"Loops"

Description

Reading and moderated discussion
in cooperation with the Literaturhaus Hamburg "Elias who?" Until recently, even connoisseurs would rub their eyes. Suddenly, he is here! Elias Hirschl! "Yes, of course! The Hirschl!" say now all connoisseurs or those who consider themselves such. Or even offer unsolicited friendship: "Sure, Elias is a very, very great talent." And no path is more closed to the shooting star of the German-speaking literary scene. The feuilletons have been overflowing for some time when it comes to the thirty-two-year-old musician, slam poet, literature, theater, and radio author born in Vienna. And his listeners love him too (Audience Award at the Bachmann Prize 2022). If you are looking for imagination, independence, and a profound interest in language in literature, you are in the right place! Just like in the multifaceted Vienna School, it is never just about the plot here, but about the language itself – beyond rampant banal-trivial prose. But the plot of "Loops" is also very unique and has it in itself: Franziska suffers as a child from a disease that is hardly explainable: Every symptom she hears or reads about, she immediately experiences herself. One word is enough, and the body reacts. With the help of a young mathematician, she discovers that words from dead languages help her protect herself against her suffering. From this experience, a joint project grows: the search for a language that is unambiguous, non-hurtful, and does not get out of control. "Loops" asks – highly topical – how much language determines what we consider right. In a highly sophisticated way, "Loops" combines historical material with inventions. Time and again, the seemingly incredible proves to be true for Elias Hirschl, and the rest is extremely well invented. The Vienna Circle, mathematics, the philosophy of language, and the political upheavals of the 20th century form the background. The novel is learned, funny, and in its best moments, very free in thought.
Critics have reacted unusually clearly to this novel. Clemens J. Setz calls "Loops" a "great ideas novel by one of the most delightful authors of the present." The FAZ praised the "unrestrained thought-provoking wit" and a "firework of unused ideas." The Süddeutsche Zeitung counted at least two thousand original ideas over four hundred pages. And the NZZ spoke of a "miracle of confusion."

Highlights

• Reading and moderated discussion with Elias Hirschl
• Audience winner at the Bachmann Prize 2022
• Insight into the multifaceted Vienna School

General Information

The event "Loops" takes place at the Literaturhaus Hamburg and offers a reading as well as a moderated discussion with the emerging author Elias Hirschl. The evening explores the unique connection between language and personal experience in Hirschl's work.

Location

Schwanenwik 38, 22087 Hamburg, Germany

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