The Department of German Studies was honored to welcome author and journalist Miriam Stein to Seattle during a research visit for a film being developed based on her book, Die gereizte Frau. We were very grateful that she took the time to deliver her fascinating talk: “Thoughts on Contemporary Wisdom,” which was her first public discussion of her upcoming book, Weise Frauen. This text, which posits a more positive approach to the process and realities of aging and sees the revival of wisdom in society as means to forge a new cross-generational bond, will be hot off the presses come October 16. In her talk on April 22nd, Stein discussed the contributions that psychologist Paul Baltes of the Max-Planck-Institute in Berlin made to the study of wisdom and the ways in which his theories have continued to inspire academics from around the world. Stein explained that wisdom, once thought of as the highest form of the human intellect, has seemed to have disappeared from our daily lives. In her talk, she reflected on why this is and wondered: did ageism kill wisdom? Has the sage been removed by longevity experts and wellness-gurus? And, is there such a thing as „female wisdom“?
-- Kye Terrasi