Polish and English Translations of Horst Bienek and the Question of Silesian Identity

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46991/TSTP/2024.4.2.014

Keywords:

Horst Bienek, literary translation, Upper Silesia, Identity

Abstract

Horst Bienek (1930-1990) was one of the greatest German writers of the twentieth century. He was born in Gleiwitz, in Upper Silesia, and his works contain many references to Silesian culture and language. This, however, is often overlooked in his translations, both into Polish and English. It seems that Bienek’s Germanness is overwhelming for his translators who see in him a contemporary embodiment of Sehnsuht – a nostalgic desire for the past. However, the most important aspect of Bienek’s writing is his multiculturalism, expressed in the use of toponyms, but also dialectical lexical elements. They play an important role in the work of the Upper Silesian writer, because thanks to them it is possible to express the historical truth of the complicated relations between Poles, Silesians and Germans.

Author Biography

  • Daniel Pietrek, University of Opole

    PhD, Dlitt., Associate Professor at the University of Opole, Head of the Department of German Literature at the Institute of Literatures, UO. His main fields of research include German literature and culture of the 20th century, Polish-German literary and cultural relations, German-language Silesian literature and comparative literary studies. Multiple scholarship holder (between 2010 and 2011 and in 2015 and 2022) of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (“Humboldt Research Fellowship for Experienced Researchers”). Between 2002 and 2011, he compiled the legacy of Horst Bienk in the Archives of Horst Bienk, which resulted in a 562-page monograph entitled Ich erschreibe mich selbst. (Author) Biografisches Schreiben bei Horst Bienek, published in 2012 by Thelem Verlag publishing house in Dresden, for which he received the 2014 Horst Bienek Award from the Bavarian Academy of Arts.

References

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Pietrek, Daniel. 2022. “Hinter diesen oft grellen Kulissen spielte sich sein anderes Leben ab, sein Leben voller: Solidarität und Freundlichkeit, sein entschiedenes Eintreten für andere…” Wer hat Angst vor Multikulturalität? Erfahrungen und Vorstellungen in der deutschen und polnischen Kultur. Edited by Hans-Jürgen Bömelburg and Izabela Surynt. Wiesbaden: Studien zur Multikulturalität, vol. 5: 275–286.

Pietrek, Daniel. 2023. “Horst Bieneks oberschlesische Bilder (Schlesien).” Von Popkultur bis Stereotyp. Handbuch der deutsch-polnischen Kommunikation. Teilband 3, edited by Sylwia Dec-Pustelnik et al. Wiesbaden: Studien zur Multikulturalität 1(3): 139–162.

Laube, Reinhard, and Nolte, Verena (Eds.). 2012. Horst Bienek – Ein Schriftsteller in den Extremen des 20. Jahrhunderts. Göttingen.

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Published

2024-12-21

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How to Cite

Pietrek, Daniel. 2024. “Polish and English Translations of Horst Bienek and the Question of Silesian Identity”. Translation Studies: Theory and Practice 4 (2(8): 14-21. https://doi.org/10.46991/TSTP/2024.4.2.014.

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