HERTA MÜLLER'S RESHAPING OF GERMAN CULTURAL MEMORY

Abstract

AbstractSeeking to explore the contemporary relevance of Herta Müller's work in the context of national and transnational memory cultures, this article examines the constitution of individual and collective memory and the ethical implications it carries for envisioning a more just future. My interest lies in exploring the challenge that Müller's approach to the labour of memory poses to conceptions of cultural memory and, related to it, to notions of national identity, national literary canons, and authorship. I ask how the ethical and aesthetic precepts of Müller's disruptive memories in her written work and her numerous public interventions may contribute to an affirmation of human rights today – at a time when democratic values are increasingly under threat. I argue that Müller's work – augmented by her public engagement – contributes to the reshaping of cultural memory from a narrowly conceived national one toward a deterritorialised collective memory that may transcend national and ethnic boundaries and foster new kinds of solidarity.