Today we all know Canada as a cultural open-minded and multi-ethnic country. But this is an image which the North American state hasn´t always fulfilled. In his dissertation "Fluid Exile. Jewish Exile Writers in Canada 1940-2006" Eugen Banauch from the Department of English and American Studies shows - with the treatment of the life and work of four Jewish authors - Canada in a new perspective: The careers of Carl Weisselberger, Eric Koch, Charles Wassermann and Henry Kreisel clarify the uniqueness of the Jewish Exile.

1940: The National Socialists War is reaching its peak. Mussolini and Hitler are planning an alliance against Great Britain and France. The situation for Austrians and Germans living in these countries becomes increasingly tense. Fearing that in case of war they might follow the Nazis, Prime Minister Winston Churchill demands their imprisonment. The paradox - apart from a low number of actual Hitler sympathizers, most of them are Jews. Initially escaping the cruelties of the National Socialist Regime, they are facing persecution again. More than that - as labour camps get overcrowded in Britain, some of the male refugees are shipped to Canada.

From Exile to Exile

"But there the refugees aren't welcome either", explains Eugen Banauch from the Department of English and American Studies. By analyzing the life and work of the exile authors Carl Weisselberger, Eric Koch, Charles Wassermann and Henry Kreisel in his dissertation (which was honoured with the "Scientific  Award" of the Austrian-Canadian Society), Banauch illustrates the peculiarity of the Canadian exile. Unlike today, Canada at this time is a country with a very restrictive immigration policy. "Only a few refugees receive the possibility to enter the country", says Banauch. After being interned in England, they are locked away again. Among them are the authors Kreisel, Weisselberger, Wassermann and Koch. Banauch points out:  "They are in a kind of double exile. First escaped to England and then forced into another exile."

A life behind barbwire

Despite this fate, many of the refugees are able to make use of the time in captivity. "Apart from Weiselberger, the investigated authors are young men when they arrive in Canada.  Education, which they often couldn't afford in England, is now provided by elderly camp internees. Henry Kreisel, for example, finds his mentor in the guise of Carl Weisselberger. Banauch: "Still in internment, the teenager Kreisel starts writing stories and poetry in English." In his famous poem "Visit" he imagines a visit of his mother to the camp. After many hurdles it is later released by a Jewish-Canadian journal, which eventually brings attention to the situation of these people, known as "camp boys".

"The ancient wise men" and the "young curious men"

"After his internment Kreisel becomes a very famous literary scholar in Edmonton and an early promoter of Canadian literature", explains Eugen Banauch: "Weisselberger gets known as a leading literary critic." Charles Wassermann and Eric Koch also "benefit" from their internment. "Wassermann starts an impressive career as a foreign correspondent for the Canadian CBC and writes and models radio spots about Canadian literature and culture. Koch publishes novels in English. All of them share the same fate - after their internment time they stay in Canada, work especially for a Canadian audience and make a considerable contribution to the Canadian society.

To awaken memories and interests

"With my research I try to wrest the authors from the oblivion. I also want to oppose something to the stereotype of the backwards orientated expatriates", says Banauch. One thing is especially interesting: Although the authors share the experience of being interned, they have different coping strategies for this time.

For his literary study Banauch uses a mixture of different methods. He goes back to German Studies of exile literature, Holocaust Studies, Canadian Studies and theories of the transculturalism. Banauch also creates the concept of the "Fluid Exile": "This concept should illustrate that the development of the expatriates isn't linear. After the internment the authors experience various stations and those have different effects on their writing. "But there is a distinctive commonness: All writers know the pain which is connected with a life behind barbwire", explains Banauch. With his research he wants to introduce the authors to the audience on both sides of the Atlantic. The researcher: "Until now these authors are marginalized, because they are caught between stools of very deadlocked disciplines. My work is an attempt to break this open." (pp)