Richard A. Zipser Livres

Focusing on personal experiences during the Cold War, this memoir presents 58 short prose pieces reflecting Richard A. Zipser's observations in East Germany from the 1960s to the 1980s. As an American professor, he offers a rare insider perspective on the repressive regime, capturing moments and encounters that reveal the complexities of life behind the Iron Curtain. This companion to his earlier work provides unique insights into a vanished society, enriching readers' understanding of a totalitarian state through the eyes of an engaged outsider.

Set against the backdrop of communist East Germany in the 1970s and 1980s, this memoir delves into Richard A. Zipser's personal experiences and research, framed by a comprehensive Stasi file compiled on him. Through reports, letters, and his reflections, Zipser reveals a unique perspective on a society and literary scene largely inaccessible to Westerners. The narrative captures the complexities of his interactions with the regime and offers a vivid portrayal of life during the Cold War, making it a compelling historical account.

Seine Recherchen zur DDR-Literatur führten den amerikanischen Germanisten Richard Zipser ab 1973 wiederholt von Oberlin im US-Bundesstaat Ohio nach Ostberlin, Hauptstadt der DDR. Zeitgleich wurde seine Stasi-Akte angelegt, die bis 1988 auf viele hundert Seiten anwuchs. Diese Geheimdienstberichte gaben den Anstoß zu seinen Erinnerungen an die Literaturszene und den Alltag in der DDR. Aus den Kontakten zu zahlreichen Schriftstellern wurden mitunter Freundschaften wie die mit Jurek Becker, Elke Erb, Karl-Heinz Jakobs, Bernd Jentzsch, Sarah Kirsch, Ulrich Plenzdorf, Klaus Schlesinger und Christa Wolf. Zu denen, die über Zipser berichteten, zählen die Schriftsteller Uwe Berger, Fritz Rudolf Fries und Paul Wiens, der Verleger Konrad Reich, ein Juristen-Ehepaar sowie Stefan Heyms Haushälterin. Durch genaue Beobachtung, interessante Episoden und prägnante Zitate entsteht ein höchst persönliches Werk der Literaturgeschichte, das überraschende Einblicke gewährt.

This book is a survey and interpretation of Edward Bulwer-Lytton's relationship to German life and letters. It provides a detailed study of the influence that Goethe, Schiller, and German «Rosicrucianism» exerted upon his writings and artistic development. The impact that Bulwer-Lytton had on contemporary German literature and his critical reception in 19th-century Germany are also examined in depth.