WERFEL, Franz

WERFEL, Franz
(1890-1945)
   Austrian poet, playwright and novelist, born in Prague, known mainly for his sentimental novels, though he achieved his early fame as an Expressionist poet and dramatist. After escaping the Nazis via Spain asWWII loomed, he went to California, where he wrote Stern der Ungeborenen (1946 Austria; trans Gustave O. Arlt as Star of the Unborn 1946 US) before dying in US exile. This long, contemplative UTOPIA depicts a philosophically complex FAR-FUTURE Earth through the eyes of a narrator (named Franz Werfel) who is guided through the 3 parts of the novel by amentor explicitly associated with DANTE ALIGHIERI's Vergil. This narrator's response to the depopulated, deeply alienating, surreal world about him seems cunningly to mirror the exiled author's real-world experiences of California. The melancholy underlying the story, and its long effortless perspectives of time and thought, give the book a clarity and reserve reminiscent of the work of Olaf STAPLEDON.
   JC
   See also: ARTS; AUSTRIA; GERMANY; RELIGION.

Science Fiction and Fantasy Encyclopedia. . 2011.

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  • WERFEL, FRANZ — (1890–1945), Austrian novelist, playwright, and poet. The son of a prosperous Prague manufacturer, Werfel was a friend of max brod and franz kafka . He rejected the business career his father chose for him, and echoes of their disagreement are… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Werfel, Franz — ▪ German writer born Sept. 10, 1890, Prague [now in Czech Republic] died Aug. 26, 1945, Hollywood, Calif., U.S.       German language writer who attained prominence as an Expressionist (Expressionism) poet, playwright, and novelist and whose… …   Universalium

  • Werfel, Franz — (1890–1945)    Austrian writer. The son of a Prague merchant, Werfel became a celebrated Viennese playwright, novelist and poet of the Expressionist school. Among his successful plays were the Spiegelmensch trilogy (1920), Juarez und Maximilian… …   Who’s Who in Jewish History after the period of the Old Testament

  • Werfel, Franz — (1890 1945)    Austrian novelist, playwright and poet. He was born in Prague, and served in the Austrian army. From 1940 he lived in the US. Some of his writing deals with Jewish themes …   Dictionary of Jewish Biography

  • Werfel, Franz — ► (1890 1945) Poeta, novelista y dramaturgo austríaco. Perteneció al expresionismo. Autor de La canción de Bernadette (1941) …   Enciclopedia Universal

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  • Franz Werfel — Franz Werfel, fotografiert von Carl van Vechten Franz Viktor Werfel (* 10. September 1890 in Prag; † 26. August 1945 in Beverly Hills, Kalifornien) war ein österreichisch US amerikanischer Schriftsteller. Er war ein Wortführer des …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Franz Werfel — (September 10, 1890 ndash; August 26, 1945) was an Austrian Bohemian novelist, playwright, and poet. Biography Born in Prague (then part of the Austro Hungarian Empire), Werfel was the first of three children of a wealthy manufacturer of gloves… …   Wikipedia

  • Franz Werfel — en 1940 Activités Poète, romancier et dramaturge Naissance …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Franz Werfel — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Franz Werfel Franz Werfel (Praga, 10 de septiembre de 1890 Beverly Hills, 26 de agosto de 1945) fue un novelista, dramaturgo y poeta austro checo que escribió en …   Wikipedia Español

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