Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 8 (2003) Winner
Margot Bettauer Dembo
マルゴット・ベッタウアー・デンボ
Margot Bettauer Dembo
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1928-01-10 （Mannheim, Germany）
- Died
- 2019-07-10 （New York, United States） age 91
- Nationality
- German, American
- Languages
- German, English
- Residence History
- Toms River, New Jersey, United States → Ancramdale, New York, United States
Career
- Occupations
- Translator, Editor
- Active Years
- 1950-2019
- Influenced By
- Judith Hermann, Joachim Fest, Anna Seghers, Ödön von Horváth, Robert Gernhardt, Feridun Zaimoglu, Hermann Kant
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize | Summerhouse, Later (translation of Judith Hermann) | — | Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize (administering body) | 受賞 |
| 1994 | Goethe-Institut/Berlin Translator's Prize | — | — | Goethe-Institut | 受賞 |
Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize
2003
Work:
Summerhouse, Later (translation of Judith Hermann)
Organization:
Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize (administering body)
Result:
受賞
Goethe-Institut/Berlin Translator's Prize
1994
Organization:
Goethe-Institut
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Triumph of Hope: From Theresienstadt and Auschwitz to Israel
1998 Memoir / Non-fictionAn English translation of Ruth Elias's Holocaust memoir, presenting a testimony of survival and hope to English-speaking readers.
Holocaustmemorysurvival
Aftertime
1999 Novel (translation)English translation of a work by Olaf G. Klein, emphasizing faithful rendering of the author's voice into English.
memorypersonal history
Summerhouse, Later
2002 Short stories (translation)An English translation of Judith Hermann's collection 'Sommerhaus, Später'. The stories' portrayals of everyday dissonance and loss were highly regarded and led to a translation prize in 2003.
alienationlossfragments of everyday life
The Girl in the Red Coat
2003 Memoir / Non-fiction (translation)English translation of Roma Ligocka's memoir, introducing her Holocaust experiences and subsequent life to English readers.
Holocaustmemorysurvival
Inside Hitler's Bunker: The Last Days of the Third Reich
2004 History / Non-fiction (translation)An English translation of Joachim Fest's historical nonfiction, reconstructing the final days of the Third Reich from contemporary accounts.
World War IIThird Reichend of leadership
The Swimmer
2005 Novel (translation)English translation of a novel by Zsuzsa Bánk, recognized for conveying the author's literary nuances into English.
familythe pastmemory
Transit
2013 Novel (translation)A new English translation (NYRB) of Anna Seghers's major work, conveying the intersecting experiences of refugees and history to English readers.
exilewaridentity
The Seventh Cross
2018 Novel (translation)A new English translation (NYRB) of Anna Seghers's novel presenting themes of oppression and resistance during the Nazi era.
resistanceoppressionhistory
The Dead Girls' Class Trip
2021 Short stories (translation)A new English translation (NYRB) of Anna Seghers's short works, presenting her historical themes and visions to an English readership.
historymemoryhuman relations
Bibliography
- 1998 - Triumph of Hope: From Theresienstadt and Auschwitz to Israel (translated)
- 1999 - Aftertime (translated)
- 2002 - Summerhouse, Later (translated)
- 2003 - The Girl in the Red Coat (translated)
- 2004 - Inside Hitler's Bunker (translated)
- 2005 - The Swimmer (translated)
- 2013 - Transit (translated)
- 2018 - The Seventh Cross (translated)
- 2021 - The Dead Girls' Class Trip (translated)
Adaptations
- Translated the scripts for the documentary 'The Restless Conscience: Resistance to Hitler Within Germany 1933-1945'
- Translated the scripts for the documentary 'The Burning Wall'
Translations of Works
- Summerhouse, Later (Judith Hermann, English translation)
- Inside Hitler's Bunker (Joachim Fest, English translation)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Faithful yet fluent renderings into EnglishCareful, respectful tone for testimony and memoir translations
- Recurring Motifs
- memorywar and traumaexile and migration
Legacy
Margot Bettauer Dembo is recognized for bringing important German-language voices — including Holocaust testimony, World War II history, and contemporary German literature — to English readers. She won major translation prizes and was particularly acclaimed for translations of testimony and historical works.
Trivia
- Born in Mannheim in 1928 and emigrated to the United States with her family as a child.
- Specialized in translating from German into English, working on both fiction and non-fiction.
- Translated the script for 'The Restless Conscience', a documentary nominated for an Academy Award in 1992.
- Won the Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize (2003) and the Goethe-Institut/Berlin Translator's Prize (1994).