|
|
|
Bertolt Brecht (1898 - 1956)
Bertolt Eugen Friedrich Brecht was born in Augsburg, Germany, on February 10, 1898, where he also spent the longest part of his childhood. His parents were Berthold Friedrich Brecht (1869-1939), a factory director, and Sophie Brecht, born Brezing, (1871-1920). He had a brother named Walter. He was a supporter of the communist philosopher Karl Marx and subsequently, he was deprived of his German citizenship in 1935. He had four children and his last wife was the actress Helene Weigel.
Brecht, who was probably the most fierce critic amongst the German poets, spent his youth in Augsburg. He was a good student. Just 16 years old, he already published, to the envy of his classmates, successful poems. He used a "nom de guerre", by shortening his full name to just Bertolt Eugen.
In 1917, he studied medicine at Munich University. His studies were interrupted by World War I and he became a paramedic in an army hospital in Augsburg. In 1923, he was appointed production director at the Munich Kammerspiele, 1924 at the Deutsches Theater. From then on, he worked as a playwright in Berlin and in 1928, the premier of the "The Threepenny Opera" took place and was a sensational success; Brecht became a world-wide celebrity.
After this success, Brecht developed a special form of drama, called the "epic theater", where he put the "alienation effect" into place. Being a true Marxist, he did not want his audience to identify with the characters, but he wanted it to believe that the play is merely an account of past events that the spectator should watch with critical detachment. He purposly avoided any dramatic structure. To achieve that, he utilized all possibilities of acting, music, stage design and technology.
When the National Socialists took power in 1933, Brecht escaped via Austria to Switzerland, then to Denmark, England, Sweden, the Soviet Union, and finally to California, USA. There, he earned a living by writing screen plays for Hollywood movies. After the end of World War II, he returned Europe. First he stayed in Switzerland, then he decided to move to East Berlin (1949). He became a member of the Academy of Arts of the German Democratic Republic in 1950. His admiration of applied communism suffered severly duting the June 17, 1953 uprising in East Berlin. He died on August 14, 1956 due to a heart attack.
Quotes:
works in:
|
BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE
|
O COITO E A SAUNA
|
GERMAN
|
Liebesgedichte
Morgendliche Rede an den Baum Griehn
|
SPANISH
|
ENSAYO Nº3, OBRA INÉDITA
|
|
|
|
|
|
Children's Library
the Book of Today
Translators
Exchange
If you know your languages and more especially if you love good literature,
LOGOS LIBRARY gives you the chance to translate whatever you think you do best.
read more...
|
|
