Flawed Giant

Günter Grass became a divisive figure before the release of his autobiography, "Peeling the Onion", in 2006. During an interview (prior to the book's publication), he confessed to be a member of the Waffen-SS in World War II. It was a piece of information he kept in secret for many decades. He was sixteen years of age when it happened. The public might have forgiven him, but he was Günter Grass. He was the recipient of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature, renowned for his dark fables depicting the Weimar Republic and the rise of Nazism.

What many people forget is how the German author struggled in shame, and his case is not unique. Some artists have done worse - and the public forgive them. Society knows their importance. They are also known to have the courage to deal with their demons, even face the unpleasant truth. All of these can be seen in their works.

The dark years

"Art is uncompromising and life is full of compromises."

- Arthur Miller

One must know the background of an author in able to know his works better, but the case of Günter Grass is rather complicated. He came from an era when it was more black and white. But Europe was going through an uncertain time. The Free City of Danzig, now GdaÅ„sk, Poland, was an outcome of a series of conflicts and treaties among various kingdoms during the 19th century. It was bound by Germany, but it had a custom relations with Poland. The League of Nations kept it independent, but Grass might have sensed that this won't last long.

The Danzig Trilogy, namely "The Tin Drum" (1959), "Cat and Mouse" (1961), and "Dog Years" (1963), would depict the alarming state of German society during the first half of the 20th century. Perhaps Grass was too concerned, such that he was vocal about his political views. And not a few disagree. He was critical of his fellowmen not facing up to their past. He wasn't in favor of German unification. And his poem, “What Must Be Said”, depicted the Israeli government as a threat to the Middle East.

Those who were critical of Günter Grass may not know that time would be the ultimate judge. History may be in the eyes of the beholder, and perhaps the author have seen it all. His works, which would remind readers of the magic realism employed by Latin American artists, left an indelible mark on those who followed his twisted characters. This was how the past influenced them, and there was no turning back. Grass knew it, even lived with it. He was a flawed giant in the literary world, but a giant nonetheless.

(Günter Grass died on April 13, 2015. He was 87.)