Judith Schalansky receives WORTMELDUNGEN-Literaturpreis 2023

Author Judith Schalansky is awarded the WORTMELDUNGEN-Literaturpreis 2023. The annual WORTMELDUNGEN – The Crespo Foundation’s Literary Award for Critical Short Texts honours excellent literary texts and essays that examine current sociopolitical issues. The aim is to promote critical voices, but also to broaden public discourse. The prize will be awarded for the sixth time in 2023.

In her prize-winning essay »Schwankende Kanarien« (»Faltering Canaries«), Judith Schalansky examines humanity’s early warning systems for looming tipping points against the backdrop of the climate catastrophe. The text reflects how language and literature themselves can fulfill the function of warning systems – and how hard it is for humans to change their behaviours despite knowing better.

»Judith Schalansky has written a brilliant text that sounds out present dangers while roaming through the centuries and scientific disciplines. Climate change and the loss of ecological balance cause the planet to run out of oxygen. With ease and malleable language, Judith Schalansky interweaves her far-reaching reflections on the cultural history of the alarm until the text itself becomes a medium of agitation. One couldn’t imagine a more effective signal. Where canaries are silent, danger is present. Where danger is present, literature must not be silent,« reads the jury’s statement.

The award ceremony will be held on June 16, 2023, in Frankfurt with a laudatory speech by jury member Philipp Theisohn. The WORTMELDUNGEN-Literaturpreis is endowed with 35,000 Euro. Previous winners are Petra Piuk, Thomas Stangl, Kathrin Röggla, Marion Poschmann and Volha Hapeyeva.