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Max Frisch I: From journalism to writing
Max Frisch I: Vom Journalist zum Schriftsteller
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:09:12
Abstract
In the thirties Max Frisch worked as a freelancer journalist. His articles about local topics, his book reviews and short stories soon made clear, that these were finger exercises, preliminary literary studies of a young man becoming a writer.The course will follow the branched path of this self-discovery process using biographical elements and selected texts.
Content
In the middle of the twenties the manuscript of a new play was sent to the director of the “Deutsches Theater” in Berlin. Its title was “Steel”. It played at night on the roof of a high-rise building and in the end the author let the hero jump of the roof into the dark night. Sender of the play was a sixteen-year-old student from Zürich. His name was Max Frisch. This is an early indication of his desire to write being present already at a young age. It was the stage which fascinated him and which nourished his dreams of being a playwriter. But there was the father who disapproved these wishes and who expected his son to study at the university. His death in 1932 left the family with nothing but financial insecurity – but it also brought the youngest son Max again closer to his dream of being a writer. The need to earn a living for his mother and himself and the desire to write could be combined. In the directory of Zürich from 1933 it already reads “journalist” under the name of Max Frisch – he worked as a freelancer for the “Neue Zürcher Zeitung”. His articles about local topics, his book reviews and short stories soon made clear, that these were finger exercises, preliminary literary studies of a young man becoming a writer. The course will follow the branched path of this self-discovery process using biographical elements and selected texts.
General Information
- Language
- German
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- ungraded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture |
Max Frisch I: Vom Journalist zum Schriftsteller
mit Lesungen, s. separater Anschlag
|
|
1 h weekly |
| colloquium | Max Frisch I: Vom Journalist zum Schriftsteller |
|
1 h weekly |