Kurt Kusenberg

Albrecht Classen (University of Arizona)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.4.1: German-language Writing and Culture: Germany, 500-present.
Vol. editors: Nicole Kennedy (University of Newcastle), Gerhard P. Knapp (University of Utah), Jennifer Marston William (Purdue University), Herbert Rowland (Purdue University), Jill E. Twark (East Carolina University)

Dates

Born 24 Jun 1904
Died 3 Oct 1983

Places

Born in Sweden
Active in Germany

Activities

Primary

Story-writer

Resources

Kusenberg's Works

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The twentieth century produced various artistic and literary responses to the rapid changes that societies were undergoing, amongst others dadaism, surrealism, cubism, brutalism, existentialism, abstract art, magical realism and absurdist theatre. One of the most intriguing, unfortunately today mostly overlooked German writers in the absurdist or paradoxical vein was Kurt Kusenberg (1904–1983). He was fairly well known in his time for his quirky, hilarious, and at times nonsensical short stories which he regularly published in newspapers and later in collected volumes. Many of them were translated into other languages, including Hungarian, Romanian, and Farsi.

However, only one of his texts is likely to continue to appeal to a wider audience, namely the short story “Nihilit” (1947),

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2064 words

Citation: Classen, Albrecht. "Kurt Kusenberg". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 17 February 2025 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=15378, accessed 21 February 2025.]