Judith Hermann becomes Grimm Poetics Professor in the summer semester

Judith Hermann (born 1970) has been one of the most important voices in contemporary German-language literature since her prose debut, the short story collection "Sommerhaus später" (1998). She is considered a masterful storyteller of short prose forms. With "Nichts als Gespenster" (2003), "Alice" (2009) and "Lettipark" (2016), she has since published a total of four volumes of short stories. She has also proven herself as a novelist with "Aller Liebe Anfang" (2014) and "Daheim" (2021). With over 250,000 copies sold, "Sommerhaus, später" is one of the biggest literary successes of recent years. The book has also been translated into 17 languages.

"Hermann's fictional texts are characterized by a special, sensual narrative style, a special 'sound'," emphasizes Prof. Dr. Stefanie Kreuzer, who organizes the Grimm Poetics Professorship and was able to win the author over this year. "Hermann's stories are characterized by poetic descriptions of everyday life as well as a focus on essential themes. In a manner typical of her time and at the same time with timeless validity, she addresses relationship constellations, the coexistence of people and family constellations as well as existential experiences with illness, dying and death in her prose texts, always focusing on her characters at different ages and stages of life." Hermann's works have been translated into numerous languages, including Chinese, Danish, English, French, Greek, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Dutch, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Russian, Swedish, Serbo-Croatian, Slovenian, Spanish, Czech, Turkish and Ukrainian.

Hermann's stories have also been adapted for film - including in "Tompson Musik" (D 2004; director: Jakob Ziemnicki) and "Nichts als Gespenster" (D 2007; director: Martin Gypkens). She has also received numerous prizes and awards for her prose texts, including the Kleist Prize, the Bremen Literature Prize, the LiteraturTour Nord Prize and the Wilhelm Raabe Literature Prize. In the winter semester 2021/22, she gave the Frankfurt Poetry Lectures. The equally poetological and personal text on these lectures was published in 2023 under the title "Wir hätten uns alles gesagt".

The events of the Grimm Poetry Professorship with Judith Hermann are expected to take place on the following dates

Wed., June 25, 2025, 6-8 p.m., Campus Center | public poetics lecture
Thurs., June 26, 2025, 12-4 p.m. | poetics seminar (for Kassel students only)
Thurs., June 26, 2025, 6-8 p.m., Campus Center | public reading

Background: The Brothers Grimm Poetry Professorship
The Poetry Professorship has been awarded by the University of Kassel since 1985. The prize money is currently donated by the Kasseler Sparkasse. Significant authors, playwrights and filmmakers have already been honored - including Herta Müller (1998), Volker Schlöndorff (2011), Felicitas Hoppe (2019), Terézia Mora (2021), Doris Dörrie (2022), Feridun Zaimoglu (2023) and the filmmaker Johannes Schmid (2024). In public events, the award winners reflect on artistic processes and their work.

Information at: https://uni-kassel.de/go/gpp-hermann

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Stefanie Kreuzer
New German Literature / Media Studies
Tel.: 0561 - 804-3336 (secretary's office)
Mail: stefanie.kreuzer[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Home: www.uni-kassel.de/go/kreuzer