture prize awarded biennially for outstanding contributions to European culture. It is named after the Danish editor and author Carl Johan Sonning (1879–1937), who established the prize by ...
– awarded for "commendable work for the benefit of European culture" * 2012 Honorary degree from
Bard College Bard College is a private liberal arts college in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The campus overlooks the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains, and is within the Hudson River Historic District—a National Historic Landmark. Founded in 1860, ...
in New York * 2015 * 2017 Poetry and People International Poetry Prize


Published works

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Bibliography (English)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Articles

*


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * * * Fritsche, Martin: ''Hans Magnus Enzensbergers produktionsorientierte Moral. Konstanten in der Ästhetik eines Widersachers der Gleichheit.'' Dissertation, Technische Universität Berlin; Peter Lang, Bern u. a. 1997, 264 p., hardcover, . (Zur politischen Haltung, politischen Polemik und Provokation im Werk Enzensbergers.) * Rommerskirchen, Theo: ''Hans Magnus Enzensberger''. In: viva signatur si! Remagen-Rolandseck 2005, . * Barbey, Rainer: ''Unheimliche Fortschritte. Natur, Technik und Mechanisierung im Werk von Hans Magnus Enzensberger.'' dissertation, University of Regensburg;
Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht (V&R) is a scholarly publishing house based in Göttingen, Germany. It was founded in 1735 by (1700-1750) in connection with the establishment of the Georg-August-Universität in the same city. After Abraham Vandenhoec ...
, Göttingen 2007, 248 p., hardcover,
Inhaltsverzeichnis
(table of content, in German, PDF)
Einleitung
(introduction, in German, PDF). * Cuervo, Francisco Adolfo Aristizábal: ''Der Dichter als Übersetzer: Auf Spurensuche: Hans Magnus Enzensbergers Übersetzungsmethode(n)''. Tectum Verlag, 2008, . * Park, Hyun Jeong: ''"Das Ende der Welt ist vielleicht nur ein Provisorium". Ökologisch-postapokalyptisches Denken im lyrischen und essayistischen Werk Hans Magnus Enzensbergers.'' Diss, University of Munich, Aisthesis, Bielefeld 2010, . * ''Hans Magnus Enzensberger und die Ideengeschichte der Bundesrepublik'', with an Essay by Lars Gustafsson. Universitätsverlag Winter, 2010, * Clayton, Alan J.: ''Writing with the Words of Others: Essays on the Poetry of Hans Magnus Enzensberger.'' Würzburg: Königshausen & Neumann, 2010, 272 p., . * Arnold, Heinz Ludwig (ed.): ''
Text+Kritik ''Text+Kritik'' (stylized ''text+kritik'') is a quarterly German journal for literature, music, film, and cultural studies in which German-language writers have their works analysed and presented by fellow writers and experts in literary researc ...
: Hans Magnus Enzensberger'', Edition Text+Kritik, third edition, * Marmulla, Henning: ''Enzensbergers Kursbuch. Eine Zeitschrift um 68''. 2011, .


External links

*
Studienstiftung Enzensberger Lebenslauf 1951
*
In conversation
with
Charles Simic Dušan Simić ( sr-cyr, Душан Симић, ; born May 9, 1938), known as Charles Simic, is a Serbian American poet and former co-poetry editor of the ''Paris Review''. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1990 for ''The World Doesn't ...
11 December 2002
"The radical loser"
English translation of an article originally 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 ...
'' on 7 November 2005
Poesieautomat
(Poetry-Machine) realized by Christian Bauer, 2006
Griffin Poetry Prize Lifetime Recognition Award profile (including audio and video of tribute and acceptance speech)
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Enzensberger, Hans Magnus 1929 births 2022 deaths Georg Büchner Prize winners German male poets German-language poets Hitler Youth members Order of Arts and Letters of Spain recipients People from Kaufbeuren Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class) Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath laureates Studienstiftung alumni University of Erlangen-Nuremberg alumni University of Freiburg alumni University of Hamburg alumni Writers from Bavaria