PhD ceremony Ms. E.I.M. Jiresch: Im Netzwerk der Kulturvermittlung. Sechs Autorinnen und ihre Bedeutung für die Verbreitung skandinavischer Literatur und Kultur in West- und Mitteleuropa um 1900

PhD ceremony: ms. E.I.M. Jiresch, 14.30 uur, Academiegebouw, Broerstraat 5, Groningen

Dissertation: Im Netzwerk der Kulturvermittlung. Sechs Autorinnen und ihre Bedeutung für die Verbreitung skandinavischer Literatur und Kultur in West- und Mitteleuropa um 1900

Promotor(s): prof. M. Norde, prof. P. Broomans

Faculty: Arts

Modern Scandinavian literature as well as various societal and cultural ideas from the countries in the Northern periphery spread throughout Europe in the 19th century and became increasingly popular in the last decades of the century. Of utmost importance in this process were the agents of transmission – translators, literary critics, literary agents, reviewers, editors, language teachers, journalists etc. – the so called 'cultural transmitters'. These cultural transmitters, often women, lived and worked predominantly in the shadow of famous authors and are often overlooked in literary or cultural historical works. Therefore the thesis of Jiresch focuses on the personal histories of six women cultural transmitters, their lives, their work and their networks who each played a role in the European understanding of modern Scandinavian literature and culture. Three of the protagonists in these stories are Margaretha Meyboom (1856-1927), Marie Belpaire (1853-1948) and Dien Logeman-van der Willigen (1864-1925) who represent the Dutch-speaking region. The other three protagonists, Marie Herzfeld (1855-1940), Mathilde Prager (1844-1921) and Laura Marholm (1854-1928) were native German speakers. The present research focuses on three main questions: In what ways did they contribute to the formation of the image of Scandinavian literature and culture in their home countries? How were these women's networks constituted, and how did they influence their work? What role did gender play in the context of their networks, both in terms of their relationships with others, and in their self-reflection?