Elise Richter – a Viennese precursor in women's higher education
The lekture of Magdalena Popławska from the series 
"Austrian women in society, culture and science. The Strong and Weak Gender" 
Organizers: Austrian Cultural Forum in Warsaw, Austrian Library at Jagiellonian Library in Krakow
Partners: Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie – Instytut Filologii Germańskiej, Uniwersytet Śląski

By her actions, Elise Richter contributed not only to changing the perception of women's scientific aspirations, but also significantly influenced the expansion of the rights of the own gender. In life, she always had to prove her skills. As one of the first women in Austria, she wrote her habilitation and then became an associate professor. Stigmatized because of her gender and religion, she was not afraid to pursue her goals and develop scientifically - she published over 250 works. In 1922, she became the head of the Union of Scholar Women of Austria, which she chaired until 1930. Due to political and historical circumstances, Richter was deprived of her civil rights, dismissed from her job and sentenced to live in poverty. To this day, a lot of controversy also arouses around the sale of the 3,000 volume collection of her books. Her life was not only a manifesto of a constant fight against prejudice, but above all, it proved the need for changes in the position of women in society, because every woman, despite adversities, can successfully develop scientifically.

Magdalena Popławska is a researcher at the University of Silesia in Katowice/Sosnowiec. Her research interests include the literature of the Vormärz period, women's literature of the 19th and 20th centuries, literary representations of women in the German-language novel, German-language contemporary literature and comparative issues.

The event is part of the "Kalliope Austria" program of the Cultural Section of the Federal Ministry of European and International Affairs of Austria.


16.12.2022 (Friday.), 10:00 am.
Biblioteka Jagiellońska
ul. Oleandry 3, Kraków
In polish
Entrance free