Marlen Haushofer (born Marie Helene Frauendorfer; 11 April 1920 – 21 March 1970) was an Austrian author, most famous for her novel ''
The Wall
''The Wall'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest/ EMI and Columbia/ CBS Records. It is a rock opera which explores Pink, a jaded rock star, as he constructs a psychologic ...
'' (1963).
Biography
Marie Helene Frauendorfer was born in Frauenstein,
Municipality Moln in Upper Austria. She attended Catholic boarding school in
Linz
Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...
, and went on to study German literature in Vienna and in
Graz
Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...
. After her school years she settled in
Steyr
Steyr (; ) is a statutory city (Austria), statutory city, located in the Austrian federal state of Upper Austria. It is the administrative capital, though not part of Steyr-Land District. Steyr is Austria's 12th most populated town and the 3rd lar ...
.
In 1941, she married Manfred Haushofer, a dentist, and had two sons, Christian and Manfred. They divorced in 1950, only to remarry each other in 1958.
Work
Haushofer began her writing career in 1946, publishing short stories in newspapers and magazines. In 1952, she published her first book, ''Das fünfte Jahr'', which earned her the Österreichische Förderungspreis für Literatur in 1953. She went on to publish her first novel, ''A Handful of Life'' in 1955, and in 1956, she won the
Theodor Körner Prize
The Theodor Körner Prize (German: ''Theodor-Körner-Preis'') is a set of annual Austrian awards bestowed by the Theodor Körner Fund in recognition of cultural and/or scientific advances.
The prize is awarded at the University of Vienna. The priz ...
for her contributions to art and culture. In 1958, her novella ''
Killing Stella'' was published.
''
The Wall
''The Wall'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest/ EMI and Columbia/ CBS Records. It is a rock opera which explores Pink, a jaded rock star, as he constructs a psychologic ...
'', considered her finest achievement, was completed in 1963. The novel was written out four times in