Issue 2/2021 – Congratulations: 70 years Goethe-Institut
“das goethe” is the cultural magazine of the Goethe-Institut. It is published twice a year and is included in the weekly newspaper “Die Zeit”.
Congratulations: 70 years Goethe-Institut
When the Goethe-Institut began its work in 1951, the plan was for teachers from abroad to learn the German language and then teach it in their home countries. But the tasks have long since gone beyond that.
Die polnische Illustratorin Magdalena Kaszuba begleitet mit ihren Bildern Frauen, die seit 2016 für ihre Rechte auf die Straße gehen. Dabei setzt sie sich auch mit dem polnischen Katholizismus auseinander.
Magdalena Kaszuba (Illustrationen), Marta Krus und Regine Hader (Texte)
Illustration: Magdalena Kaszuba
„Keine Einzige mehr.“ Als die 30-jährige Izabela 2021 an einer Sepsis stirbt, weil die Ärzt*innen trotz unumkehrbarer Schädigung des Fötus keine Abtreibung durchführten, ist der Protest längst ein Massenphänomen. Izabela ist eines der ersten bekannten Todesopfer der rigiden Abtreibungspolitik.
Illustration: Magdalena Kaszuba
Das Recht auf Abtreibung ist seit jeher eines der am härtesten umkämpften Rechte. Seit 2016 gehen die Feminist*innen in Polen auf die Straße. Zwischen Zeige- und Mittelfinger strecken sie einen Kleiderbügel in die Luft: ein uraltes Zeichen für den verzweifelten Versuch, selbst eine Abtreibung vorzunehmen – und natürlich dafür, wie gefährlich es ist, medizinische Leistungen zu verweigern.
Illustration: Magdalena Kaszuba
Auf den Plakaten werden die Demonstrant*innen deutlich: „Verpisst euch“ (mit „PIS off“ spielt Magdalena Kaszuba auf die regierende PiS-Partei an, die Red.). „Ich wünschte, ich könnte meine Regierung abtreiben.“ Konservative Stimmen kritisieren, dass sich diese Sprache für Frauen „nicht gehört“ …
Illustration: Magdalena Kaszuba
„Keine Einzige mehr.“ Als die 30-jährige Izabela 2021 an einer Sepsis stirbt, weil die Ärzt*innen trotz unumkehrbarer Schädigung des Fötus keine Abtreibung durchführten, ist der Protest längst ein Massenphänomen. Izabela ist eines der ersten bekannten Todesopfer der rigiden Abtreibungspolitik.
Illustration: Magdalena Kaszuba
Das Recht auf Abtreibung ist seit jeher eines der am härtesten umkämpften Rechte. Seit 2016 gehen die Feminist*innen in Polen auf die Straße. Zwischen Zeige- und Mittelfinger strecken sie einen Kleiderbügel in die Luft: ein uraltes Zeichen für den verzweifelten Versuch, selbst eine Abtreibung vorzunehmen – und natürlich dafür, wie gefährlich es ist, medizinische Leistungen zu verweigern.
Illustration: Magdalena Kaszuba
Auf den Plakaten werden die Demonstrant*innen deutlich: „Verpisst euch“ (mit „PIS off“ spielt Magdalena Kaszuba auf die regierende PiS-Partei an, die Red.). „Ich wünschte, ich könnte meine Regierung abtreiben.“ Konservative Stimmen kritisieren, dass sich diese Sprache für Frauen „nicht gehört“ …
The Bug: After the fall of the Iron Curtain, the Goethe-Institut began searching for offices in Prague, finally moving into the former East German embassy. The building was still completely furnished; there was even a plastic rose on the ambassador’s desk. A cleaner gave it to Carola Bloss, the wife of the institute’s director Jochen Bloss. Later, they discovered a microphone hidden in it (see top page). “That means,” says Jochen Bloss, “when the ambassador received his guests at the round table, there was a recording device.” He still has the bugged plastic rose today.
The Ambassador: In the 1960s, the Goethe-Institut organised tours by German jazz musicians. Alongside Albert Mangelsdorff, Klaus Doldinger also went on tour across Asia in 1969. The saxophonist addressed his role as jazz ambassador on the album „Doldinger – The Ambassador“. The record was presented by the Goethe-Institut with an issue of the then popular „twen“. The “magazine for young adults” was considered the alternative to Bravo and is still remembered today for its many record albums. It mainly featured jazz, classical music, chansons and poetry.
The Roomer: He had spent two months in Boppard. Twenty-nine years later Jorge Mario Bergoglio saw his former landlady Helma Schmidt again (then president of the European Parliament Martin Schulz had arranged the meeting in 2014). In the meantime, Bergoglio had become Pope Francis and still remembered the summer of 1985 very well when he had stayed with the Schmidts while attending a German course at the Goethe-Institut in Boppard. They kept in touch for years after that. Bergoglio’s letters were always written by hand in flawless German.
The Jokester: “Vulgarity” that the federal government “does not condone,” assured Chancellor Helmut Kohl in early 1987, shortly after the broadcast of „Rudis Tagesschau“. In his satirical programme, Rudi Carrell had shown a segment suggesting that veiled Iranian women were throwing underwear at the Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The Iranian government was furious, crisis meetings were held in the Chancellery in Bonn, and the newspaper Bild ran the headline, “Carrell in mortal danger.” German diplomats were expelled and the Goethe-Institut in Tehran had to close. “Vulgarity” that the federal government “does not condone,” assured Chancellor Helmut Kohl in early 1987, shortly after the broadcast of „Rudis Tagesschau“. In his satirical programme, Rudi Carrell had shown a segment suggesting that veiled Iranian women were throwing underwear at the Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The Iranian government was furious, crisis meetings were held in the Chancellery in Bonn, and the newspaper Bild ran the headline, “Carrell in mortal danger.” German diplomats were expelled and the Goethe-Institut in Tehran had to close.
Entire issue
The 13th issue of "das goethe" focuses on the topic of feminism.
Read the current issue of “das goethe“ in German language (accessible PDF)!
“Generations” is a term that is difficult to define. It relates to the private sphere of family life, but also stands for the social roles of young and old – for example, when we think of climate change and the preservation of a world worth living in for the next generation.
“Generations” is a term that is difficult to define. It relates to the private sphere of family life, but also stands for the social roles of young and old – for example, when we think of climate change and the preservation of a world worth living in for the next generation.
The tenth issue of “das goethe” focuses on the particularly serious effects of climate change in the Arctic region. With the project “The Right to Be Cold” we look at the climate crisis from a perspective that has received less attention so far: What does global warming mean for the people who have lived in the far north for many generations?
The ninth issue of “das goethe” is devoted to experiences of war, oppression and flight in Europe: For the project “Tell me about Europe”, contemporary witnesses, born before 1945, tell about their lives – and reflect critically on their history against the background of the European idea.
The eighth issue of das goethe is devoted to the theme of the “digital civil society” with articles about, for example, digital colonialism, about “Wiki Loves Women,” a diverse scene of independent online media in Russia and an artwork by Julia Steinigeweg.
The seventh edition of “das goethe“ is dedicated to the theme “Cultures of Equality.” With contributions by, among others, the philosopher Philipp Hübl on the moral of the machine, an essay by anthropologist Dina Makram-Ebeid on the feminism debates north and south of the Mediterranean, a report by Klaus Bardenhagen on queer Taiwan and an interview with the director of the Museo Nacional de Etnografía y Folklore in La Paz, Elvira Espejo.