Rainald Goetz

Rainald Maria Goetz (born 1954) is a German author, playwright and essayist.

After studying History and Medicine in Munich and earning a Ph.D. in both, he soon concentrated on his writing.

With his first works, especially his novel "Irre" ("Crazy" or "Mad"), published in 1983, he became a cult author for the intellectual left. To the delight of his fans and the dismay of some critics he mixed neo-expressionist writing with social realism in the vein of Alfred Döblin and the fast pace of British pop writers like Julie Burchill. During a televised discussion with the best known literary critic in Germany, Goetz slit his own forehead with a razor blade and let the blood run down his face, which dramatically ended the debate.

Goetz made his name as an enthusiastic observer of media and pop culture. He embraced avant-garde philosophers like Foucault and Luhmann as well as the DJs of the techno movement, especially Sven Väth.

He can probably claim to be one of the earliest prominent bloggers, having written a daily diary on the web in 1998-99 called "Abfall für alle" ("trash for everybody"), which eventually was published as a book.

Goetz won numerous literary awards. He is still loved by his fan base, but he hasn't written anything which captivated the larger audience for some years.

elected works

*Irre (1983) - the novel which made him famous.
*Krieg / "War" (1986) - three plays
*Kontrolliert / "Controlled" (1988)
*Festung (1993) plays
*1989 (1993) - a collage of media etc. from the years 1989 / 1990 German Reunification
*Rave (1998)
*Jeff Koons (1998)
*Abfall für alle (1999)

External links

* [http://www.goethe.de/kue/the/nds/nds/aut/goe/enindex.htm Rainald Goetz: New German dramatic art.] Goethe-Instituts Website