Professor Dr. Kirk Wetters

Biography

Kirk Wetters is a professor in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures at Yale University, where he has been a faculty member since 2004. His scholarly work primarily investigates Eighteenth-century literature, with a special focus on German literature from the Romanticism and Weimar Classicism periods. Notably, his dissertation was published as 'Opinion System: Impasses of the Public Sphere from Hobbes to Habermas' in 2008, which examines the concept of opinion in post-Enlightenment literature and critical theory. He argues that key authors from the late 18th century, such as Lichtenberg, Mendelssohn, Wieland, Forster, and Goethe, provide insights into the theoretical claims about modern society and democracy, reflecting on how media and communication have transformed these concepts. His subsequent book, 'Demonic History: Goethe to the Present' (2014), delves into the notion of demons and their implications in seemingly secular societies, particularly in the context of modern literature and philosophy. Besides his main publications, Wetters explores diverse topics including 20th-century Austrian literature, theories of matriarchy and patriarchy, and the dynamics of literary criticism.

Research Interests