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The Stasi Poetry Circle: The Creative Writing Class that Tried to Win the Cold War
The extraordinary true story of the Stasi's poetry Stasiland and The Lives of Others crossed with Dead Poets Society.'A magnificent book . . . at once touching, exquisite, devastating and extraordinary.'PHILIPPE SANDS, author of East West Street and The Ratline'A vivid, funny, and imperturbable portrait of Soviet Russia's most loyal satellite.'NELL ZINKBerlin, 1982. Morale is at rock bottom in East Germany as the spectre of an all-out nuclear war looms. The Ministry for State Security is hunting for creative new weapons in the war against the class enemy - and their solution is stranger than fiction. Rather than guns, tanks, or bombs, the Stasi develop a programme to fight capitalism through rhyme and verse, winning the culture war through poetry - and the result is the most bizarre book club in history.Consisting of a small group of spies, soldiers and border guards - some WW2 veterans, others schoolboy recruits - the 'Working Group of Writing Chekists' met monthly until the Wall fell. In a classroom adorned with portraits of Lenin, they wrote their own poetry and were taught verse, metre, and rhetoric by East German poet Uwe Berger. The regime hoped that poetry would sharpen the Stasi's 'party sword' by affirming the spies' belief in the words of Marx and Lenin, as well as strengthening the socialist faith of their comrades. But as the agents became steeped in poetry, revelling in its imaginative ambiguity, the result was the opposite. Rather than entrenching State ideology, they began to question it - and following a radical role reversal, the GDR's secret weapon dramatically backfired.Weaving unseen archival material and exclusive interviews with surviving members, Philip Oltermann reveals the incredible hidden story of a unique weaponising poetry for politics. Both a gripping true story and a parable about creativity in a surveillance state, this is history writing at its finest.
212 pages, ebook
First published February 17, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews
February 27, 2022
You couldn’t make it up. Between 1982 and 1989 the GDR tried to weaponise poetry. Art was seen as a means of socialist self-improvement and a way to fight against capitalism. So a group of Stasi officers and border guards were convened every 4 weeks at the House of Culture and under the direction of professional state-sanctioned poet Uwe Berger to learn about poetry and how to write it. Essentially, it was thought, that if they became poets themselves they would be able to infiltrate poetry circles and be able to spot dissident writing. As well, of course, as supplying some positive state-approved poetry for the masses. However this attempt to weaponise poetry failed for many reasons, not least because it didn’t develop very good poets, and then many of them started to identify with the thoughts and ideas of the very people they were supposed to be spying on. From interrogating suspects to composing sonnets in one short step. This is a truly fascinating account of a little byway of history, a story stranger than fiction. Well-researched, often using first-hand accounts and even on occasion meeting some of the original participants, the author gives us a vivid and insightful account - although I did find he jumped about a bit too much in time and place – and I look forward to actually reading some of the poetry composed under the auspices of one of the GDR’s more imaginative experiments.
May 3, 2022
To defend East Germany against corrupt Western culture, East Germany created the Checkists, the Stasi poetry circle. Under the watchful eye of Uwe Berger, the Checkists attempted to create a poetry that made "the inside" and "the outside" coincide and become a unity. The Poet was the State and it was his job (very much his) to reflect and celebrate the achievements of the State and how it came into being. (Such was a counter to the Western confessional mode). Berger served as the State's mirror: he encouraged his disciples and reported on any writing that smacked of self or Western decadence. He emerges in the book as was one of the super spies/informers in the pay of East Germany.
Oltermann's book is an intriguing tragicomedy. It discusses the history of East Germany and links this to the poetic achievements of the Checkists -- achievement has to be ironical. The poetry that flowed forth was from muddy war fields rather than any fountain of inspiration. In effect, the book is a collection of short essays that cleverly links poetic terms to political ideas. The key term is bathos. This was a delight to read from start to finish.
Oltermann's book is an intriguing tragicomedy. It discusses the history of East Germany and links this to the poetic achievements of the Checkists -- achievement has to be ironical. The poetry that flowed forth was from muddy war fields rather than any fountain of inspiration. In effect, the book is a collection of short essays that cleverly links poetic terms to political ideas. The key term is bathos. This was a delight to read from start to finish.
January 16, 2022
Philip Oltermann’s book “The Stasi Poetry Circle” is, on the surface, a black comedy, which would make for a hugely enjoyable movie. The book’s chapters are split into “lessons” and comically entitled “Bathos” and “Dissonance” etc, giving this work the feel of a school text book. The contents are a connected series of stories which tell the tale of how the Stasi tried to win the war through poetry. The history has been deeply and skilfully researched, and it is an accessible read.
Whilst not the craziest thing ever to happen during the Cold War, this is nevertheless a quirky and poignant account of one bizarre chapter of it. At once both deadly serious and totally ridiculous, “The Stasi Poetry Circle” is highly recommended for students of the Cold War and readers who enjoy unusual histories.
Whilst not the craziest thing ever to happen during the Cold War, this is nevertheless a quirky and poignant account of one bizarre chapter of it. At once both deadly serious and totally ridiculous, “The Stasi Poetry Circle” is highly recommended for students of the Cold War and readers who enjoy unusual histories.
February 12, 2022
The premise had a lot of potential, but this was just not a very good book. I think the plot could potentially be well-suited for a dark comedy film (e.g., The Death of Stalin), though, since the true story is so comically ridiculous.
I expected the book to read more like a novel, and there was much more focus on analyzing poetry and discussing literary elements than I anticipated. The timelines were completely jumbled and the cast of characters kind of jumped in and out at various points, which made it really hard for me to keep track of who people were and how they related to each other. I also didn't like how the author would randomly insert himself and the investigative work he did into the 'storyline' -- it wasn't consistent, so it felt really odd.
I expected the book to read more like a novel, and there was much more focus on analyzing poetry and discussing literary elements than I anticipated. The timelines were completely jumbled and the cast of characters kind of jumped in and out at various points, which made it really hard for me to keep track of who people were and how they related to each other. I also didn't like how the author would randomly insert himself and the investigative work he did into the 'storyline' -- it wasn't consistent, so it felt really odd.
May 14, 2023
Some people will dislike the structure of this book as chapters are seasoned at their start with a spicy bit of the book's linear chronology, which runs from the early 1970 to the fall of the German Democratic Republic, then tends to head into a flashback.
My fiction professor told me that a writer loses 15% of their forward motion with a flashback.
This way of doing things impedes the forward progress of TSPC, and if you're the type who prefers time in a constant left/right flow, you will no doubt become frustrated.
But I think it's a great story with plenty of fine writing.
After the defeat of Nazi Germany and during the reconstruction, Germany West and East discovered that art was something that could be held up to the light that appeared clear and beautiful with the occasional flaw of a Nazi here and there. Art was the new god.
Of course art in the East was required to be blended with Marxist-Leninism, and where better to start with the blending than with those art-loving jokers in the East German secret police, the Stasi.
Oltermann introduces us to some fascinating characters in service to the state who very often wrote crap but sometimes produced thoughtful, high quality work which Ewe Berger, the leader of this sewing circle, promptly reported to his superiors in the Stasi.
If it feels a bit odd that the Stasi report on the Stasi, don't be alarmed. Some 80,000 part-time domestic spooks reported to the professional spooks. It was a spooky world that even after all the attempts to pulp these files remains formidable to this day.
That any of the poetry is any good seems like a miracle but some of it quite good. On the whole they are not as interesting as the spy craft and the crazy morality of the system, but these well-chosen examples of what was coming out of the Stasi are entertaining, though as I said before, not as entertaining as the continual totalitarian reportage.
When the author met Annegret Gollin, one of the poets who the Stasi chased because she was a non-conformist, she told him the GDR was a place "in which you could fuck anyone and trust no one". Stasi spying on Stasi is only the most obvious example of a state where the practice of collecting information eventually led not to security but to a mass of information that was to a great degree not even suitable for novelistic purposes. It was simply too mundane.
My fiction professor told me that a writer loses 15% of their forward motion with a flashback.
This way of doing things impedes the forward progress of TSPC, and if you're the type who prefers time in a constant left/right flow, you will no doubt become frustrated.
But I think it's a great story with plenty of fine writing.
After the defeat of Nazi Germany and during the reconstruction, Germany West and East discovered that art was something that could be held up to the light that appeared clear and beautiful with the occasional flaw of a Nazi here and there. Art was the new god.
Of course art in the East was required to be blended with Marxist-Leninism, and where better to start with the blending than with those art-loving jokers in the East German secret police, the Stasi.
Oltermann introduces us to some fascinating characters in service to the state who very often wrote crap but sometimes produced thoughtful, high quality work which Ewe Berger, the leader of this sewing circle, promptly reported to his superiors in the Stasi.
If it feels a bit odd that the Stasi report on the Stasi, don't be alarmed. Some 80,000 part-time domestic spooks reported to the professional spooks. It was a spooky world that even after all the attempts to pulp these files remains formidable to this day.
That any of the poetry is any good seems like a miracle but some of it quite good. On the whole they are not as interesting as the spy craft and the crazy morality of the system, but these well-chosen examples of what was coming out of the Stasi are entertaining, though as I said before, not as entertaining as the continual totalitarian reportage.
When the author met Annegret Gollin, one of the poets who the Stasi chased because she was a non-conformist, she told him the GDR was a place "in which you could fuck anyone and trust no one". Stasi spying on Stasi is only the most obvious example of a state where the practice of collecting information eventually led not to security but to a mass of information that was to a great degree not even suitable for novelistic purposes. It was simply too mundane.
December 31, 2023
A showcase of the ill-conceived, faulty dialectics of a once thoroughly dialectic project (pp. 26-27), with "a state committed to the idea that art brings out the best in people" (p. 23) for a thesis, a surveillance organization "spying upon itself" (p. 85) for an antithesis, and a broken promise (p. 176) culminating in suicide (p. 81), detachment, and imminent poverty (p. 181) for a failing synthesis. Expertly embellished with creative metaphors and allegories, this celebration of the power of language - and study of the language of power - is the final report of an evidently captivating and exciting five years' worth of research. It can also serve as an excellent primer of East German history, interspersed with a few unsettling previews to that region's present.
January 31, 2024
The 52 Week Reading Challenge: Hybrid genre (26)
3*
The book is a series of short essays that explore how the state planned to win the war on the West through poetry.
I found the book fascinating, as it told the little known history of the Cultural Cold War and how the GDR tried to control the arts through language and creativity and tried to weaponise poetry. The book is witty and quirky. The characters appear to be ridiculous at times. Due to the structure of the book, where chapters are divided into lessons, I did find the book jumpy and lacking in detail in parts. Overall, it is an interesting and surreal read.
3*
The book is a series of short essays that explore how the state planned to win the war on the West through poetry.
I found the book fascinating, as it told the little known history of the Cultural Cold War and how the GDR tried to control the arts through language and creativity and tried to weaponise poetry. The book is witty and quirky. The characters appear to be ridiculous at times. Due to the structure of the book, where chapters are divided into lessons, I did find the book jumpy and lacking in detail in parts. Overall, it is an interesting and surreal read.
February 24, 2024
My first book on East Germany...very interesting how language was so tightly policed and yet weaponised for 'agitation and propaganda' tactics. Every worker was expected to also be a culture fiend but only as cheerleaders for the socialists. I would definitely read more on the GDR. very journalistic writing, i found the style a bit choppy and the timings of events muddled around a bit
March 20, 2022
The Red Poets' Society? Comrades in Consonance?
I suppose in the neurotic times of the early '80's and mutually assured destruction, when Ronald Reagan's 300-kiloton thermonuclear warheads were called "Peacekeepers", it's at least unsurprising that the GDR's Stasi could create a Wunderwaffe of their own out of sonnets, bathos and broken rhyme. It may have had its roots in the utopian days of building a "real existing socialism" with literature as a central pillar, extolling the virtues of the common man. Yet it ended with the writing circles' poetry and literature being co-opted by the out of touch dictatorship for its own ends. It certainly didn't bring out the best in people, or stop "das Volk" from turning against the state and looking westwards.
I can't remember why Plato banned poets from his Republic, but I think he shouldn't have worried so much. Maybe he was jilted by one, or had his own poetry badly criticised by a peer. As we have daily proof, soft power only really goes so far, and the idea of a Literturgesellschaft (literary society) is more utopian than a Marxist one. But even if poetry can't crush an enemy like a Soviet tank, it sure can piss people off. And for that alone, it's worth consideration.
Fantastic, interesting book!
I suppose in the neurotic times of the early '80's and mutually assured destruction, when Ronald Reagan's 300-kiloton thermonuclear warheads were called "Peacekeepers", it's at least unsurprising that the GDR's Stasi could create a Wunderwaffe of their own out of sonnets, bathos and broken rhyme. It may have had its roots in the utopian days of building a "real existing socialism" with literature as a central pillar, extolling the virtues of the common man. Yet it ended with the writing circles' poetry and literature being co-opted by the out of touch dictatorship for its own ends. It certainly didn't bring out the best in people, or stop "das Volk" from turning against the state and looking westwards.
I can't remember why Plato banned poets from his Republic, but I think he shouldn't have worried so much. Maybe he was jilted by one, or had his own poetry badly criticised by a peer. As we have daily proof, soft power only really goes so far, and the idea of a Literturgesellschaft (literary society) is more utopian than a Marxist one. But even if poetry can't crush an enemy like a Soviet tank, it sure can piss people off. And for that alone, it's worth consideration.
Fantastic, interesting book!
April 10, 2022
Reads like a history text-book. There is little depth or subjective opinion to stand out.
It has a weird way of framing itself as a thrilling fictional recreatory non-fiction piece, then after a paragraph or less, lunges into stale, dull, copy and paste Wikipedia entries.
Very disappointing.
It has a weird way of framing itself as a thrilling fictional recreatory non-fiction piece, then after a paragraph or less, lunges into stale, dull, copy and paste Wikipedia entries.
Very disappointing.
December 26, 2023
This is an interesting account of the ways in which the arts - specifically literature - specifically poetry - were used to prop up the East German state; or, just as often, to subvert it. One of the pillars of the GDR was the blurring of divisions between workers and writers/artists: every factory had its own library, and every industry had a writers circle. Sounds good, right? But often these literary circles were used as a means of spying on participants, with their every word scrutinised for hidden, subversive meaning and often reported to the authorities. The Stasis Poetry Circle was no exception.
This was a very interesting subject for me, having recently returned from a holiday in Berlin (where this book was bought) and with only a very superficial knowledge of the role of the arts in the GDR. It's a slightly frustrating book, as the author is frequently thwarted in his attempts to interview members of the Stasi Poetry Circle - some are dead, some merely unwilling to talk. It's also a little difficult to follow in parts - there are a lot of names and concepts (Hegelian dialectics, anyone?) to keep track of, and even rereading some of the more confusing sections didn't fully clarify things for me. I suspect, however, that says more about the reader and her state of mind than it does about the book.
This was a very interesting subject for me, having recently returned from a holiday in Berlin (where this book was bought) and with only a very superficial knowledge of the role of the arts in the GDR. It's a slightly frustrating book, as the author is frequently thwarted in his attempts to interview members of the Stasi Poetry Circle - some are dead, some merely unwilling to talk. It's also a little difficult to follow in parts - there are a lot of names and concepts (Hegelian dialectics, anyone?) to keep track of, and even rereading some of the more confusing sections didn't fully clarify things for me. I suspect, however, that says more about the reader and her state of mind than it does about the book.
January 25, 2023
This book turned out to be less than what I expected & more about writing poetry generally despite the author's extensive research into Stasi archives about poetry groups in the former German Democratic Republic (East Germany). There were too few excerpts of poetry written by the German guardsmen who formed the Stasi group but it was definitely an eye-opener to find out that poetry & literature where fairly high on the political agenda in the country, and not for propaganda purposes. Poetry & literature generally, as book reading was encouraged, were an important part of a socialist workers' ethos, literacy rates were high and poetry & reading groups were encouraged as was poetry written by factory workers in the socialist utopia of the GDR, despite any printing paper shortages or constraints on publishing houses. Oltermann tracks down members of the Stasi's poetry group, tries to understand their thinking & what was allowable; unfortunately, there were too few examples about what was censored so it was difficult to determine just how tightly controlled creative thinking was or was not suppressed, but this was otherwise a very novel & interesting book.
December 10, 2023
What a fantastic book.
Ostermanns breaks down the initial climate of the GDR and how they wished to form their new socialist country on the foundations of great literature to create a Literaturgesellschaft or literature society.
He examines the poems, some of which dissent, some support the regime, and then he also examines the inner machinations of the Stasi’s efforts to have officers create their own poetry in support of the system, some of which don’t, and the head of the poetry group will quickly send off a report to the relevant authorities.
The author continues by finding these original poets and interviewing them; truly a fantastic document of history from one of the most regulated and restrictive countries to have existed.
Definitely worth a read regardless of your previous knowledge about East Germany.
Ostermanns breaks down the initial climate of the GDR and how they wished to form their new socialist country on the foundations of great literature to create a Literaturgesellschaft or literature society.
He examines the poems, some of which dissent, some support the regime, and then he also examines the inner machinations of the Stasi’s efforts to have officers create their own poetry in support of the system, some of which don’t, and the head of the poetry group will quickly send off a report to the relevant authorities.
The author continues by finding these original poets and interviewing them; truly a fantastic document of history from one of the most regulated and restrictive countries to have existed.
Definitely worth a read regardless of your previous knowledge about East Germany.
July 5, 2022
this book got no swing. reads as a report. fascinating source material.
December 11, 2022
Impressively researched and often surreal account of how the GDR tried to harness language, especially poetry, as a device of the State.
June 1, 2024
Fascinating glimpse of the period through the lens of the arts.
October 13, 2023
Loved this. A completely different view of life inside east Germany and the states battle to control creativity and language
For anyone who loves the written word this is a must read. Shows the dangers of censorship and control and that ultimately, it will never work
For anyone who loves the written word this is a must read. Shows the dangers of censorship and control and that ultimately, it will never work
April 12, 2022
DNF - abandoned at one-third through. Too many snippets of poetry with inconclusive analyses - maybe they mean this or maybe they mean something else. So far, I haven't learned anything more than I did from reading the blurb and I'm no longer interested.
September 6, 2022
This was v intriguing and a good complement if you've found yourself mildly obsessed with the CIA paying every mid-20th century person you adored. Also, how's this opening line: 'As a new chill descended on Europe, Jurgen Polinske was waiting at the gates of the compound, thinking about ice cream.'
February 10, 2022
The Stasi Poetry Circle: The Creative Writing Class that Tried to Win the Cold War is just an amazing title for the book! The title alone made me want to read the book and learn more.
I was hoping that the book would focus more on the Stasi Poetry Circle and for there to be more of the poetry in the book. Rather, it provides a good overview of the GDR, an overview of the political climate during the Cold War and up to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the context to the formation of the Stasi Poetry Circle, it focuses on a few of the more notable poets of the group as well as looking at other poets in the GDR at that time and how they were viewed and treated.
Nonetheless, it makes for a fascinating read. The fact that members of the Stasi would meet to workshop their poetry seems surreal, but it did happen. Being the GDR, nothing was completely as it seemed. The country was rife with informants and people being surveilled - even in this Stasi group, poets were watching and reporting on poets.
I think it’s a must-read for anyone interested in recent German history and the Cold War.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Faber & Faber, for the ARC for a fair and honest review.
I was hoping that the book would focus more on the Stasi Poetry Circle and for there to be more of the poetry in the book. Rather, it provides a good overview of the GDR, an overview of the political climate during the Cold War and up to the fall of the Berlin Wall, the context to the formation of the Stasi Poetry Circle, it focuses on a few of the more notable poets of the group as well as looking at other poets in the GDR at that time and how they were viewed and treated.
Nonetheless, it makes for a fascinating read. The fact that members of the Stasi would meet to workshop their poetry seems surreal, but it did happen. Being the GDR, nothing was completely as it seemed. The country was rife with informants and people being surveilled - even in this Stasi group, poets were watching and reporting on poets.
I think it’s a must-read for anyone interested in recent German history and the Cold War.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Faber & Faber, for the ARC for a fair and honest review.
March 6, 2022
I didn't know how this story was going to be told and I found it very interesting, in expected and unexpected ways. Telling this story in a non-linear way, like a puzzle of people's stories, perspectives, thoughts and - ultimately- choices, feels like the right one. And poetry is a thread, in more than one way.
I enjoyed it very much.
I enjoyed it very much.
April 18, 2022
A fascinating book. It brings to life the very ordinary members of the the Stasi Poetry Circle in the extraordinary society and times they lived through. The attitude of the State to culture and literature as a accolade was illuminating. Witty and also moving. Just given it as a gift to an excited friend in Munich.
June 24, 2022
It took me a little bit to get into the book because it's not written like a 'normal' history book or a 'popular' history but rather it is very much written with a lyrical, poetical slant that weaves poetry and history together to make a touching story that teaches you a lot about how art played a role in East Germany, and in specific the Stasi.
March 8, 2022
Think ‘Dead Poets Society’ (Red Poets Society?) meets ‘Dr Strangelove’ by way of ‘Goodbye Lenin’. File under “strange but true”, cross referenced to “you couldn’t make this shit up”. Make your own mind up on the quality of the poetry.
March 26, 2022
Every time I think I've now heard all the strange, bizarre, weirder-than-fiction stories about shit that went on in the country of my birth, something like this book by Philip Oltermann about the Stasi teaching its staff about poetry writing comes along. You couldn't make this shit up.
February 14, 2022
I struggled to get past the first few pages. It was a bit dry but would probably be of interest to those who had more than a passing interest in history
April 6, 2022
Surreal history of centrally-planned state.
April 17, 2022
Fascinating, surprising, informative.
April 19, 2022
Darkly funny and absurd - an interesting glimpse into the cultural infiltration attempted by the Stasi.
June 24, 2022
Poetry and the Stasi. Definitely worth a read. Although a book akin to middle age. It all sags a little in the middle.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews