Walter Hasenclever

Born in Aachen on July 8, 1890, Walter Hasenclever became one of the notable writers of German Expressionism. He studied in Oxford, Lausanne, and Leipzig, and first drew wide attention with the play Der Sohn (The Son) in 1914.

His writing often pushed back against bourgeois values, militarism, and authoritarianism. During and after World War I, he developed a strong pacifist outlook, and his poems and plays helped define the emotional intensity and social criticism associated with Expressionist literature.

After the Nazis came to power in 1933, his works were banned and he went into exile in France. He died in 1940 while interned at Les Milles, leaving behind a body of work that remains closely tied to the cultural and political upheavals of early 20th-century Europe.