Hans Carossa

Born in Bad Tölz in 1878, Hans Carossa trained as a physician and went on to build a literary career alongside his medical work. He wrote poetry, novels, essays, and memoir-like prose, and is especially remembered for helping shape the German autobiographical novel.

His books often draw on his own experiences, including childhood, medical practice, and service as a military doctor during the First World War. Readers and critics have often noted the clarity and inwardness of his style, which gives even personal material a thoughtful, measured tone.

Carossa remained in Germany during the Nazi period and is frequently associated with the idea of "inner emigration," a term used for writers who did not openly align themselves with the regime yet continued to live and work within the country. He died in 1956 near Passau, leaving behind a body of work that joins the perspectives of writer and doctor in a distinctive way.