„Schreiben ist ein fortwährendes Nachdenken über das Jetzt“ (Writing is an ongoing reflection about the present)

Mariella Mehr

Mariella Mehr was born in Switzerland in 1947 as a member of of the Jenische or Roma people a historically nomadic group of central and western Europe.  Beginning in 1920s, there was a systematic attempt to eliminate the nomadic cultures in Switzerland. Mariella, along with some six hundred other such children, was separated from her parents at birth and grew up in a series of orphanages and asylums. Mehr discovered her love of literature and music during a short stay at a Catholic boarding school – an educational experience, which ended when she wrote an essay on jean Paul Sartre, whose works were on the index of banned books of the catholic Church. Her first publication was a poem that was accepted by a newspaper when she was 21.

Starting in the 1970s, Mariella Mehr was involved in several political movements that fought for the rights of marginal groups, such as refugees, incarcerated minors, and those mistreated by psychiatric institutions. During this time she also worked as a journalist for various newspapers. In 1973 she founded the Radgenossenschaft der Landstrasse, a Jenische activist group, and worked to uncover the discriminatory policies of the Pro Juventute, the childrens aid society in Switzerland.

Mariella Mehr’s first novel, steinzeit, was published in 1981 and dealt with the issues close to her own past, The novel had not been intended for publication, but a friend took the manuscript from Mehr’s drawer and sent it to various publishers without her knowledge. To Mehr’s surprise, she soon had several offers for publication. The book was very well received – to date, over 40’000 copies have been sold and the book has been translated into several languages. For steinzeit, Mehr was awarded the Literaturpreis des Kantons Zürich and the Förderungspreis des Kantons Bern.

Mehr has written three plays, including Kinder der Landstrasse, a drama that deals with the treatment of Jenische children at the hands of the Pro Juventute. In her Gewalt-Trilogie (trilogy of violence) – Daskind, Brandzauber, Angeklagt – Mehr explores the perpetuation of violence. Although Mehr is committed to non-violence in her politics and actions, her work investigates the ramifications of violence enacted upon children, as well as the taboo subject of women’s violence. Her protagonists are often children who, having been victims of violence, respond by channeling their rage into further acts of violence. Through her work, Mehr aims to give voices and stories to the voiceless and “storyless”.

Mariella Mehr’s works demonstrate a sympathy for each of her characters, no matter how seemingly senseless their actions. Developing this sympathy is a necessary part of her writing process. This may help explain why Mariella Mehr’s fictional works have sometimes mistakenly been read as autobiographical. Although her fictional works often draw on elements from her own past, her strong empathy for her figures can create the illusion that they are all aspects of the author’s self. Mehr objects to the brand of modern literature that is detached from the emotional world of its characters, which she describes as “cynical” and “disdainful”.

It is perhaps not surprising, then, that Mariella Mehr names expressionist writers such as Else Lasker-Schüler among her major influences. She describes Expressionism as “the only form of literature that to me seems capable of describing situations in images”.

Currently, Mehr is working on novel about an Italian soldier who, after the Second World War, is unable to find his way home. Moreover, she is planning to write an essay about Oberlin. After her stay in Oberlin, Mariella Mehr will return to her home in Italy.

Susanah Burrows and Ella Ornstein