Margarete Susman (married: Margarete von Bendemann; October 14, 1872 – January 16, 1966) was a

German-Jewish The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321 CE, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (c. 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish commu ...

poet, writer, and critic who lived much of her life in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. The author of hundreds of essays, five collections of poetry, and notable literary-critical works, she distinguished herself as a philosophical writer addressing vital questions in literature, politics, culture and religion.Hahn, Barbara (March 1, 2009).
Margarete Susman
." ''Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia''. Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved 2016-06-15.Rubin, Abraham (Winter 2016). "Nihilism, Modernity and the 'Jewish Spirit': Margarete Susman's Transvaluation of a Fin-de-Siècle Trope." ''Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies'', Vol. 34, No. 2. p. 1-25. doi:10.1353/sho.2016.0006. Here: p. 2. Her 1946 work ''Das Buch Hiob und das Schicksal des jüdischen Volkes'' (1946), a reflection on Jewish history through the lens of the Biblical

book of Job The Book of Job (), or simply Job, is a book found in the Ketuvim ("Writings") section of the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Poetic Books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The language of the Book of Job, combining post-Babylonia ...

, was one of the earliest postwar Jewish theological responses to the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

.Hillman, Susanne (2014). A Few Human Beings Walking Hand in Hand': Margarete Susman, Leonhard Ragaz, and the Origins of the Jewish-Christian Dialogue in Zurich." ''Leo Baeck Institute Year Book''. Vol. 59, p. 141-162. doi:10.1093/leobaeck/ybu003. Here: p. 155.

Biography

Susman was born in Hamburg, the daughter of Adolph Susman, a businessman (1836–1892), and Jenni Susman (née Katzenstein, 1845–1906).Bigler-Marschall, Ingred (September 11, 2012).
Susman, Margarete
" ''Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz'' (www.hls-dhs-dss.ch). Retrieved 2016-06-10. Her parents were of Jewish heritage, with a mostly secular outlook, and Susman received no formal Jewish education as a child.Hillman (2014), p. 143. When she was around 10 or 11 years old, her family moved to

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

, Switzerland. In Zurich she attended a public school for girls ( Höhere Töchterschule), where she was educated in the

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

faith. Later, when she was in her twenties, she sought out further instruction in

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

from the

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

rabbi Caesar Seligmann. Although her father would not consent to her attending Zurich University, she eventually studied art in Düsseldorf and Paris; and, later, art history and philosophy in Munich. In Munich she met Gertrud Kantorowicz, with whom she formed a lasting friendship. At the beginning of the 1900s she moved to Berlin, where she again studied philosophy, and participated in the seminars of

Georg Simmel Georg Simmel (; ; 1 March 1858 – 26 September 1918) was a German sociologist, philosopher, and critic. Simmel was influential in the field of sociology. Simmel was one of the first generation of German sociologists: his neo-Kantian approach ...

, who remained her friend and mentor until his death in 1918. In the circle around Simmel she also formed friendships with the religious philosopher

Martin Buber Martin Buber (; , ; ; 8 February 1878 – 13 June 1965) was an Austrian-Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of existentialism centered on the distinction between the I and Thou, I–Thou relationship and the I� ...

and the philosopher and historian Bernhard Groethuysen. In the course of her art studies Susman met the painter and art historian Eduard von Bendemann (born 1877, a grandson of the painter Eduard Bendemann), whom she married in 1906. Their son Erwin was born the same year. During the First World War the family lived in Rüschlikon, Switzerland, and afterward returned to Germany, settling in a small village in southern Germany, and later in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

. Susman and her husband divorced in 1928. From 1907 through the end of 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 ...

, Susman was a regular contributor to the

Frankfurter Zeitung The ''Frankfurter Zeitung'' (, ) was a German-language newspaper that appeared from 1856 to 1943. It emerged from a market letter that was published in Frankfurt. In Nazi Germany, it was considered the only mass publication not completely control ...

. She also contributed to Buber's journal ''

Der Jude ''Der Jude '' (The Jew) was a monthly magazine in German founded by Martin Buber and Salman Schocken. It was published from 1916 to 1928. History The paper was established by Martin Buber. Contributors included Max Mayer, Max Mayer Präger, , ...

'' (The Jew), founded during World War I, and, after 1925, to the Frankfurt-based German-Jewish periodical ''Der Morgen'' (The Morning). Following the seizure of power by Hitler and the

National Socialists Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

in Germany in 1933, Susman emigrated to Zurich, where she spent the rest of her life. There she came into close association with the Protestant socialist theologian Leonhard Ragaz, and became a contributor to Ragaz's journal ''Neue Wege'' (New paths).Hillman (2014), p. 144-145. Not long before her death in Zurich, in 1966, Susmann completed a memoir, ''Ich habe viele Leben gelebt'' (I have lived many lives).

Selected works

Poetry collections * ''Mein Land: Gedichte''. 1901 * ''Neue Gedichte''. 1907 * ''Vom Sinn der Liebe.'' 1912 * ''Die Liebenden: drei dramatische Gedichte.'' 1917 * ''Lieder von Tod und Erlösung.'' 1922 * ''Aus sich wandelnder Zeit.'' 1953 Prose * ''Das Wesen der modernen deutschen Lyrik'' he nature of modern German lyrical poetry 1910 * ''Der Expressionismus'' xpressionism 1918 * ''Die Frauen der Romantik'' omen of the Romantic period 1929. 3rd expanded and revised edition, 1960 * ''Das Buch Hiob und das Schicksal des jüdischen Volkes'' he Book of Job and the fate of the Jewish people 1946 * ''Deutung einer grossen Liebe: Goethe und Charlotte von Stein'' nterpretation of a great love: Goethe and Charlotte von Stein 1951 * ''Gestalten und Kreise'' ersonalities and groups 1954 * ''Die geistige Gestalt Georg Simmels'' he spiritual character of Georg Simmel 1959. * ''Ich habe viele Leben gelebt: Erinnerungen'' emoir 1964 * ''Vom Geheimnis der Freiheit: Gesammelte Aufsätze, 1914-1964'' ollected essays 1965 * ''Gesammelte Schriften.'' 5 vols., ed. by Anke Gilleir and Barbara Hahn ollected works 2022 Essays in translation *"Franz Rosenzweig's The Star of Redemption", translated by Joachim Neugroschel. In:

Arthur A. Cohen Arthur Allen Cohen (June 25, 1928 – September 30, 1986) was an American scholar, art critic, theology, theologian, publisher, and author. Scholar David Stern (academic), David M. Stern has written of Cohen: "Though he was best known as a novel ...

(ed.), ''The Jew, Essays from Martin Buber's Journal Der Jude, 1916-1928''. University of Alabama Press, 1980. *"God the creator". In:

Nahum N. Glatzer Nahum Norbert Glatzer (March 25, 1903 – February 27, 1990) was an Austrian and American scholar of Jewish history and philosophy from antiquity to mid 20th century. Life Glatzer was born in Lemberg, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empir ...

(Ed.),
The Dimensions of Job: A Study and Selected Readings
'. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2002 (originally published by Schocken Books, 1969). . p. 86-92. According to the editor's note, this piece is a translation of the introductory part of Susman's essay on

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a novelist and writer from Prague who was Jewish, Austrian, and Czech and wrote in German. He is widely regarded as a major figure of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of Litera ...

, contained in her book ''Gestalten und Kreise'' (1954); the translation was first published in the

Labor Zionist Labor Zionism () or socialist Zionism () is the Left-wing politics, left-wing, socialism, socialist variant of Zionism. For many years, it was the most significant tendency among Zionists and Zionist organizations, and was seen as the Zionist ...

periodical ''Jewish Frontier'' (New York), vol. 23, September 1956

References

External links

Guide to the Papers of Margarete Susman
Leo Baeck Institute, New York {{DEFAULTSORT:Susman, Margarete 1872 births 1966 deaths German expatriates in Switzerland German women poets Jewish poets Jewish women writers Writers from Hamburg German women essayists 20th-century German essayists German women philosophers 19th-century German philosophers 20th-century German philosophers