W. G. Sebald
Encyclopedia
W. G. Maximilian Sebald (18 May 1944, Wertach im Allgäu – 14 December 2001, Norfolk
, England
) was a German
writer
and academic. At the time of his death at the age of 57, he was being cited by many literary critics as one of the greatest living authors and had been tipped as a possible future winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
. In a 2007 interview, Horace Engdahl, former secretary of the Swedish Academy, mentioned Sebald, Ryszard Kapuściński
and Jacques Derrida
as three recently deceased writers who would have been worthy laureates.
, Bavaria
, one of four children of Rosa and Georg Sebald. From 1948 to 1963, he lived in Sonthofen
. His father joined the Reichswehr
in 1929 and remained in the Wehrmacht
under the Nazis
. His father remained a detached figure, a prisoner of war
until 1947; a grandfather was the most important male presence in his early years. Sebald was shown images of the Holocaust while at school in Oberstdorf
and recalled that no one knew how to explain what they had just seen. The Holocaust and post-war Germany loom large in his work.
Sebald studied German literature at the University of Freiburg
, where he received a degree in 1965. He was a research student at the University of Manchester from 1966 to 1969. He returned to Germany for a year hoping to work as a teacher but could not settle. In 1970 he became a lecturer at the University of East Anglia
(UEA). He married Ute in 1967. In 1987 he was appointed to a chair of European literature
at UEA. In 1989 he became the founding director of the British Centre for Literary Translation. He lived at Wymondham
and Poringland
while at UEA.
Sebald died in a car crash near Norwich
in December 2001, losing control after suffering a heart attack. He was driving with his daughter Anna, who survived the crash. He is buried in St. Andrew's churchyard in Framingham Earl
, close to where he lived.
His distinctive and innovative novels were written in German but are well-known in English translations, principally by Anthea Bell
and Michael Hulse
, which he supervised closely. They include Austerlitz
, The Rings of Saturn
, The Emigrants and Vertigo
. They are notable for their curious and wide-ranging mixture of fact (or apparent fact), recollection and fiction, often punctuated by indistinct black-and-white photographs set in evocative counterpoint to the narrative rather than illustrating it directly. His novels are presented as observations and recollections made while traveling around Europe. They also have a dry and mischievous sense of humour.
Sebald was also the author of three books of poetry: For Years Now
with Tess Jaray
(2001), After Nature (2002), and Unrecounted (2004).
, especially "The Garden of Forking Paths
" and "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius
", were a major influence on Sebald. (Tlön appears in The Rings of Saturn.)
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) was a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and academic. At the time of his death at the age of 57, he was being cited by many literary critics as one of the greatest living authors and had been tipped as a possible future winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
. In a 2007 interview, Horace Engdahl, former secretary of the Swedish Academy, mentioned Sebald, Ryszard Kapuściński
Ryszard Kapuscinski
Ryszard Kapuściński was a Polish journalist and writer whose dispatches in book form brought him a global reputation. Also a photographer and poet, he was born in Pińsknow in Belarusin the Kresy Wschodnie or eastern borderlands of the second Polish Republic, into poverty: he would say later that...
and Jacques Derrida
Jacques Derrida
Jacques Derrida was a French philosopher, born in French Algeria. He developed the critical theory known as deconstruction and his work has been labeled as post-structuralism and associated with postmodern philosophy...
as three recently deceased writers who would have been worthy laureates.
Life
Sebald grew up in WertachWertach
Wertach is a small town in the Oberallgäu district, southern Bavaria, Germany, in the German Alps. It is situated on the river Wertach, southeast of Kempten. The town was the childhood home of the writer W. G. Sebald....
, Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, one of four children of Rosa and Georg Sebald. From 1948 to 1963, he lived in Sonthofen
Sonthofen
Sonthofen is the most southerly town of Germany, located in the Oberallgäu region of the Bavarian Alps. Neighbouring Oberstdorf is situated 14 km farther south but is not classified as a town. Sonthofen is located at...
. His father joined the Reichswehr
Reichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
in 1929 and remained in the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
under the Nazis
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. His father remained a detached figure, a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
until 1947; a grandfather was the most important male presence in his early years. Sebald was shown images of the Holocaust while at school in Oberstdorf
Oberstdorf
Oberstdorf is a municipality and skiing and hiking town in southwest Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps.At the center of Oberstdorf is a church whose tall spire serves as a landmark for navigating around town. The summits of the Nebelhorn and Fellhorn provide...
and recalled that no one knew how to explain what they had just seen. The Holocaust and post-war Germany loom large in his work.
Sebald studied German literature at the University of Freiburg
University of Freiburg
The University of Freiburg , sometimes referred to in English as the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.The university was founded in 1457 by the Habsburg dynasty as the...
, where he received a degree in 1965. He was a research student at the University of Manchester from 1966 to 1969. He returned to Germany for a year hoping to work as a teacher but could not settle. In 1970 he became a lecturer at the University of East Anglia
University of East Anglia
The University of East Anglia is a public research university based in Norwich, United Kingdom. It was established in 1963, and is a founder-member of the 1994 Group of research-intensive universities.-History:...
(UEA). He married Ute in 1967. In 1987 he was appointed to a chair of European literature
European literature
European literature refers to the literature of Europe.European literature includes literature in many languages; among the most important of the modern written works are those in English, Spanish, French, Dutch, Polish, German, Italian, Modern Greek, Czech and Russian and works by the...
at UEA. In 1989 he became the founding director of the British Centre for Literary Translation. He lived at Wymondham
Wymondham
Wymondham is a historic market town and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It lies 9.5 miles to the south west of the city of Norwich, on the A11 road to Thetford and London.- Before The Great Fire :...
and Poringland
Poringland
Poringland is a village in the constituency of South Norfolk, England. It covers an area of and had a population of 3,261 in 1,403 households as of the 2001 census....
while at UEA.
Sebald died in a car crash near Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
in December 2001, losing control after suffering a heart attack. He was driving with his daughter Anna, who survived the crash. He is buried in St. Andrew's churchyard in Framingham Earl
Framingham Earl
Framingham Earl is a small village situated south of Norwich, in the English county of Norfolk. It is next to Poringland and Framingham Pigot. It covers an area of and had a population of 834 in 354 households as of the 2001 census....
, close to where he lived.
Work
Sebald's works are largely concerned with the theme of memory, both personal and collective. They are, in particular, attempts to reconcile himself with, and deal in literary terms with, the trauma of the Second World War and its effect on the German people. In On the Natural History of Destruction (1997), he wrote a major essay on the wartime bombing of German cities and the absence in German writing of any real response. His concern with the Holocaust is expressed in several books delicately tracing his own biographical connections with Jews.His distinctive and innovative novels were written in German but are well-known in English translations, principally by Anthea Bell
Anthea Bell
Anthea Bell OBE is a British translator who has translated numerous literary works, especially children's literature, from French, German, Danish and Polish to English...
and Michael Hulse
Michael Hulse
Michael Hulse is an English translator, critic, and poet.-Life and Works:Hulse has translated over sixty books from the German, among them works by Goethe, Rilke, and Jakob Wassermann. He is nowadays most familiar as the translator of three of W. G. Sebald's books: The Emigrants, The Rings of...
, which he supervised closely. They include Austerlitz
Austerlitz (novel)
Austerlitz is the final novel of W. G. Sebald, published in 2001. The book received the National Book Critics Circle Award.-Plot summary:...
, The Rings of Saturn
The rings of saturn
The Rings of Saturn is a novel by W. G. Sebald and was published in English in 1998.The second novel of W. G. Sebald to be translated into English, The Rings of Saturn is the account of the narrator, also named W. G. Sebald, on a walking tour of Suffolk...
, The Emigrants and Vertigo
Vertigo (book)
Vertigo is a book by German author W. G. Sebald. The book functions along with Sebald's subsequent critically successful works The Emigrants and The Rings of Saturn as a trilogy...
. They are notable for their curious and wide-ranging mixture of fact (or apparent fact), recollection and fiction, often punctuated by indistinct black-and-white photographs set in evocative counterpoint to the narrative rather than illustrating it directly. His novels are presented as observations and recollections made while traveling around Europe. They also have a dry and mischievous sense of humour.
Sebald was also the author of three books of poetry: For Years Now
For Years Now
For Years Now is a book of 23 short story/poems by the German writer W.G. Sebald with images provided by British visual artist, Tess Jaray. It was published by Short Books, London in 2001.-References:...
with Tess Jaray
Tess Jaray
Tess Jaray RA is the painter who designed Centenary Square, Birmingham, England and the forecourt for the New British Embassy, Moscow.Her work is characterised by the enigmatic interaction of forms and colours...
(2001), After Nature (2002), and Unrecounted (2004).
Works
- 1988 After Nature. London: Hamish Hamilton. (Nach der Natur. Ein Elementargedicht) English ed. 2002
- 1990 VertigoVertigo (book)Vertigo is a book by German author W. G. Sebald. The book functions along with Sebald's subsequent critically successful works The Emigrants and The Rings of Saturn as a trilogy...
. London: Harvill. (Schwindel. Gefühle) English ed. 1999 - 1992 The Emigrants. London: Harvill. (Die Ausgewanderten. Vier lange Erzählungen) English ed. 1996
- 1995 The Rings of SaturnThe rings of saturnThe Rings of Saturn is a novel by W. G. Sebald and was published in English in 1998.The second novel of W. G. Sebald to be translated into English, The Rings of Saturn is the account of the narrator, also named W. G. Sebald, on a walking tour of Suffolk...
. London: Harvill. (Die Ringe des Saturn. Eine englische Wallfahrt) English ed. 1998 - 1999 On the Natural History of Destruction. London: Hamish Hamilton. (Luftkrieg und Literatur: Mit einem Essay zu Alfred Andersch) English ed. 2003
- 2001 AusterlitzAusterlitz (novel)Austerlitz is the final novel of W. G. Sebald, published in 2001. The book received the National Book Critics Circle Award.-Plot summary:...
. London: Hamish Hamilton. (Austerlitz) - 2001 For Years NowFor Years NowFor Years Now is a book of 23 short story/poems by the German writer W.G. Sebald with images provided by British visual artist, Tess Jaray. It was published by Short Books, London in 2001.-References:...
. London: Short Books. - 2003 Unrecounted London: Hamish Hamilton. (Unerzählt, 33 Texte) English ed. 2004
- 2003 Campo Santo. London: Hamish Hamilton. (Campo Santo, Prosa, Essays) English ed. 2005
Influences
The works of Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis Borges
Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo , known as Jorge Luis Borges , was an Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator born in Buenos Aires. In 1914 his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school, receiving his baccalauréat from the Collège de Genève in 1918. The family...
, especially "The Garden of Forking Paths
The Garden of Forking Paths
"The Garden of Forking Paths" is a 1941 short story by Argentine writer and poet Jorge Luis Borges. It is the title story in the collection El jardín de senderos que se bifurcan , which was republished in its entirety in Ficciones in 1944...
" and "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius
Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius
"Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" is a short story by the 20th century Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. The story was first published in the Argentine journal Sur, May 1940. The "postscript" dated 1947 is intended to be anachronistic, set seven years in the future...
", were a major influence on Sebald. (Tlön appears in The Rings of Saturn.)
External links
- Complete bibliography of Sebald's works
- "The last word", the last interview at Guardian Unlimited
- Looking and Looking Away, Stephen Mitchelmore on the writing of WG Sebald
- Audio Interview with Sebald on KCRW's Bookworm
- Sebald-Forum
- Excerpt from Austerlitz in News from the Republic of LettersNews from the Republic of LettersNews from the Republic of Letters is the third magazine collaboration between Saul Bellow and Keith Botsford, following Noble Savage and ANON. The journal, originally based in Boston and now operated from the editor's home in Costa Rica, publishes new and newly-discovered writings from American and...