Dr. Hans-Michael Speier is S14 Max Kade Writer-in-Residence

The German Department is hosting the Berlin-based poet, translator, and literary scholar Dr. Hans-Michael Speier this spring semester as Max Kade writer-in-residence. 

Having taught at the Free University of Berlin, the University at Leipzig, and several U.S. universities (Dartmouth and Middlebury among them), Micheal Speier looks forward to his second visit in the German Department at Georgetown. While at Georgetown, he will teach two courses (Berlin: Cultural Capital 1910-2010; Ingeborg Bachmann & Paul Celan) and he will present his most recent poetry at a public event.

In addition to having published a number of anthologies and translated modern English, French, and Italian poetry, he is the founding editor of the Paul-Celan-Jahrbuch (since 1987) and the literary magazine Park (since 1976).

His primary scholarly interests include symbolism, expressionistic prose, translation theory and practice, the image of the city in literature, and modern poetry, especially Paul Celan. His teaching interests also include creative writing. The author of numerous articles and reviews, he has written or edited the following books: Die Ästhetik Jean Pauls in der Dichtung des deutschen Symbolismus (1979), Kehr um im Bild (with Dieter Straub, 1983); Im Übersetzen leben (with Klaus Berger, 1986); Berlin!Berlin! Eine Großstadt im Gedicht (1987); Poesie der Metropole (1990); Berlin mit deinen frechen Feuern (1998); Interpretationen—Gedichte von Paul Celan (2002), Berlin, du bist die Stadt (2011).

His own poetry has appeared in nine volumes and over 40 anthologies and has been translated into twelve languages. In 2007 he received the Schiller Award. He was awarded the “Literaturpreis der A und A Kulturstiftung” in Spring 2011.