About the Event
Throughout his journey from exile to becoming the iconic voice of a “different Germany,” Thomas Mann often sought reassurance in Goethe, from Lotte in Weimar (1939) to Doktor Faustus (1947). In 1948/49, Frankfurt became both a cipher and destination for Mann’s symbolic return to Germany, intertwining two major anniversaries: Goethe’s bicentennial and the Paulskirche centennial.
This lecture explores the historical and literary tensions surrounding the first German edition of Doktor Faustus (1948) at Suhrkamp Verlag and Mann’s 1949 visit to Frankfurt. These moments reveal his fraught relationship with Germany, the interplay of literature and politics, and the ties between author, publisher, and the city. A remarkable revelation: only a final moment of hesitation prevented Mann from dedicating Doktor Faustus, “the novel of my epoch,” to Frankfurt am Main.
About Dr. Wolfgang Schopf
Dr. Wolfgang Schopf, an archivist, curator, and editor, has directed the Goethe University Literature Archive since 2010. He oversees the scientific, editorial, and educational preservation of works by Frankfurt-based authors and publishers. His expertise spans German Vormärz literature and exile literature (1933-1945). Dr. Schopf established the Peter Suhrkamp Foundation Archive and edited correspondences of prominent figures such as Theodor W. Adorno and Siegfried Kracauer. Recent works include Fundus. Das Buch vom Verlag der Autoren 1969-2019 and Walter Boehlich’s letters.
