State Minister Monika Gruetters, Werner Herzog, Ulrich Raulff and Steven D. Lavine on Film, Literature and Political Responsibility

"I am fascinated by the idea that our civilization is like a thin layer of ice upon a deep ocean of chaos and darkness”, Werner Herzog uttered in an interview with Paul Cronin. Today, more than fifteen years after the publication of their interview, there are more and more indications that, in the West, that “ice cap” has become perilously ruptured, politically as well as economically.

One of the chapters in “The Magic Mountain” is entitled „Aufsteigende Angst". The characters of Mann’s novels are often stricken by the notion of human culture lingering in a deep crisis. Today, this "Raising Fear" or “Growing Anxiety” seems to gain ground again, making an inherent “angst” a distinct feature of our times.

How can literature and film help to master societal anxieties? What role do they play in our quest for clarity and orientation? And which role does cross-border cultural exchange play?

German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media Prof. Monika Gruetters in conversation with director Werner Herzog, cultural scientist and President of the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa) Ulrich Raulff and Steven D. Lavine, Chairman of the Advisory Board, Thomas Mann House.