German Studies: Resonance Poetry: Language, Democracy, and the Politics of Participation
Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages
The Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages (DLCL) warmly invites you to an online lecture and panel discussion featuring Karina Skår von Remba and her concept of Resonance Poetry — an innovative approach to contemporary poetry that understands literature as a participatory, socially engaged, and democratically responsive practice.
The event will begin with a keynote lecture by Karina Skår von Remba, followed by a moderated panel discussion bringing together scholars and poets from Stanford University. Together, the speakers will explore questions of poetic language, difficulty, translation, participation, and the social role of literature in times of political and cultural transformation.
Resonance Poetry examines how language can respond to the complexities and fractures of the present by engaging expressive limits while creating spaces for participation and dialogue. Central to the concept is the critique of what Skår von Remba terms a “silentium democraticum” — a condition of democratic silence that contemporary poetry can challenge through renewed cultural and civic engagement.
The panel features:
- Karina Skår von Remba (Keynote Speaker), whose work on Resonance Poetry explores literature as a form of democratic participation and cultural engagement.
- Gilad Shiram (Ph.D. Student in German Studies, Stanford University), whose research explores twentieth-century Jewish poetry across German, Polish, and Hebrew traditions, focusing on poetic responses to historical catastrophe and questions of humanity.
- Dr. Jana Pocrnja (Max Kade Postdoctoral Scholar, Stanford University), whose work in comparative literature examines poetic reasoning and the relationship between poetry and philosophy, particularly in the writings of María Zambrano
- Jon Tadmor (PhD Candidate in Comparative Literature, Stanford University; Co-chair, Stanford Center for Poetics), whose research investigates poetic difficulty in American, Hebrew, and Yiddish modernisms and the evolving relationship between poets and readers.
The event is open to all interested participants and especially welcomes students, scholars, poets, and practitioners working in literature, cultural studies, arts-based education, and related fields. The format encourages interdisciplinary exchange and transatlantic dialogue between Europe and Stanford University.
The event is initiated and moderated by Prof. Dr. Nicola Scherer (Gerda Henkel Visiting Professor, Spring Term 2026) and marks the beginning of a new online lecture series dedicated to cultural policy, contemporary art and culture, and transatlantic exchange.