Leibniz Prize Awarded to Humanities Scholar from the University of HamburgEnriching Current Debates Through a Literary Lens

19 March 2026, by Christina Krätzig

Photo: DFG/Ausserhofer

Among other things, she explores the interaction between literature and science: Leibniz Prize winner Prof. Dr. Cornelia Zumbusch at the award ceremony on March 18, 2026.

Prof. Dr. Cornelia Zumbusch of the University of Hamburg has been awarded Germany’s most prestigious research prize. The professor of modern German literature received the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize for her work in the field of the poetics of knowledge.

Ms. Zumbusch, you have been recognized for your work on the knowledge of literature and the poetics of knowledge. What does the poetics of knowledge mean?

The poetics of knowledge means understanding literature as a distinct form of knowledge. My books "Immunity of the Classics", "Prehistory and Literature", and "Romantic Thermodynamics" explore the intersections between literature and science. I don’t just examine how literary texts relate to scientific discoveries or insights. I also look for rhetorical strategies and metaphors in scientific texts. Ultimately, I’m interested in what these forms of knowledge have to do with our present. So: How did the path to immunological modernity unfold? What did our entry into the current energy culture look like?

The Leibniz Prize comes with a prize of 2.5 million euros. You can spend this money over the course of seven years—do you already know what for?

The great thing is that I don’t have to commit to anything right away. That’s different from conventional research grants, for which you have to apply with a completed proposal. But actually, I already have some ideas. For example, I’d like to examine the role of literature in shaping feelings toward nature. What emotions are associated with the experience of nature? The emotional vocabulary of poetry ranges from pleasure and delight to awe or terror, all the way to sorrow or revulsion. Yet, especially in modernity, these feelings become more diffuse—and also more ambivalent. But one can also see how emotions are meant to be mobilized or instrumentalized. Such a history of nature emotions could contribute to current discussions about climate emotions or green emotions—and do so beyond polarizations like fear or hope.

Another topic would be the literary representation of care. Here, I’m interested in the tensions between different narratives and paradigms. After all, care work is still either socially repressed or romanticized as “love work.” My aim is to use literary history to shed light on the emotional, ethical, and political complexities of caring action.

At first glance, these topics seem very different. Or is this impression misleading?

Actually, they aren’t that far apart. There are currently discussions about whether Earthcare or concern for nature could serve as guiding concepts for ecology. But above all, my focus with both topics is on differentiation; on becoming attuned to nuances and contradictions. I believe that the potential of the humanities does not lie in proposing simple solutions.

Can this kind of work be done in a team?

Oh yes, in fact, it should be! While so-called individual research—that is, essays and books written by individuals—is very important in the humanities, exchange with others is a prerequisite for it. As co-spokesperson for the DFG Research Group “Imaginaries of Power”, I have established discussion forums together with my colleagues to discuss different topics and approaches. To this end, we invite fellows from all over the world every semester; in addition, there is an on-site team consisting of postdocs and doctoral candidates. I would love to set up a working group like this, though on a slightly smaller scale. It would be great if a postdoc position could take over part of my teaching load. As a literary scholar, I don’t need large-scale equipment or lab gear—but the prize money can buy me valuable time for my research. In that sense, the Leibniz Prize is truly a gift!

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