Anna Jacobson

Anna Jacobson (born January 10, 1888 in Lüneburg , † June 26, 1972 in Switzerland ) was an American Germanist of German origin.

life and work

Jacobson was the daughter of Arnold Jacobson and his wife Clara, née Heinemann, and a cousin of the philosopher Fritz Heinemann . In 1908 she graduated from Nancy University . She received her doctorate in 1918 from the University of Bonn .

Jacobson emigrated to the United States in 1922 and took American citizenship in 1937. Since 1924 she taught German literature at Hunter College in New York City . In 1927 she was appointed Assistant Professor there and in 1934 Associate Professor. She received a full professorship in 1950. From 1947 until her retirement in 1956, she headed the German faculty of the college. Jacobson published books and articles on Hermann Hesse , Franz Werfel , Heinrich Heine , Richard Wagner , Charles Kingsley, and Walt Whitman . She was particularly interested in Thomas Mann , for whose work she was able to distinguish herself as an expert.

During the time of National Socialism , when it was increasingly questioned whether the “language of Hitler ” should continue to be taught at a college where primarily Jewish women received their academic training, Jacobson defended her discipline and emphasized the importance of German literature and language and separated them from the National Socialist regime. As the incumbent dean of the faculty in 1941/1942 she managed to avert its threatened closure. She then played a key role in integrating German studies into new academic programs at Hunter College, such as a course on world literature that was offered from autumn 1943. During this time Jacobson was also involved in the National Conference of Christians and Jews and organized the collection of donations to support Jewish refugees from Germany.

Jacobson was keen to lead the study of literature out of the academic "ivory tower" and to open it to broader strata of society. To this end, she gave numerous lectures outside the university, including in front of women's clubs and for the Voice of America on the radio. In the 1940s in particular, she organized a number of important events at Hunter College dedicated to German writers, including four lectures by Thomas Mann, a memorial concert for Heinrich Heine's 150th birthday in 1947 and an exhibition on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe on the occasion his 200th birthday in 1949.

After her retirement in 1956, Jacobson moved to Switzerland, where she died in 1972. In 2005, the published Verlag Vittorio Klostermann the Correspondence Jacobson with Thomas and Katia Mann .

Publications (selection)

• Charles Kingsley's Relations with Germany. Carl Winter, Heidelberg 1917.
• Echoes of Richard Wagner's in the novel. Carl Winter, Heidelberg 1932.

literature

• Freidenreich, Harriet Pass: Jacobson, Anna. In: Encyclopaedia Judaica . 2nd edition. Macmillan, Detroit et al. a. 2007. Vol. 11, p. 53.
• Werner Frizen, Friedhelm Marx (eds.): Thomas Mann, Katia Mann - Anna Jacobson. An exchange of letters. Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 2005, ISBN 3-465-03408-2 (= Thomas Mann Studies. Vol. 34).

Web links

• Literature by and about Anna Jacobson in the catalog of the German National Library
• Portrait of Jacobson by Janet Wells Greene on the Jewish Women's Archive website .