Introduction

Abstract

Abstract The collapse of the GDR has given rise to extensive reflection, amongst literary scholars as well as historians and journalists, on the question of how now to approach the history of the GDR and its literature. Three areas of the discussion arc of particular relevance for the present study. Firstly, attention has been focused on the questions of what constitutes ‘GDR literature’, whether the term corresponds to a definable literary entity, and what value such a category might have for literary historiography. Whereas terms like ‘English literature’ or ‘German literature’ might be defined (although not unproblematic ally) either according to the use of a common language or in relation to an idea of nation based on cultural, if not always political, identity, ‘GDR literature’ is a category defined by a political entity with clear historical and geographical boundaries.