Die Klangprobe

by Siegfried Lenz

Die Klangprobe: ihr unterwirft der Steinmetz und Bildhauer das Material seiner Kunst, den Stein; das Nachklingen des Blocks verrät ihm Fehler, Hohlräume, Risse und Einsprengungen. Siegfried Lenz wendet in diesem Roman die Klangprobe auf die handelnden Personen an. Er konfrontiert sie mit den Erscheinungen des Zerfalls; er überprüft ihr oft nur spärlich begründetes Vertrauen in die Dauerhaftigkeit des Bestehenden und er weckt in ihnen ein neues und waches Verhältnis zur Vergänglichkeit.

Genres: Fiction

384 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Siegfried Lenz (1926 - 2014) was a German author who wrote twelve novels and produced several collections of short stories, essays, and plays for radio and the theatre. He was awarded the Goethe Prize in Frankfurt-am-Main on the 250th Anniversary of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's birth. Lenz and his wife, Liselotte, also exchanged over 100 letters with Paul Celan and his wife, Gisèle Lestrange between 1952 and 1961.

Lenz was the son of a customs officer in Lyck (Elk), East Prussia. After his graduation exam in 1943, he was drafted into the navy. According to documents released in June 2007, he may have joined the Nazi party on the 12th of July 1943. Shortly before the end of World War II, he defected to Denmark, but became a prisoner of war in Schleswig-Holstein.

After his release, he attended the University of Hamburg, where he studied philosophy, English, and Literary history. His studies were cut off early, however, as he became an intern for the daily paper Die Welt, and served as its editor from 1950 to 1951. It was there he met his future wife, Liselotte (d. February 5, 2006). They were married in 1949.

Since 1951, Lenz worked as a freelance writer in Hamburg and was a member of the literature forum "Group 47." Together with Günter Grass, he became engaged with the Social Democratic Party and aided the Ostpolitik of Willy Brandt. A champion of the movement, he was invited in 1970 to the signing of the German-Polish Treaty.

Since 2003, Lenz was a visiting professor at the Düsseldorf Heinrich Heine University and a member of the organization for German orthography and proper speech.

Reviews

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is one of his lesser known works. But it still is haunting and worth the read.
His writing style throughout the novel is rational and kept close to the narrator, Jan.
I admired the character work. Every single one of them is so well portrayed.
Liked it :)

[saschi · Rating 2 out of 5]

„Ding Dong, lass mich hinein
Ich will grad bei dir sein
Heut Nacht bin ich allein
Doch ich glaub das muss nich sein“ - Yung Hurn

Mädchen Männer Meister. Steingemetzel. Ein deutsches Archaischstan. Wen oder Was erzieht der stellungslose Pädagoge? Wen oder Was lässt Lenz den Wächter spielen. Und dann dieser Elektrakomplex, zum schreien. Lone wie Fatigue. Jan mit urkomischen Eingebungen. Betty die teutonische Milde. Vaddi als harte Nuss, klar. Krach! Einiges knackt und bricht da im Roman. Nur leider an Sollbruchstellen. Sehr vorhersehbar und stilistisch verklumpt.

[Susanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/6 points, ein modernere Lenz, wunderbar erzählt, aber die Handlung, besonders das Schicksal von Fritz, ist äußerst unbefriedigend