Mayröcker, Friederike,
1924-2021, German-language poet, b. Vienna, Austria.
Mayröcker served in World War II as a secretary in the German airforce and
then studied to be an English-language teacher, a position she held from
1946-69. In the mid-'40s, she began contributing works to avant-garde
magazines and in the 1950s became a member of the Wiener Gruppe, a
collection of local writers influenced by surrealism and other modern movements.
In 1954, she met fellow writer Ernst Jandl, and the two became partners in
their creative and personal lives. They authored four radio plays together,
including “Five Man Humanity” (Kriegsblindenpreis, 1969). In
1969, she retired from teaching to devote herself to writing.
Mayröcker’s collected poems encompasses over 1000 works, and her
prose fills more than 20 volumes. Her work won numerous awards, including
the Georg Büchner Prize (2001), among the highest literary award for
German-language writers. She also authored children’s books and
displayed her artworks.
See her Raving Language: Selected Poems 1946-2005 (2007).
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