Oskar Seidlin
Encyclopedia
Oskar Seidlin; German-born American literary scholar, poet, and writer of children’s stories. He is also said to have co‑authored several detective novels
or Kriminalromane in collaboration with Dieter Cunz
and Richard Plant (1910–1998, his lover) under the collective pen‑name of Stefan Brockhoff
.
Born Oskar Koplowitz to a Jewish family in Königshütte in the Upper Silesia
Basin of Germany (now Chorzów in southwestern Poland), Seidlin emigrated to Switzerland in 1933, where he supported himself by freelancing for Swiss newspapers. In 1936 he received a doctorate from the University of Basle (Universität Basel) with a dissertation on Otto Brahm
(1856–1912), written under the supervision of Franz Zinkernagel (1878–1935) and Eduard Hoffmann‑Krayer (1864–1937). In 1938 he left Switzerland for the United States, where a year later, in 1939, he obtained a lectureship (in 1941 elevated to assistant professorship) at Smith College
for women in Northampton, Massachusetts, a post which he held discontinuously until August 1946 – with a hiatus between 1942 and 1946 for his war‑time service in the U.S. Army Intelligence Division (he participated in the early stages of the invasion of Europe). At Smith he is said to have had a relationship with Newton Arvin
. While teaching at the German Summer School of Middlebury College
in Vermont in the summer of 1946 he made the acquaintance of Bernhard Blume (1901–1978), then chairman of the Department of German at the Ohio State University (and himself a refugee from Nazi Germany in 1936), who offered him a position at his institution. Thereupon, from the autumn of 1946 onwards, Seidlin taught at the Ohio State University
, eventually moving to the Bloomington campus of Indiana University
where in August 1972 he became professor of Germanic languages, an appointment he retained until his retirement in May 1979. Seidlin also served on the Advisory Council of Princeton University
for several terms. He was twice the recipient of Guggenheim Fellowships, in 1962 and 1976.
Seidlin’s tale for children, Pedronis muss geholfen werden!, appeared in 1937; this was followed in 1939 by S.O.S. Geneva, another book for children which Seidlin authored jointly with Richard Plant (1910–1998). Seidlin’s Der goldene Apfel, issued in the United States during the Second World War, belongs to the same category of children’s literature.
A collection of his poems, entitled Mein Bilderbuch, saw the light of day in 1938.
Seidlin had numerous publications, in both German and English, in the field of (German) literary studies, beginning with his doctoral dissertation, Otto Brahm als Theaterkritiker, published under his birth-name (Oskar Koplowitz) in 1936, and the 29-page essay on Goethe published in the United States in 1947, Helena: vom Mythos zur Person. He collaborated with Werner Paul Friederich (b. 1905) on the latter’s An Outline‑History of German Literature (1948). He considered his study of the German Romantic poet Joseph Eichendorff (Versuche über Eichendorff, Göttingen, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1965; 2nd ed., 1968) to be his most important work. His last major publication seems to have been Von erwachendem Bewusstsein und vom Sündenfall, issued in 1979.
On his sixty-fifth birthday in 1976 Seidlin was presented with a commemorative volume or Festschrift entitled tellingly Herkommen und Erneuerung.
A collection of his letters addressed to William Henry Rey (b. 1911), sometime professor of Germanic languages and literature at the University of Washington
in Seattle, and written between 1947 and 1984, was published posthumously under the title “Bete für mich, mein Lieber...” in 2001.
Crime fiction
Crime fiction is the literary genre that fictionalizes crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred...
or Kriminalromane in collaboration with Dieter Cunz
Dieter Cunz
Dieter Cunz , German-born American historian, writer, educator, and occasional journalist. He is also said to have co‑authored several detective novels or Kriminalromane in collaboration with Oskar Seidlin and Richard Plant under the collective pen‑name of Stefan Brockhoff .Cunz was born in the...
and Richard Plant (1910–1998, his lover) under the collective pen‑name of Stefan Brockhoff
Stefan Brockhoff
Stefan Brockhoff is a pseudonym that was used collectively by a group of three German co-authors of several detective novels, all of them having certain characteristics in common: they were all born in Germany at or about the beginning of the second decade of the twentieth century; at one point or...
.
Born Oskar Koplowitz to a Jewish family in Königshütte in the Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. Since the 9th century, Upper Silesia has been part of Greater Moravia, the Duchy of Bohemia, the Piast Kingdom of Poland, again of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as of...
Basin of Germany (now Chorzów in southwestern Poland), Seidlin emigrated to Switzerland in 1933, where he supported himself by freelancing for Swiss newspapers. In 1936 he received a doctorate from the University of Basle (Universität Basel) with a dissertation on Otto Brahm
Otto Brahm
Otto Brahm was a German drama and literary critic, theatre manager and director. His productions were noted for being accurate and realistic. He was involved in the foundation of the progressive Freie Bühne company, of which he became president and producer...
(1856–1912), written under the supervision of Franz Zinkernagel (1878–1935) and Eduard Hoffmann‑Krayer (1864–1937). In 1938 he left Switzerland for the United States, where a year later, in 1939, he obtained a lectureship (in 1941 elevated to assistant professorship) at Smith College
Smith College
Smith College is a private, independent women's liberal arts college located in Northampton, Massachusetts. It is the largest member of the Seven Sisters...
for women in Northampton, Massachusetts, a post which he held discontinuously until August 1946 – with a hiatus between 1942 and 1946 for his war‑time service in the U.S. Army Intelligence Division (he participated in the early stages of the invasion of Europe). At Smith he is said to have had a relationship with Newton Arvin
Newton Arvin
Newton Arvin was an American literary critic and academic. He achieved national recognition for his studies of individual nineteenth-century American authors....
. While teaching at the German Summer School of Middlebury College
Middlebury College
Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college located in Middlebury, Vermont, USA. Founded in 1800, it is one of the oldest liberal arts colleges in the United States. Drawing 2,400 undergraduates from all 50 United States and over 70 countries, Middlebury offers 44 majors in the arts,...
in Vermont in the summer of 1946 he made the acquaintance of Bernhard Blume (1901–1978), then chairman of the Department of German at the Ohio State University (and himself a refugee from Nazi Germany in 1936), who offered him a position at his institution. Thereupon, from the autumn of 1946 onwards, Seidlin taught at the Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
, eventually moving to the Bloomington campus of Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
where in August 1972 he became professor of Germanic languages, an appointment he retained until his retirement in May 1979. Seidlin also served on the Advisory Council of Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
for several terms. He was twice the recipient of Guggenheim Fellowships, in 1962 and 1976.
Seidlin’s tale for children, Pedronis muss geholfen werden!, appeared in 1937; this was followed in 1939 by S.O.S. Geneva, another book for children which Seidlin authored jointly with Richard Plant (1910–1998). Seidlin’s Der goldene Apfel, issued in the United States during the Second World War, belongs to the same category of children’s literature.
A collection of his poems, entitled Mein Bilderbuch, saw the light of day in 1938.
Seidlin had numerous publications, in both German and English, in the field of (German) literary studies, beginning with his doctoral dissertation, Otto Brahm als Theaterkritiker, published under his birth-name (Oskar Koplowitz) in 1936, and the 29-page essay on Goethe published in the United States in 1947, Helena: vom Mythos zur Person. He collaborated with Werner Paul Friederich (b. 1905) on the latter’s An Outline‑History of German Literature (1948). He considered his study of the German Romantic poet Joseph Eichendorff (Versuche über Eichendorff, Göttingen, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1965; 2nd ed., 1968) to be his most important work. His last major publication seems to have been Von erwachendem Bewusstsein und vom Sündenfall, issued in 1979.
On his sixty-fifth birthday in 1976 Seidlin was presented with a commemorative volume or Festschrift entitled tellingly Herkommen und Erneuerung.
A collection of his letters addressed to William Henry Rey (b. 1911), sometime professor of Germanic languages and literature at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
in Seattle, and written between 1947 and 1984, was published posthumously under the title “Bete für mich, mein Lieber...” in 2001.