Alexander Stephan
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Alexander Stephan (August 16, 1946 – May 29, 2009) was a specialist in
German literature German literature () comprises those literature, literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German parts of Switzerland and Belgium, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, South Tyrol in Italy ...
and
area studies Area studies, also known as regional studies, is an interdisciplinary field of research and scholarship pertaining to particular geographical, national/ federal, or cultural regions. The term exists primarily as a general description for what a ...
. He was a professor, Ohio Eminent Scholar, and Senior Fellow of the
Mershon Center for International Security Studies The Mershon Center for International Security Studies is a research institute at the Ohio State University. The current director is Dorothy Noyes. History The Mershon Center was founded in 1952 upon the death of Ralph D. Mershon, an alumnus o ...
at
Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...
(OSU).


Background

Stephan studied American and German literature at the Freie Universität in Berlin and at the
University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
. He obtained his Ph.D. from
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
.


Career

Subsequently, he taught at Princeton, the
University of California-Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
(UCLA) and
University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
. At Ohio State University, he held a research professorship in German literature and area studies. As professor of German literature, Stephan focused on the modern period. His publications covered the history of German exile literature, the
Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...
, and the literature of the
German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
(GDR). He was the author of books, among others, on
Anna Seghers Anna Seghers (; born ''Anna Reiling,'' 19 November 1900 – 1 June 1983), is the pseudonym of German writer Anna Reiling, who was notable for exploring and depicting the moral experience of the Second World War. Born into a Jewish family and mar ...
,
Christa Wolf Christa Wolf (; Ihlenfeld; 18 March 1929 – 1 December 2011) was a German novelist and essayist. She is considered one of the most important writers to emerge from the former East Germany.Max Frisch Max Rudolf Frisch (; 15 May 1911 – 4 April 1991) was a Swiss playwright and novelist. Frisch's works focused on problems of identity (social science), identity, individuality, Moral responsibility, responsibility, morality, and political commi ...
, and
Peter Weiss Peter Ulrich Weiss (8 November 1916 – 10 May 1982) was a German writer, painter, graphic artist, and experimental filmmaker of adopted Swedish nationality. He is particularly known for his plays ''Marat/Sade'' and '' The Investigation'' and h ...
. Stephan was also the first researcher who obtained access to the documents which the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
kept on German exile writers such as
Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...
,
Lion Feuchtwanger Lion Feuchtwanger (; 7 July 1884 – 21 December 1958) was a German Jewish novelist and playwright. A prominent figure in the literary world of Weimar Republic, Weimar Germany, he influenced contemporaries including playwright Bertolt Brecht. ...
,
Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novell ...
and Anna Seghers. At the OSU Mershon Center, Stephan concentrated on
international security ''International Security'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal in the field of international and national security. It was founded in 1976 and is edited by the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University and publis ...
and US-European cultural relations. He wrote about the impact of
American culture The culture of the United States encompasses various social behaviors, institutions, and Social norm, norms, including forms of Languages of the United States, speech, American literature, literature, Music of the United States, music, Visual a ...
on the GDR and published five collections of essays analyzing
Americanization Americanization or Americanisation (see spelling differences) is the influence of the American culture and economy on other countries outside the United States, including their media, cuisine, business practices, popular culture, technology ...
and
anti-Americanism Anti-Americanism (also called anti-American sentiment and Americanophobia) is a term that can describe several sentiments and po ...
in Germany and in Europe after 1945. Stephan was a founder of the book series Exilstudien/Exile Studies, a member of the German
PEN PEN may refer to: * (National Ecological Party), former name of the Brazilian political party Patriota (PATRI) * PEN International, a worldwide association of writers ** English PEN, the founding centre of PEN International ** PEN America, located ...
, and a recipient of grants from the Guggenheim Foundation,
Humboldt Foundation The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation () is a foundation that promotes international academic cooperation between scientists and scholars from Germany and abroad. Established by the government of the Federal Republic of Germany, it is funded by t ...
, and numerous other institutions. His publications were discussed on German television, by
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
, and in papers such as
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
,
The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of ...
,
The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...
, and
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
.


Legacy

A
Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...
honoring Stephan, and entitled, ''Kulturpolitik und Politik der Kultur/Cultural Politics and the Politics of Culture'' (Oxford) appeared in 2007. It was edited by Helen Fehervary and Bernd Fischer. His widow, Halina Stephan, is a Professor of Slavic and East European Languages and Literatures. She has been director of the Center for Slavic and East European Studies at Ohio State University. She specializes in
Russian avant-garde The Russian avant-garde was a large, influential wave of avant-garde modern art that flourished in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, approximately from 1890 to 1930—although some have placed its beginning as early as 1850 and its e ...
literature and Polish theatre.


Works

Books (selection): *''Überwacht, ausgebürgert, exiliert. Schriftsteller und der Staat''. Bielefeld, 2007. *''Im Visier des
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
. Deutsche Exilschriftsteller in den Akten amerikanischer Geheimdienste''. Stuttgart, 1995, rev. pb. Berlin, 1998 ** ''" Communazis": FBI Surveillance of German Émigré Writers'' (2000) *''
Anna Seghers Anna Seghers (; born ''Anna Reiling,'' 19 November 1900 – 1 June 1983), is the pseudonym of German writer Anna Reiling, who was notable for exploring and depicting the moral experience of the Second World War. Born into a Jewish family and mar ...
: 'Das siebte Kreuz'. Welt und Wirkung eines Romans''. Berlin, 1997. *''Anna Seghers im Exil''. Bonn, 1993. *''
Max Frisch Max Rudolf Frisch (; 15 May 1911 – 4 April 1991) was a Swiss playwright and novelist. Frisch's works focused on problems of identity (social science), identity, individuality, Moral responsibility, responsibility, morality, and political commi ...
''. München, 1983. *''
Christa Wolf Christa Wolf (; Ihlenfeld; 18 March 1929 – 1 December 2011) was a German novelist and essayist. She is considered one of the most important writers to emerge from the former East Germany.Culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
,
Diplomacy Diplomacy is the communication by representatives of State (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, non-governmental institutions intended to influence events in the international syste ...
, and
Anti-Americanism Anti-Americanism (also called anti-American sentiment and Americanophobia) is a term that can describe several sentiments and po ...
after 1945''. New York, 2006, pb. 2007. *''Das Amerika der Autoren. Von Kafka bis 09/11'' München, 2006. *''Exile and Otherness: New Approaches to the Experience of the Nazi Refugees''. Oxford, 2005. *''Refuge and Reality: Feuchtwanger and the European Émigrés in California'' (with Pól Ó Dochartaigh). Amsterdam, 2005. *''Americanization and Anti-Americanism. The German Encounter with American Culture After 1945''. New York, 2005, pb. 2007. *''Anna Seghers, Die Entscheidung. Roman''. Werkausgabe, vol. I, 7. Berlin, 2003. *Döblin, L. Feuchtwanger, A. Seghers, A. Zweig, ''Early 20th Century German Fiction''. New York, 2003, pb. 2003. *''Jeans, Rock und Vietnam. Amerikanische Kultur in der DDR'' (with Therese Hörnigk). Berlin, 2002. *''‘Rot = Braun’? Brecht Dialog 2000. Nationalsozialismus und Stalinismus bei Brecht und Zeitgenossen'' (with Therese Hörnigk). Berlin, 2000. *Uwe Johnson, ''Speculations About Jakob and Other Writings''. New York, 2000, pb. 2000. *''Themes and Structures. Studies in German Literature from
Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...
to the Present. A Festschrift for
Theodore Ziolkowski Theodore Ziolkowski (September 30, 1932 – December 5, 2020) was a scholar in the fields of German studies and comparative literature. He coined the term " fifth gospel genre". Early life Theodore J. Ziolkowski was born on September 30, 1932, i ...
''. Columbia, 1997. *Ulrich Plenzdorf, Günter Kunert, Anna Seghers, and others, ''The New Sufferings of Young W. and Other Stories from the German Democratic Republic'' (with Therese Hörnigk). New York, 1997, pb. 1997. *''Christa Wolf: The Author’s Dimension. Selected Essays''. New York and London, 1993; Chicago, 1995. *''Exil. Literatur und die Künste nach 1933''. Bonn, 1990. *''Schreiben im Exil. Zur Ästhetik der deutschen Exilliteratur 1933-1945'' (with Hans Wagener). Bonn, 1985. *''
Peter Weiss Peter Ulrich Weiss (8 November 1916 – 10 May 1982) was a German writer, painter, graphic artist, and experimental filmmaker of adopted Swedish nationality. He is particularly known for his plays ''Marat/Sade'' and '' The Investigation'' and h ...
. Die Ästhetik des Widerstands''. Frankfurt, 1983, 2nd ed. 1987, 3rd ed. 1990. *Editor of ''Exilstudien/Exile Studies. A Monograph Series''. New York, Oxford, 1993ff. (vols. 1-10, vols. 11 in preparation). TV and radio (selection): *''Left Behind: Popular culture, religiöser Fundamentalismus und Politik in den USA des George W. Bush'', TV lecture, Germany, 2005. *''
Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novell ...
und der CIA'', TV documentary, Germany, 2002. *''Exilanten und der CIA'', TV documentary, Germany, 2002. *''Brecht und das FBI'', TV documentary, Germany, 2001. *''Im Visier des FBI. Deutsche Autoren im US-Exil'', TV documentary (with Johannes Eglau), Germany, 1995.


See also

* Communazi


References


External links


Personal website at The Ohio State University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephan, Alexander 1946 births German Germanists University of Florida faculty Ohio State University faculty 2009 deaths University of Michigan alumni