Hans Magnus Enzensberger, poet and author who explored the realities of postwar Germany and Europe – obituary
He pleaded for the importance of lasting literature in an increasingly distractable world
Stay updated with breaking news from Number Devil. Get real-time updates on events, politics, business, and more. Visit us for reliable news and exclusive interviews.
He pleaded for the importance of lasting literature in an increasingly distractable world
German poet, writer and editor determined that West Germany should not ignore its Nazi past
Hans Magnus Enzensberger, a poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, editor and translator whose wide-ranging intellect and writings resonated among We
Poet, essayist, journalist and social critic, he held wide influence among a postwar literary generation with works as intellectual as they were political.
He designed a fridge-magnet poem-kit (which, I believe, has now had a software program based on it). He wrote a skeptical book about Europe in 1987, before Europe was really a subject (Ach Europa! was the wonderful title of the original; Europe Europe in English). He wrote a children’s book, an opera libretto about a runaway Cuban slave, a world-best-selling math book (The Number Devil), a partial memoir (Tumult).