Alex Holznienkemper is half German and half American, with all of his American side of the family stemming from NH. He grew up in Chicago and Virginia before moving to Germany at the age of ten and initially not enjoying German language, literature and philosophy at all! After completing his German Abitur, during his undergraduate studies at the University of Arizona (B.A. 2006 and M.A. 2008), he discovered a new passion for said literature and philosophy and he hasn’t looked back since (Ph.D. from Ohio State in 2014).
In a broad sense, his research focuses on the intersection of literature and philosophy, particularly how (post)-modernity continues to wrestle with the challenge of contingency (both in terms of normativity and epistemology). Particular areas of expertise are Critical Theory, contemporary German writers of transnational background, secular-religious translation, and soccer culture.
Alex is also passionate about reforming and reaching out to the criminal justice system.
