Post-exile. Travel and Return in the Work of German-Jewish Refugees. The Case of Hilde Domin

Abstract

Based on Georges-Arthur Goldschmidt’s reflections on the long ‘post-exile’ of a Jewish survivor of National Socialism, this article focuses on the numerous journeys and changes of location reported in the writings of former exiles. The Europe of displaced persons after 1945 is characterised by intensive and often erratic travel routes. Against this background, the journeys of the returnees are of particular relevance. For Jewish returnees, remigration to Germany posed a singular challenge due to the recent history of the genocide. Within this thematic context, the work of the poet and intellectual Hilde Domin is specifically examined, as it exemplifies this complex ‘post-exile’.

In addition to lyrical testimonies, this contribution focuses on her essays while also con-
sidering her correspondence and public appearances in West Germany. There, Domin sheds light on her attempts to return, her restlessness, and her long stays in Spain, which bear witness to a fragile and hybrid identity. The analysis reveals that the motifs of leaving and being allowed to stay are in a dialectical relationship of tension within Domin’s writings.