Peter Handke facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Peter Handke
|
|
|---|---|
Handke in 2006
|
|
| Born | 6 December 1942 Griffen, Reichsgau Carinthia, German Reich (now Austria) |
| Occupation |
|
| Education | University of Graz |
| Notable works |
|
| Notable awards |
|
| Spouse | Sophie Semin (since 1995) |
| Signature | |
 |
|
Peter Handke (born 6 December 1942) is an Austrian writer. He writes novels, plays, and screenplays. He also works as a translator and film director. In 2019, he received the 2019 Nobel Prize in Literature. The award recognized his "influential work" that explores human experiences with "linguistic ingenuity." Many people see Handke as one of the most important German-language writers of the late 20th century.
In the late 1960s, he became known for his experimental plays. These included Offending the Audience (1966) and Kaspar (1967). His novels often feature characters in unusual states of mind. Some of his well-known novels are The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick (1970) and The Left-Handed Woman (1976). After his mother passed away in 1971, he wrote about her life in the book A Sorrow Beyond Dreams (1972).
A main idea in his writing is how everyday language and reality can sometimes feel dull or confusing. Handke was part of a group of writers called the Grazer Gruppe. He also helped start a publishing company called Verlag der Autoren. He worked with film director Wim Wenders on movies like The Wrong Move and Wings of Desire.
In 1973, Handke won the Georg Büchner Prize. This is a very important literary award for German-language writers. In 1999, he returned the prize money to protest against certain political actions. His views on the Yugoslav Wars caused some public discussion.
Contents
Life
Early Years and Family
Peter Handke was born in Griffen, Austria, on December 6, 1942. At that time, the area was part of Nazi Germany. His father was a German soldier whom Peter did not meet until he was an adult. His mother, Maria, was from a Slovenian family in Carinthia. She married Bruno Handke, who was a tram conductor and soldier.
From 1944 to 1948, Peter's family lived in Berlin. His mother had two more children there. Then, the family moved back to Griffen, his mother's hometown. Peter had a challenging home life because of his stepfather's behavior.
In 1954, Peter went to a Catholic boys' boarding school. He started writing there and published his first works in the school newspaper. In 1959, he moved to Klagenfurt for high school. He began studying law at the University of Graz in 1961.
His mother passed away in 1971. This event deeply affected him and was reflected in his novel A Sorrow Beyond Dreams.
After leaving Graz, Handke lived in different cities. These included Düsseldorf, Berlin, Paris, and Salzburg. Since 1990, he has lived near Paris, France. A documentary film about him, Peter Handke: In the Woods, Might Be Late, was released in 2016. Since 2012, he has been a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. He is also a member of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Writing Career
While still a student, Peter Handke began his career as a writer. He joined a group of young writers called the Grazer Gruppe. This group published a literature magazine that featured Handke's early works. Other writers in the group included Wolfgang Bauer and Barbara Frischmuth.
Handke stopped his studies in 1965. This was because a German publishing house accepted his novel Die Hornissen (The Hornets) for publication. He became known internationally after appearing at a meeting of artists in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1966. In the same year, his play Offending the Audience premiered in Frankfurt. This play was experimental and helped make him famous. Handke also helped create a publishing house in 1969 that was owned by authors.
His first play, Offending the Audience, became well known in 1966. It was one of several experimental plays that did not have a traditional story. In his second play, Kaspar, he used the story of Kaspar Hauser to talk about social pressures.
Handke worked with director Wim Wenders on several films. He wrote the script for The Wrong Move and helped write the screenplay for Wings of Desire. He also directed films himself, adapting them from his own novels. One of these was The Left-Handed Woman, released in 1978. This film was nominated for an award at the Cannes Film Festival. Handke also won a German Film Award in 1975 for his screenplay for The Wrong Move.
In 2019, Peter Handke received the Nobel Prize in Literature. The award recognized his powerful writing that explores human experiences in unique ways.
Awards
Peter Handke has received many important awards for his writing:
- 1973: Georg Büchner Prize
- 1987: Vilenica International Literary Prize
- 2000: Brothers Karić Award
- 2002: America Award
- 2002: Honorary Doctor, University of Klagenfurt
- 2003: Honorary Doctor, University of Salzburg
- 2008: Thomas-Mann-Preis
- 2009: Franz Kafka Prize
- 2012: Mülheimer Dramatikerpreis
- 2014: International Ibsen Award
- 2018: Nestroy Theatre Prize for Lifetime Achievement
- 2019: Nobel Prize in Literature
- 2020: Order of Karađorđe's Star
- 2021: Order of the Republika Srpska
- 2024: Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold with Sash for Services to the Republic of Austria
Works
Handke has written many types of works, including novels, plays, screenplays, essays, and poems. Many of his works have been translated into English.
Novels and Stories
- 1966 Die Hornissen (The Hornets), novel
- 1970 Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter (The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick), novel and screenplay
- 1972 Der kurze Brief zum langen Abschied (Short Letter, Long Farewell), novel
- 1972 Wunschloses Unglück (A Sorrow Beyond Dreams: A Life Story), memoir
- 1975 Die Stunde der wahren Empfindung (A Moment of True Feeling), novel
- 1976 Die linkshändige Frau (The Left-Handed Woman)
- 1979 Langsame Heimkehr (Slow Homecoming), first of a series of stories
- 1983 Der Chinese des Schmerzes (Across), story
- 1986 Die Wiederholung (Repetition), novel
- 1994 Mein Jahr in der Niemandsbucht. Ein Märchen aus den neuen Zeiten (My Year in the No-Man's-Bay), novel
- 1997 In einer dunklen Nacht ging ich aus meinem stillen Haus (On a Dark Night I Left My Silent House)
- 2002 Der Bildverlust oder Durch die Sierra de Gredos (Crossing the Sierra de Gredos), novel
- 2004 Don Juan (erzählt von ihm selbst) (Don Juan: His Own Version)
- 2008 Die morawische Nacht (The Moravian Night), novel
- 2009 Bis dass der Tag euch scheidet oder Eine Frage des Lichts: ein Monolog (Till Day You Do Part or A Question of Light)
- 2011 Der Große Fall (The Great Fall)
- 2017 Die Obstdiebin oder Einfache Fahrt ins Landesinnere (The Fruit Thief or One-Way Journey into the Interior)
- 2020 Das zweite Schwert (The Second Sword)
- 2021 Mein Tag im anderen Land (My Day in the Other Land)
- 2023 Die Ballade des letzten Gastes
Plays
- 1966 Publikumsbeschimpfung und andere Sprechstücke (Offending the Audience and Other Spoken Plays)
- 1967 Kaspar
- 1973 Die Unvernünftigen sterben aus
- 1990 Das Wintermärchen, William Shakespeare, German translation by Peter Handke
- 1992 Die Stunde, da wir nichts voneinander wußten (The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other)
- 2010 Immer noch Sturm (Storm Still), a play about the Slovenian uprising against Hitler in 1945
- 2018 Peter Handke Bibliothek. I. Prose, Poetry, Plays (Vol. 1–9); II. Essays (Vol. 10–11); III Diaries (Vol. 13–14)
Films Directed
- 1971 Chronik der laufenden Ereignisse (Chronicle of Current Events)
- 1977 Die linkshändige Frau (The Left-Handed Woman), based on his 1976 novel
- 1985 Das Mal des Todes (The Malady of Death), based on a novella by Marguerite Duras
- 1992 L'Absence (The Absence)
Screenplays Written
- 1969 3 amerikanische LP's (3 American LPs), film by Wim Wenders
- 1972 Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter (The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick), film by Wim Wenders
- 1975 Falsche Bewegung (Wrong Move), film by Wim Wenders
- 1987 Der Himmel über Berlin (Wings of Desire), film by Wim Wenders
See also
In Spanish: Peter Handke para niños
- List of Austrian writers
