Eva Hoffman
Encyclopedia
Eva Hoffman is a writer and academic. She was born Ewa Wydra July 1, 1945 in Cracow, Poland
after her Jewish
parents survived the Holocaust
by hiding in the Ukraine
. In 1959, during the Cold War
, the thirteen years old Eva, her nine years old sister "Alinka" and her parents immigrated to Vancouver
, Canada
, where her name has been changed to Eva. Upon graduating from high school she received a scholarship and studied English literature at Rice University
, Texas
in 1966, the Yale School of Music
(1967-68), and Harvard University
, where she received a Ph.D.
in English and American literature in 1974.
Eva Hoffmann has been a professor of literature and creative writing at various institutions, such as Columbia University
, the University of Minnesota
, and Tufts. From 1979 to 1990, she worked as an editor and writer at The New York Times
, serving as senior editor of “The Book Review” from 1987 to 1990. In 1990, she received the Jean Stein Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and in 1992, the Guggenheim Fellowship
for General Nonfiction, as well as the Whiting Writers' Award
. In 2000, Eva Hoffman has been the Year 2000 Una Lecturer at the Townsend Center for the Humanities at the University of California, Berkeley
. In 2008, she was awarded an honorary DLitt by the University of Warwick
. Eva leads a seminar in memoir once every two years as a part of CUNY Hunter College
's Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing.
She now lives in London
.
Her sister, Dr. Alina Wydra is a registered psychologist working in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
after her Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
parents survived the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
by hiding in the Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. In 1959, during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, the thirteen years old Eva, her nine years old sister "Alinka" and her parents immigrated to Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, where her name has been changed to Eva. Upon graduating from high school she received a scholarship and studied English literature at Rice University
Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
in 1966, the Yale School of Music
Yale School of Music
The Yale School of Music is one of the twelve professional schools at Yale University and one of the premier music conservatories in the world....
(1967-68), and Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where she received a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in English and American literature in 1974.
Eva Hoffmann has been a professor of literature and creative writing at various institutions, such as Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
, and Tufts. From 1979 to 1990, she worked as an editor and writer at The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, serving as senior editor of “The Book Review” from 1987 to 1990. In 1990, she received the Jean Stein Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and in 1992, the Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
for General Nonfiction, as well as the Whiting Writers' Award
Whiting Writers' Award
The Whiting Writers' Award is an American award presented annually to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and plays. The award is sponsored by the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation and has been presented since 1985. As of 2007, winners receive US $50,000.-External links:**...
. In 2000, Eva Hoffman has been the Year 2000 Una Lecturer at the Townsend Center for the Humanities at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. In 2008, she was awarded an honorary DLitt by the University of Warwick
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick is a public research university located in Coventry, United Kingdom...
. Eva leads a seminar in memoir once every two years as a part of CUNY Hunter College
Hunter College
Hunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
's Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing.
She now lives in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Her sister, Dr. Alina Wydra is a registered psychologist working in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Works
- Lost in Translation: Life in a New Language (1989)
- Exit into History: A Journey Through the New Eastern Europe (1993)
- Shtetl: The Life and Death of a Small Town and the World of Polish Jews (1997)
- The Secret (2002)
- After Such Knowledge: Memory, History and the Legacy of the Holocaust (2004)
- Illuminations. A Novel (2009)
- Time: Big Ideas, Small Books (2009)
- Appassionata (2011)