Spielarten des Komischen

Ernst Jandl (1925 2000) is a spectacular phenomenon. For an avant-garde experimental lyric poet he achieved a completely unusual level of popularity. Poems such as ottos mops ( fritz s bitch ) have long been in common currency. It is not the case, as is often argued, that laughing at Jandl s poems is not a coincidental effect of hisunusual use of language. There are multiple varieties of humour which Jandl transforms anew in his language. Despite this, the comic aspects of Jandl s work have hardly been researched. Anne Uhrmacher uses careful analysis to get to the bottom of his unparalleled effectiveness."