Sinn und Form

Sinn und Form

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File:Literaturzeitschrift Sinn und Form 1974.jpg Cover page dated 1974
Editor-in-chief	Matthias Weichelt
Categories	Literary magazine Cultural magazine
Frequency	Bimonthly
Publisher	Akademie der Künste
Founder	Johannes R. Becher Paul Wiegler
First issue	1949
Country	Germany
Based in	Berlin
Language	German
Website	sinn-und-form.de
ISSN	0037-5756

Sinn und Form (meaning Sense and Form in English) is a German language bimonthly literary and culture magazine. It was launched in East Berlin, East Germany, in 1949 and is still in circulation. The magazine describes itself as one of the definitive cultural journals in Germany.

History and profile

The magazine was established by Johannes R. Becher and Paul Wiegler in 1949. The original title was Maß und Wert (meaning Measure and Value in English). When it was published in the East Germany, the magazine was employed by the ruling party, Socialist Unity Party, as a media outlet for its cultural policy. However, the magazine was not enthusiastic about this relationship. Because since its start it has had a unique style which is apolitical. It covers articles on poetry and philosophy, anthropology and theology and the relations between art and science. It provides essays, poems, stories, diaries, letters and conversations on these topics.

Sinn und Form is published by the Akademie der Künste in Berlin on a bimonthly basis. The editors-in-chief of the magazine include the following:

• Peter Huchel (1949–1962)
• Bodo Uhse (1963)
• Wilhelm Girnus (1964–1981)
• Paul Wiens (1982)
• Max Walter Schulz (1983–1990)
• Sebastian Kleinschmidt (1991–2013)
• Matthias Weichelt (2013-)

Notable contributors of Sinn und Form are Miguel Ángel Asturias, Imre Kertész, Halldór Laxness, Czeslaw Milosz, Pablo Neruda, Romain Rolland and Nelly Sachs. During the editorship of Peter Huchel the magazine featured the work by German and international non-Communist writers, and unpublished works by Bertolt Brecht were published in two special issues of the magazine.

The founding editor-in-chief Peter Huchel was forced by the East German authorities to resign from the post. Sinn und Form has been the subject of the scholarly analysis, and at least two books were published about the magazine.

External links

• Official website
• Media related to Sinn und Form at Wikimedia Commons