Work and Impact
Marcel Reich-Ranicki’s enthusiastic discussion in the “Literarisches Quartett” 23 on January 14, 1993. The episode is considered to have led to Ruth Klüger’s breakthrough as a writer.
„weiter leben“ – Success of an Extraordinary Autobiography
After a serious traffic accident, Ruth Klüger hovered between life and death for days. As a consequence, her childhood memories returned more vibrantly than ever before, and she decided to write down her recollections. In spite of the enthusiastic appraisal of influential German writers, however, the manuscript of her novel was rejected by the prestigious Suhrkamp publishing house. This led to a surprising turn in the history of the small Wallstein publisher based in Göttingen, which decided to accept the book. “weiter leben. Eine Jugend” became a bestseller in 1992 and readers and critics were captivated. Ruth Klüger developed a literary writing style that brings together the perspectives of a growing child and the astute analyses of a mature survivor. Thanks to cleverly posed questions and the exposition of unexpected points of view, readers are prompted to think for themselves. In her descriptions, the author is honest and unabashed, refusing to accept the role of a mere victim. The result was a multi-award-winning autobiography, published in many editions and translated into many languages.
In an Active Exchange with her Readers
Following the publication of “weiter leben. Eine Jugend,” Ruth Klüger first became famous in the German-speaking world and subsequently in other countries as well. Deeply moved by the unvarnished accounts from her childhood, many readers reached out to the author. Her fan mail provides insights into the reading behavior of a great variety of people of all ages and shows the range of reactions the book was able to trigger. The mostly exuberant feedback expressed gratitude for the reading experience and emphasized the importance of the autobiography for a better understanding of the persecution and the Holocaust. Although uncertainty and the fear of not finding the appropriate words were conveyed in many of the letters, their senders communicated the need to express their thoughts. Not infrequently, they entrusted Ruth Klüger with intimate details and recounted personal experiences they had been through during the Nazi era. Her feminist commitment had a significant impact, making a role model especially for young women. The conversation with her readers was a matter close to her heart, and, much to the astonishment of her fans, she maintained it with very detailed written replies.
„unterwegs verloren“ – Testimonies of an Unfailing Struggle
In 2008, the sequel to Ruth Klüger’s autobiography was published by the Viennese Zsolnay publishing company. Following up “weiter leben. Eine Jugend,” in “unterwegs verloren. Erinnerungen” she describes her life after emigrating to the U.S., her academic career along with all its adversities, her failed marriage and the distanced relationship with her sons and grandchildren. The book was a liberation from her traumatizing family history. After her mother’s death, she also made peace with the ghosts of her past: her father and her brother. The decision to have the tattoo of her concentration camp number removed was a clear signal. As a Jew and a woman, she fought for her position in society, in the academic and literary world, and took rigorous action against any kind of discrimination. The newspaper “Die Welt” described the autobiography as a “merciless stocktaking – as always by Ruth Klüger with defiance, courage and wit.”1 Despite the resentment, despite the wounds she listed, her reports always showed one thing: » “that things have got better.”
1 Literary estate of Ruth Klüger 466/S43. Original quote: „erbarmungslose Bestandsaufnahme – wie immer bei Ruth Klüger voller Trotz, Mut und Verstand.“
Jewish Identity and Criticism of Religion
Ruth Klüger speaks at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem about the position of women in Judaism (Source: Renata Schmidtkunz: Das Weiterleben der Ruth Klüger 2011).
“I must confess that my Jewishness is really nothing to be proud of.”2 On the basis of provocative statements like this, Ruth Klüger reflected on her paradoxical stance towards Judaism. Raised in an emancipated but not assimilated Jewish home, her awareness of Jewish identity was reinforced by the anti-Semitic exclusion in Vienna. She was interested in Jewish history and culture, and in 1938, following Austria’s Anschluss to Hitler’s Germany, changed her first name from Susanne to her second name Ruth, a name that she felt was clearly more Jewish. The solidarity she experienced in the concentration camp Theresienstadt made her feel connected to the Zionist movement all her life. After her escape from the Christianstadt concentration camp, and later in the U.S., she repeatedly toyed with the idea of emigrating to Israel. In the end, however, Klüger remained the “bad Jewess” who refused to allow herself to be captured by the patriarchal system and be forced into a silent and invisible role. Even when she was briefly a member of the Javanese Islamic mystical Subud, she opposed the cult’s uncritical and misogynistic approach. Without renouncing her Jewish identity, Klüger eventually retreated from all religions and turned her commitment to cultural, gender and socio-political injustices.
2 Landscapes of Memory. A Holocaust Girlhood Remembered. Bloomsbury 2004, p. 43.
Ruth Klüger talks about her stance towards Judaism
Source: » Literaturepochen.at
Enemy Friends: Ruth Klüger and Martin Walser
“Of the friendships that have ended, the one with Martin Walser was the hardest to stomach.”3 With these words Ruth Klüger concluded, for herself, at least, one of the most sensational scandals in the contemporary literary scene. After the publication of the novel “Tod eines Kritikers” in 2002, leading German-language literary columns accused Martin Walser of resorting to anti-Semitic clichés in an attempt to personally discredit Marcel Reich-Ranicki. Ruth Klüger emerged as one of his most outspoken critics. She published an open letter to the controversial author in the "Frankfurter Rundschau," thus initiating the break in their intense yet ambivalent friendship that had lasted decades. Ruth Klüger and Martin Walser had, aged 15 and 19 respectively, already discussed Stefan George, Franz Kafka and the future of Europe at the University of Regensburg, engaged in an active exchange throughout their whole lives and visited each other in hospital after health setbacks. They were emblematic of the fractured society after the Holocaust: the Jewish survivor, the German rooted in his country and a conversation that failed despite all friendly affection and professional admiration. For in the end, as Ruth Klüger concluded: “Memory unites us, memory divides us.”4
3 unterwegs verloren. Erinnerungen. dtv 2010, S. 168. Original quote: „Die Freundschaft, deren Ende mir am schwersten im Magen liegt, ist die mit Martin Walser.“
4 Literal translation of: “Erinnerung verbindet uns, Erinnerung trennt uns.” In: weiter leben. Eine Jugend. dtv 1994, S. 220.
Ruth Klüger about Martin Walser as the “problematic German”
Source: » Literaturepochen.at
"Fuck the Patriarchy"
Ruth Klüger’s conviction that Nazism and the Holocaust were extreme but logical results of patriarchy and that the ideal of masculinity was toxic at all times, provoked controversial discussions and heated reactions. Despite the resistance and much aggressive hostility from men, she dedicated her life and work to the goal of destroying the prevailing system, averting future catastrophes caused by humans and standing up in solidarity for herself and other women. Her autobiography appeared as a sweeping blow against the traditional concept of women. Using drastic metaphors, she denounced the system of pregnancy and birth in the U.S., drew attention to exploitation in marriage and the home and raised awareness of the gender pay gap and the lack of career opportunities for working women. As a divorced and single mother climbing the career ladder at university herself, she taught feminist values to her sons. Her award-winning literary and essayistic texts debunked conventional opinions and exposed prejudices. Klüger’s feminist commitment spanned from the immediate postwar period to her death in 2020, from the first waves of women’s emancipation to the #MeToo movement, from shouts of protest at demonstrations to written statements and letters of complaint.
In her speech for the State Award for Literary Criticism, Ruth Klüger asks herself why her literature is worthy of a prize, Vienna 1998.
Racism: The Case of Frank L. Hereford
Personally affected by anti-Semitism and misogyny and generally concerned about fair living conditions, Ruth Klüger did not limit her commitment to the disadvantages she experienced herself. “Any kind of discrimination cuts into my own flesh,”5 she wrote in reference to the end of her time at the University of Virginia in 1976. One incident turned out to be the “tip of the iceberg”: the president of the university, Frank L. Hereford, was a member of the Farmington Country Club, whose membership was reserved for people of white skin color. For Ruth Klüger and other colleagues, this was incompatible with the position he occupied, and they urged him to relinquish his membership. The reactions to Klüger’s accusatory statement to the University Senate were varied, ranging from anonymous offensive letters to enthusiastic approval. The president did not deem it necessary to leave the exclusive club, however. As a consequence, Ruth Klüger withdrew from her function as chairwoman of the German department at the university and handed in her resignation. This was only one incident in the overall context of an everyday racist climate: “the rotten core of it all is Southern racism.“ Ruth Klüger did not shy away from pointing out injustice and standing up for her values, even if she herself had to give up a secure job to do so.
5 unterwegs verloren. Erinnerungen. dtv 2010. S. 23. Original quote: „Jede Diskriminierung schnitt mir ins eigene Fleisch.“
Pacifism: Vietnam
Film excerpt: Percy Angress on his mother’s political influence on him (Source: Renata Schmidtkunz: Das Weiterleben der Ruth Klüger 2011).
"Don't trust anyone over thirty," Jack Weinberg proclaimed in November 1964, founding the "Free Speech Movement," the student revolt on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. Ruth Klüger, who had just turned 31 at the time and was therefore "slightly offended,"6 sent her students to the demonstrations and rallies of the "New Left," only to join them shortly afterwards with her two young sons. In the political turmoil of the 1960s, the concerns raised became mixed: some fought for freedom of speech and sexual liberation, others for emancipation and civil rights. With increasing conscription to fight in the war and the continuing deaths in Vietnam, pacifist activism became stronger and anti-war banners were hoisted on the streets of major American cities. As an avowed pacifist, Ruth Klüger supported the “inflation of good grades”7 in order to spare young men from having to participate in the war in Southeast Asia based on their academic performance. All her life, she had been an advocate for peace efforts and non-violent conflict resolution, establishing conversations with activists of all nations and religions. Because of her personal history, she had undertaken the social responsibility to point out violence, suffering, and injustice and, as a remembering voice, to influence political events.
6 c.f. unterwegs verloren. Erinnerungen. dtv 2010, p. 105.
7 Ibid., p. 127.
