Ingeborg Bachmann Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 3 (1979) Winner
Gert Hofmann
ゲルト・ホフマン
Gert Hofmann
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1931-01-29 （Limbach-Oberfrohna, Saxony, Germany）
- Died
- 1993-07-01 （Erding, near Munich, Germany） age 62
- Nationality
- German
- Languages
- German, English, Russian
- Residence History
- Limbach-Oberfrohna (Saxony) → Leipzig → Freiburg im Breisgau → Bristol, UK → Toulouse, France → Paris, France → Edinburgh, Scotland → New Haven, USA → Berkeley, California, USA → Austin, Texas, USA → Klagenfurt, Austria → Ljubljana (former Yugoslavia / Slovenia) → Erding (near Munich), Germany
Career
- Occupations
- Writer, Professor of German literature, Radio dramatist
- Active Years
- 1950-1993
- Memberships
- Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung
- Influenced By
- Henry James, Robert Walser
- Influenced
- Michael Hofmann (son, translator and poet)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leipzig University | Romance and Slavic languages | Languages and Literature | — | 1950-1951 | Germany |
| University of Freiburg | — | Studies in literature following translator/interpreter training | — | 1951-1957 | Germany |
Leipzig University
Romance and Slavic languages
/ Languages and Literature
Period:
1950-1951
Country:
Germany
Left East Germany in 1951 and continued studies in Freiburg
University of Freiburg
Studies in literature following translator/interpreter training
Period:
1951-1957
Year of Graduation:
1957
Country:
Germany
Graduated in 1957 with a thesis on Henry James
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Ingeborg Bachmann Prize | Die Fistelstimme | — | Ingeborg Bachmann Prize (Klagenfurt) | 受賞 |
| 1982 | Alfred Döblin Prize | — | — | Alfred Döblin Prize committee | 受賞 |
| 1983 | Hörspielpreis der Kriegsblinden | Die Brautschau des Dichters Robert Walser im Hof der Anstaltswäscherei von Bellelay (radio play) | — | Hörspielpreis der Kriegsblinden committee (Germany) | 受賞 |
| 1993 | Literaturpreis der Stadt München | — | — | City of Munich | 受賞 |
| 1995 | Independent Foreign Fiction Prize | The Film Explainer (translation of Der Kinoerzähler) | — | The Independent (UK) | 受賞（没後、息子マイケル・ホフマンと共同） |
Ingeborg Bachmann Prize
1979
Work:
Die Fistelstimme
Organization:
Ingeborg Bachmann Prize (Klagenfurt)
Result:
受賞
Alfred Döblin Prize
1982
Organization:
Alfred Döblin Prize committee
Result:
受賞
Hörspielpreis der Kriegsblinden
1983
Work:
Die Brautschau des Dichters Robert Walser im Hof der Anstaltswäscherei von Bellelay (radio play)
Organization:
Hörspielpreis der Kriegsblinden committee (Germany)
Result:
受賞
Literaturpreis der Stadt München
1993
Organization:
City of Munich
Result:
受賞
Independent Foreign Fiction Prize
1995
Work:
The Film Explainer (translation of Der Kinoerzähler)
Organization:
The Independent (UK)
Result:
受賞（没後、息子マイケル・ホフマンと共同）
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Die Fistelstimme
1979 Novel / Novella 120 pagesA work where personal voice and historical memory intersect; awarded the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize.
memoryvoicehistory
Translations
The Film Explainer
1990 Collection / Novella 160 pagesStories centered on film, narration, and memory; gained international recognition in Michael Hofmann's English translation.
memoryvisual representationnarration
Translations
- Translated into English by Michael Hofmann (1996)
Veilchenfeld / Our Philosopher
1986 Novel 180 pagesA story about a Jewish philosopher that treats Holocaust memory and individual fate.
Holocaustidentityexile
Translations
- Translated into English by Eric Mace-Tessler (CB Editions 2020; NYRB 2023)
Der Blindensturz / The Parable of the Blind
1985 Short story / Parable 80 pagesA parable-like short story using sight and blindness as motifs to explore human fragility and mass psychology.
blindnesscommunityparable
Translations
- Translated into English by Christopher Middleton
Bibliography
- Interpretationsprobleme bei Henry James (1957)
- Der Bürgermeister (1963)
- Der Sohn (1966)
- Kündigungen (1969)
- Unser Mann in Madras (written 1965, published 1969)
- Advokat Patelin (1976)
- Die Denunziation (1979)
- Die Fistelstimme (1979)
- Die Überflutung (1981)
- Auf dem Turm (1982)
- Der Blindensturz (1985)
- Veilchenfeld (1986)
- Der Kinoerzähler (1990)
- Tolstois Kopf (1991)
- Das Glück (1992)
- Die kleine Stechardin (1994, posthumous)
Adaptations
- Unser Man in Madras (short film adaptation, 2014)
Translations of Works
- The Film Explainer — translated into English by Michael Hofmann (1996)
- Balzac's Horse and Other Stories — translated by Christopher Middleton
- Veilchenfeld — translated by Eric Mace-Tessler (2020/2023)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Condensed, economical proseFrequent shifts in perspective and skillful use of narratorsSymbolic and suggestive imagery
- Recurring Motifs
- memory and forgettingsight and blindnessvoice and narrationbureaucracy and quotidian absurdityexile and identity
Health
-
Stroke1993Died of a stroke in 1993
Legacy
Gert Hofmann is regarded for his delicate treatment of memory, voice, and history; international recognition was amplified by English translations by his son Michael Hofmann. His works on the Holocaust and his parable-like short fiction have been critically acclaimed.
Academic Societies
- Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung
In Popular Culture
- Unser Man in Madras was adapted into a short film (2014)
- Revival and reassessment abroad through English translations, notably by his son Michael Hofmann
Trivia
- His son Michael Hofmann is a poet and translated many of his works into English.
- Moved with his family to Leipzig in 1948 and fled East Germany in 1951 to continue studies in Freiburg.
- He began his literary career writing radio plays.
- Posthumously awarded the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize in 1995 together with his son for The Film Explainer.