Dr. Peter Klaus
| Phone | +49 30- 79700559 |
| Fax | +49 30- 79700559 |
| klauspet@zedat.fu-berlin.de |
Peter Klaus is an expert in francophone literatures and civilizations with a special emphasis on French Canadian literatures, especially in Québec. He has worked closely with Canadian Universities (Université Laval, Québec; Université de Montréal, Université du Québec à Montréal) and has cooperated with French Canadian colleagues since the early 1980ies. He has widely published on issues related to French-Canadian and Caribbean literatures in French. Methodologically, his work has contributed to the now widely theorized approach to migrant literatures («écritures migrantes») and cultural diversity in Canada and Germany. Supported by several grants he has directed and published several volumes of the scholarly journal NEUE ROMANIA (published by the Institut für Romanische Philologie, FU Berlin) , one on “Migrant literature and Culture in Québec and Canada” (1997), one volume on the new emerging francophone literatures (in cooperation with professor Isaac Bazié, Université du Québec à Montréal, 2005) and one volume on the arts and literature in Acadia region of New Brunswick (2004), the only officially bilingual Canadian province. (cf. details in bibliography).
Peter Klaus has longstanding and close contacts to several Indian universities, among them Jawaharlal Nehru University (Delhi), the University of Hyderabad, the University of Pondicherry, and Madras University (Chennai). He received the AWARD 2012 from the Association of Indian Teachers of French (AITF) for his longstanding engagement in francophone (especially Québec) studies in India. Peter Klaus collaborates especially closely with Jayant Dhupkar from the Department of English and Foreign Languages of the University of Hyderabad and Vijaya Rao and Ashish Agnihorti from the Department of French and Francophone Studies of Jawaharlal Nehru University. Their research agenda focuses especially on questions related to translation and cultural transfer in multi-cultured environments. All of them have spent some years of their lives in either France or Canada; most of them got their degrees from French universities. Being themselves living examples of the principle of “herméneutique croisée” they will strengthen the multi-perspectivity of the IRTG and significantly contribute to our theoretical and methodological discussions.
Peter Klaus has longstanding and close contacts to several Indian universities, among them Jawaharlal Nehru University (Delhi), the University of Hyderabad, the University of Pondicherry, and Madras University (Chennai). He received the AWARD 2012 from the Association of Indian Teachers of French (AITF) for his longstanding engagement in francophone (especially Québec) studies in India. Peter Klaus collaborates especially closely with Jayant Dhupkar from the Department of English and Foreign Languages of the University of Hyderabad and Vijaya Rao and Ashish Agnihorti from the Department of French and Francophone Studies of Jawaharlal Nehru University. Their research agenda focuses especially on questions related to translation and cultural transfer in multi-cultured environments. All of them have spent some years of their lives in either France or Canada; most of them got their degrees from French universities. Being themselves living examples of the principle of “herméneutique croisée” they will strengthen the multi-perspectivity of the IRTG and significantly contribute to our theoretical and methodological discussions.
Academic Career
Study
1960-1967
Studies in French, Spanish and English Universität des Saarlandes, Saarbrücken
Graduation / Academic Degrees
1987
Dr. phil. in Romance Philology, Freie Universität Berlin
1967
Staatsexamen in French and English, Universität des Saarlandes, Saarbrücken
Current Position(s)
Associated Researcher, Center for Canadian Studies, Universität Trier (retired from Freie Universität Berlin since 2006)
Position(s) Held
1985-2005
Permanent secretary of the research group Neue Romania at the Institut für Romanische Philologie. The group started in 1985 to publish the scholarly journal Neue Romania.
1978-2005
In charge of International Exchange Programs (Université de Laval, Université de Montréal) and in charge of the Assistant Teacher Program (PAD) for France, Italy, Spain and Québec.
1977-2006
Tenure, akademischer Rat, in charge of French Language Program, in charge of Québec and Canadian Studies at the Institut für Romanische Philologie.
1975-1977
Akademischer Rat teaching French, Institut für Romanische Philologie Freie Universität Berlin
1970-1975
Lecturer of German (DAAD-Lektor), Section d’Allemand, Université de Picardie Amiens (Somme), France.
1969-1970
Research Assistant, Institut für Romanistik, Universität des Saarlandes, Saaarbrücken.
1968-1969
Instructor of German, German Department, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA.
1967-1968
Instructor of Humanities teaching German, Clarkson University Potsdam, NY, USA
1962-1963
German Language Assistant Teacher CEG, Gray (Haute Saône) France.
Relevant (International) Research Experience
2011
Research Grant, Canadian Centre for German and European Studies (Director Laurence McFalls). Preparation of a second international conference on migrant literatures in cooperation with professor Gilles Dupuis (Département de Littératures de Langue Française, Université de Montréal).
2010
Preparation and organisation of an international workshop in cooperation with professor Gilles Dupuis, Université de Montréal. The workshop, sponsored by the Centre of International Cooperation of the Freie Universität took place from 17th – 19th June 2010. Title of the workshop: “Transgresser les frontiers - Grenzüberschreitungen”. Sponsored by Robert Bosch Stiftung, Gesellschaft für Kanadastudien, Association Internationale d’Études Québécoises (Québec), Délégation du Québec (Munich).
since 2007
Research cooperation with Gilles Dupuis with regard to a larger project on “Cultural Diversity in Migrant Literatures”.
2005
Organisation of an international conference on new emerging francophone literatures at the Freie Universität Berlin with participants from about 20 francophone countries. This conference was organised in cooperation with professor Isaac Bazié (Département de Littératures, UQAM). Financed by the International Relations Department , Freie Universität Berlin, the Canadian Embassy, Berlin, GKS (Gesellschaft für Kanadastudien), AIEQ (Association Internationale d’Études Québécoises, Québec).
2001
Visiting professor UQAM (Montréal), spring term
1998
Visiting professor, Technical University, Institut für Romanistik, Dresden. Teaching a seminar on Québécois literature for graduate students, fall term.
1995
Visiting professor, Technical University, Institut für Romanistik, Dresden. Teaching a seminar on Québécois literature for graduate students, fall term.
1991
Visiting professor, Département d’Études Françaises, Université de Montréal.
Major Research Grants, Scholarships and Awards
2017
Nominated Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Québec by Philippe Couillard, Prime Minister, Québec, Canada
2012
Award, Association of Indian Teachers of French Madurai (India)
2006
Faculty Research Award, Government of Canada. Project: Francophone Literature and Theatre in Ontario (Canada).
1995
Faculty Research Award, Government of Canada. Project: Migrant Literature in Québec.
1991
Research Grant AUPELF (now AUF), Montréal, six months research scholarship.
1989
Faculty Enrichment Programme, Government of Canada. Project: Seminar on Québécois Literature.
Memberships and other relevant Activities
2009-2012
Member, board of the administrators of the “Conseil International d’Études Francophones”. The CIEF organizes annually international conferences, alternating between the Americas and the rest of the world.
since 2008
Member, scientific council of the “Archives et Musées de la Littérature”, Brussels (Belgium).
since 2006
Member, board of administrators, of „L’Agora Francophone International“ (Lille and Québec) which publishes a yearbook „L’Année Francophone Internationale" in which I publish regularly articles and book reviews.
2003-2009
Chair, French-Canadian Language and Literature, Association of Canadian Studies in the German speaking countries (Gesellschaft für Kanadastudien, GKS).
since 2003
Founding member and vice-president (since 2011) of the “Association Européenne d’Études Francophone”, Brussels (Belgium). The association has organised several international conferences since 2006, the papers of which have all been published.
1992-2003
Founding member and long time secretary general of the “Association d’Études Francophones d’Europe Centre-Orientale” founded in Pécs, Hungary.
List of Publications
a) Publications in refereed journals and book publications
b) Other publications
2021
"Résilience et résistance : un avenir autochtone pour la littérature québécoise?", in: Marc Quaghebeur (eds.), Résilience et modernité dans les Littératures francophones, tome 2 (Bruxelles: P.I.E. Peter Lang), 1139-1154.
2021
"Une voix extrême-contemporaine de l’Ontario. 'Cherche Rouquine, coupe garçonne' de Daniel Poliquin", in: Gilles Dupuis/Klaus-Dieter Ertler (eds.), À la carte: le roman québécois 2015-2020 (Frankfurt: Peter Lang), 217-231.
2020
"Anselme Nindorera : une voix de la littérature francophone du Burundi", in: Dialogues francophones 24, 247-254.
2020
"Marges ou périphéries: un plaidoyer pour les autres littératures francophones du Canada", in: Sylwia Sawicka/Michal Obszynski (eds.), Déchiffrer l'Amérique. Mélange offerts à Józef Kwaterko (Varsovie : Presses de l'Université de Varsovie), 122-135.
2019
"Y a-t-il une littérature autochtone au Québec", in: Yvonne Völkl and Albert Göschl (eds.), Observations. Beobachtungen zu Literatur und Moral in der Romania und den Amerikas. Festschrift zum 65. Geburtstag von Klaus-Dieter Ertler (Wien: LIT Verlag), 163-173.
2018
"Résister et en parler: l'«héritage» des dictatures Duvalier et la littérature - Marie-Célie Agnant et son roman Un alligator nommé Rosa", in: Marc Quaghebeur (ed.): Sagesse et résistance dans les littératures francophones (Brüssel: Peter Lang), 401-415.
2018
"Canadienne, américaine, francophone et / ou autochtone: quel destin pour la littérature québécoise?", Revue d'Études Canadiennes en Europe Centrale 12/13, 23-38.
2018
"Le Brésil des identités instables: Noël Audet et Gilles Lapouge", in Leonor Lourenço de Abreu / Ana Maria Bicalho (eds.), Reconstructions des imaginaires littéraires du Brésil dans les littératures française et francophones´, (Brüssel: P.I.E. Peter Lang), 219-233.
2015
"Edmond de Nevers et Marguerite Andersen: De Québec à Berlin et de Berlin au Canada: Un journaliste et écrivain québécois à Berlin à la fin du XIXe siècle et une écrivaine berlinoise à Toronto de nos jours", in: Waldemar Zacharasiewicz/David Staines (eds.), Narratives of Encounters in the North Atlantic Triangle (Wien: Verlag der österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften), 325-333.
2009
(ed.) "Literaturas latinoamericanas y caribeñas: Perspectivas europeas", Special Issue: Romanitas 3:2.
2005
(co-edited with Isaac Bazié) "Canon national et constructions identitaires: les nouvelles littératures francophones (Afrique, Océan Indien, Caraïbe, Haïti, Canada/Québec)", Special Issue: Neue Romania 33.
2004
(ed.) "Acadie 1604-2004", Special Issue: Neue Romania 29.
2000
(ed.) Conteurs franco-canadiens contemporains (Stuttgart: Philipp Reclam jun.).
2011
"Le Canada francophone et ses écritures migrantes. Le cas de l’Ontario français: transculture ontarienne versus mainstream québécois", in: Klaus-Dieter Ertler et al. (eds.), Cultural Constructions of Migration in Canada. Constructions culturelles de la migration au Canada (Frankfurt a.M.: Peter Lang), 73-83.
b) Other publications
2018
"Stanley Péan: Le Tumulte de mon sang. Roman. Montréal : Éditions Québec/ Amérique 1991.175 p.", in Dictionnaire des Œuvres Littéraires du Québec 9 (Montréal: Fidès), 820-821.
2018
"Stanley Péan: Sombres allées et autres endroits peu hospitaliers. Treize excursions en territoire de l'insolite. Montréal: Voix du Sud / CIDHICA 1992, 214 p", in Dictionnaire des Œuvres Littéraires du Québec 9 (Montréal: Fidès), 760-761.
2018
"Monique LaRue: La Démarche du Crabe. Roman. Montréal: Boréal 1995.221 pages", in Dictionnaire des Œuvres Littéraires du Québec 9 (Montréal: Fidès), 227-228.
Training of Young Researchers
Dissertations Currently Supervised
After having directed and co-directed many Master’s theses, Peter Klaus is currently counselling some doctoral candidates working on Québécois or Caribbean subjects.
Peter Klaus is still in demand by young researchers of the Freie Universität and elsewhere who need counseling on various topics, especially contemporary Québec literature, e.g. the difficult situation of the publishers in Québec.
One of his former Master’s students, Carola David, is working on a doctoral dissertation at the Université de Montréal. She is being directed by Professor Gilles Dupuis with whom Peter Klaus cooperates strongly. The topic of her thesis fits perfectly in the overall subject on “cultural diversity” with a special focus on women migrant writers in Montreal.
Another dissertation is just about being finished by Bastienne Schulz (Freie Universität Berlin) who works on Édouard Glissant and his impact on French-Caribbean writing. Peter Klaus actively accompanied the candidate.
Peter Klaus is still in demand by young researchers of the Freie Universität and elsewhere who need counseling on various topics, especially contemporary Québec literature, e.g. the difficult situation of the publishers in Québec.
One of his former Master’s students, Carola David, is working on a doctoral dissertation at the Université de Montréal. She is being directed by Professor Gilles Dupuis with whom Peter Klaus cooperates strongly. The topic of her thesis fits perfectly in the overall subject on “cultural diversity” with a special focus on women migrant writers in Montreal.
Another dissertation is just about being finished by Bastienne Schulz (Freie Universität Berlin) who works on Édouard Glissant and his impact on French-Caribbean writing. Peter Klaus actively accompanied the candidate.
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