Günter Kunert

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Günter Kunert (born March 6, 1929 in Berlin) is a German writer who left the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) to live in the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany).

After attending elementary school, it was not possible for Kunert - due to the National Socialist race laws - to continue in a high school. After the end of World War II, Kunert studied in East Berlin, before abandoning his studies.

He joined in 1948 the main political party of East Germany, the Socialist Unity Party (SED). By signing in 1976 a petition against the deprivation of citizenship of Wolf Biermann, he subsequently lost his SED membership. With a visa, Kunert was able to leave the GDR in 1979. Kunert established himself with his wife Marianne near Itzehoe in northern Germany, where he lives until today.

Kunert is considered one of the most versatile and most important contemporary writers. Beside lyric poetry there are short stories, essays, autobiographical works, aphorisms, satires, fairy tales, science fiction, radio plays, speeches, travel writing, film scripts, a novel, and a drama. Kunert is also a painter and graphic artist.

In his work, Kunert takes a critical attitude to topics such as the belief in progress and national socialism. Kunert is a primnary opponent of the new German spelling reform, and serves as a member in the Association for German Orthography and Language Care. Kunert is active in the P.E.N. Club of German language authors.

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