Background
Hans Fallada was born as Rudolf Ditzen in Greifswald on 21 July 1893.
Hans Fallada was born as Rudolf Ditzen in Greifswald on 21 July 1893.
After secondary school and agricultural studies, Fallada worked as a farm supervisor on various North German country estates and was imprisoned for having swindled the owners. A disastrous adolescence was reflected in Fallada’s unstable private life and recurring morphine addiction. As a freelance writer Fallada became famous for his ability to portray the effects on individual Germans of the years immediately preceding, during and after the great slump of 1929.
His brilliant ear for dialogue and gift for simple, accurate social observation was also displayed in the best-selling Kleiner Mann - was nun? (Little Man - What Now?). It made Fallada’s name and displayed the realism.
During the Third Reich, Fallada continued to write prolihcally, being tolerated by the Nazis, though somewhat suspect because of a tendency towards decadence.
He died in Berlin of drink and drugs on 5 February 1947.
(The book recounted the story of the farmers’ revolt in Ho...)
1931(One of the most successful, symptomatic novels of the Dep...)
1932His half-hearted collaboration with the Nazis, and later with the East German authorities, reflected an adaptation to circumstances rather than any profound convictions.
Quotes from others about the person
‘The best imaginable political guide to the fauna Germanica'.
Kurt Tucholsky