Gabriele von Arnim bei der Erika Mann Lecture

In the organizer's words:

The renowned author and journalist Gabriele von Arnim will give this year's Erika Mann Lecture on May 27 at 6 pm in the Great Hall of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.

As part of the Erika Mann Lecture Series, authors are invited whose work makes important contributions to current social issues and who, like Erika Mann, inspire with unflinching perspicacity.

As an author, journalist, cabaret artist, racing driver, world traveler and style icon, Erika Mann was far ahead of her time. Courageous, creative, progressive and with an unwavering attitude, she positioned herself through her work. During her time in the USA, she wrote, among other things, the non-fiction book "Ten Million Children", in which she investigates how children and young people in Nazi Germany were forced to play their part in the dictatorship. "Ten Million Children" was first published in 1938 and caused an international sensation as an enlightening book about the true conditions in Germany at the time. Today, the book is a classic document of contemporary history and at the same time a moving piece of exile literature. "Wenn die Lichter ausgehen", a book about everyday life in Nazi Germany using the example of a small town in southern Germany, was published in 1940. Erika Mann's works are published by Rowohlt Verlag.

Gabriele von Arnim was born in Hamburg in 1946 and now lives in Berlin. She studied, completed her doctorate and lived in New York for ten years as a freelance journalist, later writing for publications such as "Die Zeit" and the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" and presenting television and radio programs. Her numerous works include "Das Leben ist ein vorübergehender Zustand", "Der Trost der Schönheit" and "Liebe Enkel oder die Kunst der Zuversicht".

On April 17, her new book "Abschied leben - Tagebuch eines Zeitgefühls" will be published, in which Gabriele von Arnim recounts a year of farewells, fears of the present and the struggle for confidence in the future.

In her Erika Mann Lecture, Gabriele von Arnim will reflect on the term "response-ability" and ask herself what it means to be a citizen in this present. How do we retain hope? How do we practice confidence?

May 27, 2026, 6 p.m.
Great Hall of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1 - 80539 Munich

The Erika Mann Lecture Series is a joint project of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Rowohlt Verlag and Holtzbrinck Berlin in cooperation with Monacensia im Hildebrandhaus and the Cultural Department of the City of Munich.

Price information:

Secure your free ticket via Eventbrite!