At the Margins of East Berlin's "Counter-Culture": Elke Erb's Winkelzüge and Gabriele Kachold's zügel los

This article introduces Elke Erb and Gabriele Kachold by first looking at the positions they occupied within East Berlin's "counter-culture" in Prenzlauer Berg. I then explore the experimental features of Erb's Winkelzüge and Kachold's zügel los, both of which challenge previously held views of GDR literature. I argue that these features are not a substitute for but an integral part of social issues such as gender and power relations. Thus, the article concludes, these texts may help to call into question the presumed incompatibility of engagierte Literatur—frequently associated with the East—and form-oriented (post)modern literature—frequently associated with the West. (FE)