The Goethe Society of North America invites the submission of essays on Goethe’s contribution to the history of science and on Goethe in the history of science. Due: May 1, 2018.
The Richard Sussman Prize is awarded annually for the best essay published in 2017 in an academic journal on Goethe’s contributions to the history of science and on Goethe in the history of science.
The prize carries a $500 award.
Besides his literary accomplishments, which inaugurated a new era in modern German culture, scientific studies also played a significant role in the life of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832). Goethe’s research coincided with the emergence of modern scientific disciplines and their institutional establishment within the university system, thereby supplanting earlier scientific practices and methods. As rector of the scientific institutes at the University of Jena, Goethe stood in close contact and corresponded with scientists in Germany and beyond.
The completion of the Leopoldina edition of his scientific writings allows the opportinity for a new assessment of Goethe within the context of science as it was emerging during his lifetime and within the history of science in general. This award seeks to foster scholarship in this area.
Please submit a copy of the essay (electronic version preferred) by May 1, 2018, to the Society’s Vice-President, Catriona MacLeod: Department of Germanic Languages & Literatures, University of Pennsylvania, 745 Williams Hall, 255 South 36th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305 (cmacleod@sas.upenn.edu).
The following articles are eligible:
- articles written by a North American scholar (defined by institutional affiliation at the time of publication); or
- articles written by a current member of the GSNA; or
- articles published in the Goethe Yearbook.
NB: Articles by current GSNA board members are not eligible. GSNA members are encouraged to submit their own articles for consideration.