Heinrich Böll Summary

Biography EssayWhen in the summer of 1972 Heinrich Boll received the news that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize in literature, he responded with the surprised question: "Was, ich, und nicht Gunter ... Read more

When in the summer of 1972 Heinrich Böll received the news that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize in literature, he responded with the surprised question: "Was, ich, und nicht Günter Grass... Read more

Vonnegut is an American writer of darkly comic fiction which reflects his essential compassion for humanity and his complete pessimism. He rose to prominence during the 1960s with such works as Cat&#x... Read more

In the following essay, Sinka summarizes how Die verlorene Ehre has been classified (variously as a novella, novel, and political pamphlet) and explores how genrebased perceptions affect interpretatio... Read more

In the following essay, Holbeche examines Böll's interpretation of the relationship between "the artist as social critic and the state" as evinced in his Ende einer Diensfahr... Read more

In the following essay, Holbeche explores the significance of the carnival in Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum. Criticism of Heinrich Böll's Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum h... Read more

Enright is an English man of letters who has spent most of his career abroad, teaching English literature at universities in Egypt, Japan, Berlin, Thailand, and Singapore. His critical essays are freq... Read more

In the following mixed review, Berman contends that the stories in The Casualty are vivid but not as accomplished as BÖll's later works. In one of Heinrich BÖll's most famo... Read more

In the following excerpt, Wilhelmus offers a mixed review of The Casualty. Böll, well known to American audiences, resembles Hemingway in his blunt, uncompromising portrayal of the brutality o... Read more

In the following excerpt, Berman analyzes the semiotic aspects of BÖll's short story "When the War Began." Böll's 1961 story ["Als der Krieg ausbrach&#x... Read more

In the following essay, Smith explores the childlike aspects of Böll's short fiction. Most of [18 Stories] show conflicting interpretations of the world. One set of characters, usually... Read more

In the following review, the critic commends the diverse range of characters in Böll's novella Ende einer Dienstfahrt. On the eve of his demob (and return to the family furniture-making... Read more

In the following essay, Schwarz asserts that most of Böll's early stories depict the dreariness of war Heinrich Böll has written short stories, Novellen, novels, radio plays and d... Read more

Critical Essay by D. J. Enright 'What portion in the world can the artist have,' asked Yeats, 'but dissipation and despair?' Hans Schnier, the hero of Heinrich Böll... Read more

Critical Essay by H. M. Waidson [Gruppenbild mit Dame] might well be called a "Zeitroman", a panoramic social novel which traces the impact of public events upon private lives. It is a ... Read more

Critical Essay by Michael Butler Although he began writing before the Second World War, Böll's published work coincides almost exactly with the history of the Federal Republic, and ther... Read more

Critical Essay by Brian Murdoch As far as the early satires of Heinrich Böll are concerned, attention has been paid to his targets, and to the reason for the satire, and these are often fairly... Read more

Critical Essay by Paul Pickrel Heinrich Böll's "Acquainted with the Night" is the first nonpolitical German novel I have seen since the war, and a fine book it is. Brief, ... Read more

Critical Essay by Victor Lange Böll is remarkably popular among older German readers: his fiction combines a sharply localized, vivid sort of reporting with that mixture of involvement and spe... Read more

Critical Essay by V. S. Pritchett The novel as interrogation has turned out to be more than experiment; it is as natural a product of war, the fixed trial, as it is of personal guilt and self-defence... Read more

Critical Essay by Richard Gilman For a novel about terrorism, "The Safety Net" is remarkably deficient in suspense, of both the ordinary thriller sort and of any more complex kind, an i... Read more

Critical Essay by John Updike Though full of psychological insight, not to mention a noble and lofty sympathy for the human plight in general, "The Safety Net" moves its burden of circu... Read more

Critical Essay by Anthony West Heinrich Böll's "The Train Was on Time" may be a little disappointing to those who have read his fine novels "Acquainted with the Nig... Read more

Critical Essay by H. M. Waidson Heinrich Böll writes about people living in the present. The last twenty years in European history have been prodigal with raw material for the realistic noveli... Read more

Critical Essay by Joseph P. Bauke While there are more sophisticated writers at work in Germany, some of whom are of great promise, Heinrich Böll has no peer as a storyteller. Equally free fro... Read more