- Ruth Maier
Ruth Maier (
November 10 ,1920 inVienna ,Austria -December 1 ,1942 inAuschwitz ,Poland ) was an Austrian woman whose diaries describing her experiences of theHolocaust in Austria andNorway were published in 2007 to generally favorable reviews, leading her to be described as "Norway'sAnne Frank ." [cite news |first= Lars|last= Kluge |authorlink= |author= |coauthors= |title= Norges Anne Frank |url= http://www.aftenposten.no/amagasinet/article2042118.ece |format= |work= |publisher= Aftenposten |location= Oslo |id= |pages= |page= |date= 2007-10-13 |accessdate=2008-01-20 |language= Norwegian |quote= |archiveurl= |archivedate= ] [cite news |first = Stian |last= Bromark |authorlink= |author= |coauthors= |title= Norsk skamhistorie |url= http://www.dagbladet.no/kultur/2007/10/18/515380.html |format= |work= |publisher= Dagbladet |location= Oslo |id= |pages= |page= |date= 2007-10-18 |accessdate=2008-01-20 |language= Norwegian |quote= |archiveurl= |archivedate= ]Ruth Maier was born in Vienna to a largely assimilated Jewish family. Her father, Ludwig Maier, held a
doctorate inphilosophy , was a polyglot (mastering nine languages), and held a senior position within the Austrian post and telegraph service. He died in 1933 oferysipelas .Ruth's diary is preserved from 1933 to 1942. She wrote in her diary about the deteriorating conditions for Austria's Jewish population following the
Anschluss in 1938, her reaction to the many changes in her life, and her yearning for her family. Her younger sister Judith managed to escape to theUnited Kingdom . Through her father's contacts, Ruth was able to find refuge in Norway, where she arrived by train onJanuary 30 ,1939 . She was housed for some time with a Norwegian family. She became fluent in Norwegian within a year, completed herexamen artium , and befriended the future poetGunvor Hofmo at a volunteer work camp in Biri. The two became inseparable, finding lodging and work in various places in Norway. Ruth was also the model for one ofGustav Vigeland 's statues called "Surprised," now on permanent display at theVigeland Park in Oslo.She rented a room in Dalbergstien 3 in
Oslo in the early fall of 1942 and was arrested onNovember 26 ,1942 and deported on theD/S Donau the same day. Her friend Gunvor Hofmo had to be restrained from boarding the ship with her. Arriving inAuschwitz onDecember 1 ,1942 , she was led straight into the gas chambers. She lived to be 22. [cite book |last= Vold |first= Jan Erik |authorlink= Jan Erik Vold |coauthors= Ruth Maier |editor= |others= |title= Ruth Maiers dagbok - en jødisk flyktning i Norge |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |format= |accessdate= |accessyear= |accessmonth= |edition= |series= |date= |year= 2007 |month= |publisher= Gyldendal |location= Oslo |language= Norwegian |isbn=9788205340381 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages= |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= ]Her close friend and "twin soul" Gunvor Hofmo kept Ruth's diaries and much of her correspondence. She approached Gyldendal to get them published in 1953, but was turned down. After she died in 1995, Jan Erik Vold went through her papers and came upon Ruth Maier's works. After editing them for ten years, they were published in 2007. Vold was highly impressed by the literary value of the diaries, comparing Ruth Maier's literary talent to that of
Hannah Arendt andSusan Sontag . [cite news |first = Nils-Øivind |last= Haagensen |authorlink= |author= |coauthors= |title= En pike utenom det vanlige |url= http://www.klassekampen.no/48226/mod_article/item |format= |work= |publisher= Klassekampen |location= Oslo |id= |pages= |page= |date= 2007-10-18 |accessdate=2008-01-20 |language= Norwegian |quote= |archiveurl= |archivedate= ]Notes
Persondata
NAME=Maier, Ruth
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Jewish Diarist
DATE OF BIRTH=November 10 ,1920
PLACE OF BIRTH=Vienna ,Austria
DATE OF DEATH=December 1, 1942
PLACE OF DEATH=Auschwitz,Poland
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