Ruth Berlau: a Talented Author in Her Own Right

Authors

Julie Kalani Smith, Brigham Young University
Dr. James K. Lyon, Brigham Young University

Keywords

Ruth Berlau, author, Bertolt Brecht, women

College

Humanities

Department

Germanic and Slavic Languages

Abstract

As I began researching Ruth Berlau’s life, I encountered repeated references to Berlau’s beauty, always accompanied by the suggestion that it was her looks that attracted German playwright Bertolt Brecht’s attention. Berlau was one of a long line of women whom Brecht drew into his orbit, but most critics seem to agree that Berlau lacked the literary and secretarial skills of her predecessors Elisabeth Hauptmann and Margarethe Steffin. In contrast, Berlau is often regarded as an eccentric, overly aggressive woman, who was Brecht’s lover and follower, but not his equal. Despite, or perhaps because of this widespread but superficial assumption, my research was focused on the search for Berlau as a person and an author in her own right.

Recommended Citation

Smith, Julie Kalani and Lyon, Dr. James K. (2014) "Ruth Berlau: a Talented Author in Her Own Right," Journal of Undergraduate Research: Vol. 2014: Iss. 1, Article 649.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jur/vol2014/iss1/649