Fritz Hochwälder
Encyclopedia
Fritz Hochwälder also known as Fritz Hochwaelder, was an Austria
n playwright. Known for his spare prose and strong moralist themes, Hochwälder won several literary awards, including the Austrian State Prize for Literature in 1966. Most of his plays were first played at the Burgtheater in Vienna
.
Hochwälder wrote social and political dramas, using historical themes in his plays. One of his earlier works Das Heilige Experiment (The Strong Are Lonely, 1943) drew on the violent dismantling of a utopian Jesuit settlement by the Spaniards in Paraguay
in the 1760s and Der offentliche Anklager (The Public Prosecutor, 1948) delved into the violence of the French Revolution
. The theme of violence was a major factor in his own life--in fact, without the Nazi rise to power, Hochwälder may not have become a successful playwright.
Before the beginning of World War II
, Hochwälder worked as a craftsman (an upholsterer’s apprentice) in Vienna. In 1938, Hochwälder escaped Austria and the Nazis by entering Switzerland
illegally. He escaped after waiting futilely for an entry visa from any country and in this way his experiences reinforced the Zionist
leader Chaim Weizmann
's ironic quip that in those days the world was divided into two kinds of countries: countries that wanted to be rid of Jews and the those that refused to accept them. (Hochwälder's parents were both murdered in Theresienstadt concentration camp
in the Czech Republic.)
After entering Switzerland, Hochwälder spend some time in refugee camps. As he was barred by the Swiss from working in his profession, he began in earnest to write plays (he had also written plays in pre-war Vienna without much critical success)
After he left the camps, he lived in Zurich where he met and was influenced by Georg Kaiser
, another exiled playwright. Kaiser was his senior by several decades and also wrote tightly constructed plays with psychological underpinnings and a strong moralist stance. Hochwälder's 1945 play, Der Flüchtling (The Refugee), was attributed by the author to a suggestion from the German dramatist.
Martin Esslin
, the renowned drama professor and theater critic, wrote in the introduction to The Public Prosecutor and Other Plays: "No one who has come into contact with Hochwälder's dramatic work, no one who has been privileged to meet him in person, can fail to be impressed by the integrity, the sheer straightforward commitment to the highest value of decency and civilization that are the hallmarks of the writer and craftsman as well as the man."
Esslin, who translated some of Hochwälder's plays into English, also commented on the juxtaposition of violent themes with a humanistic message. "Again and again the message that his plays leave with the attentive reader and spectator is one of the humanity, forgiveness, reconciliation, and a refusal to fall into the trap set by the violent to the nonviolent, of converting them to their own methods."
Esslin, who coined the term "Theatre of the Absurd
", may well have found compelling Hochwälder's often paradoxical plot twists. For example, Der Himbeerpflucker (The Raspberry Picker, 1965) shows how the leaders of an Austrian town mistake a small town crook for a Nazi war criminal and treat him as a returning hero. This play was undoubtedly a homage to Nikolai Gogol
's The Government Inspector, but Hochwälder was able to put his own historical spin and moral message on the saga of mistaken identity.
Although Hochwälder spent most of his life after the war in Switzerland, he was buried in Vienna.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n playwright. Known for his spare prose and strong moralist themes, Hochwälder won several literary awards, including the Austrian State Prize for Literature in 1966. Most of his plays were first played at the Burgtheater in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.
Hochwälder wrote social and political dramas, using historical themes in his plays. One of his earlier works Das Heilige Experiment (The Strong Are Lonely, 1943) drew on the violent dismantling of a utopian Jesuit settlement by the Spaniards in Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
in the 1760s and Der offentliche Anklager (The Public Prosecutor, 1948) delved into the violence of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. The theme of violence was a major factor in his own life--in fact, without the Nazi rise to power, Hochwälder may not have become a successful playwright.
Before the beginning of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Hochwälder worked as a craftsman (an upholsterer’s apprentice) in Vienna. In 1938, Hochwälder escaped Austria and the Nazis by entering Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
illegally. He escaped after waiting futilely for an entry visa from any country and in this way his experiences reinforced the Zionist
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
leader Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann, , was a Zionist leader, President of the Zionist Organization, and the first President of the State of Israel. He was elected on 1 February 1949, and served until his death in 1952....
's ironic quip that in those days the world was divided into two kinds of countries: countries that wanted to be rid of Jews and the those that refused to accept them. (Hochwälder's parents were both murdered in Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...
in the Czech Republic.)
After entering Switzerland, Hochwälder spend some time in refugee camps. As he was barred by the Swiss from working in his profession, he began in earnest to write plays (he had also written plays in pre-war Vienna without much critical success)
After he left the camps, he lived in Zurich where he met and was influenced by Georg Kaiser
Georg Kaiser
Friedrich Carl Georg Kaiser, called Georg Kaiser, was a German dramatist.-Biography:Kaiser was born at Magdeburg....
, another exiled playwright. Kaiser was his senior by several decades and also wrote tightly constructed plays with psychological underpinnings and a strong moralist stance. Hochwälder's 1945 play, Der Flüchtling (The Refugee), was attributed by the author to a suggestion from the German dramatist.
Martin Esslin
Martin Esslin
Martin Julius Esslin OBE was a Hungarian-born English producer and playwright dramatist, journalist, adaptor and translator, critic, academic scholar and professor of drama best known for coining the term "Theatre of the Absurd" in his work of that name...
, the renowned drama professor and theater critic, wrote in the introduction to The Public Prosecutor and Other Plays: "No one who has come into contact with Hochwälder's dramatic work, no one who has been privileged to meet him in person, can fail to be impressed by the integrity, the sheer straightforward commitment to the highest value of decency and civilization that are the hallmarks of the writer and craftsman as well as the man."
Esslin, who translated some of Hochwälder's plays into English, also commented on the juxtaposition of violent themes with a humanistic message. "Again and again the message that his plays leave with the attentive reader and spectator is one of the humanity, forgiveness, reconciliation, and a refusal to fall into the trap set by the violent to the nonviolent, of converting them to their own methods."
Esslin, who coined the term "Theatre of the Absurd
Theatre of the Absurd
The Theatre of the Absurd is a designation for particular plays of absurdist fiction, written by a number of primarily European playwrights in the late 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, as well as to the style of theatre which has evolved from their work...
", may well have found compelling Hochwälder's often paradoxical plot twists. For example, Der Himbeerpflucker (The Raspberry Picker, 1965) shows how the leaders of an Austrian town mistake a small town crook for a Nazi war criminal and treat him as a returning hero. This play was undoubtedly a homage to Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol was a Ukrainian-born Russian dramatist and novelist.Considered by his contemporaries one of the preeminent figures of the natural school of Russian literary realism, later critics have found in Gogol's work a fundamentally romantic sensibility, with strains of Surrealism...
's The Government Inspector, but Hochwälder was able to put his own historical spin and moral message on the saga of mistaken identity.
Although Hochwälder spent most of his life after the war in Switzerland, he was buried in Vienna.
Works
- Die unziemliche Neugier (1934; published in 1979)
- Esther (1940)
- Das heilige Experiment (1942)
- Hôtel du Commerce (1944)
- Meier Helmbrecht (1946)
- Der öffentliche Ankläger (1948)
- Donadieu (1953)
- Die Herberge (1955)
- Der Unschuldige (1958)
- Donnerstag (1959)
- Holokaust.(Totengericht) (1960; published 1998)
- 1003 (1963)
- Der Himbeerpflücker (1964)
- Der Befehl (1968)
- Lazaretti oder Der Säbeltiger (1973)
- Die Prinzessin von Chimay (1982)
- Der verschwundene Mond (1982)
- Die Bürgschaft (1984)
- Donnerstag. Roman (1995)