Karl M. Otto Paetel papers,
- Author:
- Paetel, Karl O. (Karl Otto), 1906-1975.
- Call Number:
- MSS GER-072 local
- Abstract:
- The Karl O. Paetel Papers reflect its owner's many interests including Jugendbewegung (the German Youth Movement), Widerstand (resistance to Hitler), writer Ernst Jünger, refugees and exile topics. Paetel was an avid collector of books, pamphlets, periodicals and other materials on the subjects of his interest, many of which have been retained in his collection. The manuscript section contains manuscripts of both Paetel's published and unpublished writings. Included are manuscripts of several of his major published works, numerous essayistic pieces, as well as several volumes in planning stages. The publications section contains originals and copies of Paetel's publications, including a nearly complete set of his essayistic writings and numerous reviews in newspapers, periodicals and books. In his capacity as editor of several periodicals, including Deutsche Blätter, Deutsche Gegenwart and Gesprächsfetzen, Paetel received manuscripts from other writers. The section containing manuscripts by others includes shorter manuscripts by such authors as Paul Amann, Heinz Gollong, Alfred Gong, Paul Hagen, Werner Kindt, Th. Kögler and Robert Koehl and longer manuscripts by Michael Wurmbrand and Frederic McLean. Of significant interest in the collection are Paetel's collections of materials on various topics, including sizable collections on Ernst Jünger, Heinz Gollong, Widerstand and Jugendbewegung.
- Historical Note:
- Karl Otto Paetel was a political journalist, born in Berlin, forced to flee Germany in 1935 (Paetel was sentenced to death in absentia by the Nazis), and immigrated to the United States in 1940. Paetel's interests focused on the radical movements and social changes in the twentieth century from his youth until his death in 1975. It was during his time at the Siemens-Oberrealschule (1923-1927) that Paetel first became a member of a youth group, the Köngener Bund. His early association with youth groups and the German Youth Movement (Jugendbewegung) remained one of the major interests throughout his lifetime. The German Youth Movement became popular shortly after World War I and had a major influence on that generation of German intellectuals. Paetel became a leader of the movement and co-edited with Ernst Jünger, Die Kommenden, a central periodical of the movement. Paetel's interest in the radical movements of the day continued throughout his lifetime and is reflected in his writings. These movements included National Bolshevism (Nationalbolschewismus), a movement describing a group of individuals who were nationalists in the political sense, but socialists in economic terms; in 1965 Paetel published a history of National Bolshevism in German entitled Versuchung oder Chance? His interest in individuals, who did not fit into neat political or social categories, led to his interest in the American Beat movement and especially writer, Jack Kerouac, a leading beat poet; Paetel's Beat Anthologie (1962) is one of the earliest publications on the American Beat Generation. Another prominent interest in his life, especially after 1933 and his escape from Nazi Germany, was German resistance to National Socialism (Widerstand) and exile. Das Dritte Reich und seine Gegner is only one example of his many writings on the topic of resistance.
- Physical Description:
- 70 cu. ft
- Access Terms:
- Access to the collection is unrestricted.
- Notes:
- Part of the German and Jewish Intellectual E´migre´ Collection. local
- Subjects:
- World War, 1939-1945 Refugees, Youth movements Germany, Politics and government, Refugees, and Youth movements
- Genres/Forms:
- Correspondence. aat
- Names:
- Paetel, Karl O. (Karl Otto), 1906-1975, Arendt, Hannah, 1906-1975, Drexel, Joseph E. (Joseph Eduard), 1896-, George, Manfred, 1893-1965, Kissinger, Henry, 1923-, Niebuhr, Reinhold, 1892-1971, Theile, Albert, Tillich, Paul, 1886-1965, Paetel, Elizabeth, Arendt, Hannah, 1906-1975, George, Manfred, 1893-1965, Kissinger, Henry, 1923-, Niebuhr, Reinhold, 1892-1971, Paetel, Karl O. (Karl Otto), 1906-1975, Theile, Albert, and Tillich, Paul, 1886-1965
- Chronological Terms:
- 1933-1945 fast
- Geographic Terms:
- Germany Politics and government 1933-1945 and Germany
Access
Rare books do not circulate
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