Fonds MG 2014 - Hermann Walter Fonds

20 cm of textual records.

The Department of German Studies donated the records to the McGill Archives on June 1st, 1964.

Fonds consists of manuscripts and typescripts of articles and lectures on literary topics. A few items reflect Walter’s interest in drama and his private life.

The literary addresses and articles fall into three subject-areas: German, French, and Indian. A series of lectures to the Montréal Goethe Society (1932, 1933, 1935, 1936) discusses Goethe's biography, his attitudes to music, and his dramatic works. Goethe is also the subject of a McGill lecture (1906) and an article for the University of Toronto Quarterly. In other lecture series, Walter treated Ibsen and the 20th century German novel (1936); as well, shorter studies of Adolf Schafheitlin, Superman in German literature, German bibliography, and an address to Shaar Hashamayim regarding the political conditions in Germany in 1933 can be found here. Addresses delivered to the McGill Cercle Français and to the University of Toronto discuss French phonetics, neologisms, symbolist literature, German universities, and Paul Lemaître. Walter's interest in Oriental civilization is reflected in a series of four lectures on Indian philosophy, religion and literature (1949) and an address on Yogis. His work as a book reviewer and drama critic is revealed by a file of clippings and typescripts.

Walter's 1936 production at McGill of von Kotzebue's “Die deutschen Kleinstadten” is documented by his annotated copy of the script and a scene design. This and other dramatic productions are the subject of photographs and newsclippings in a biographical scrapbook. The scrapbook also contains testimonials to Walter and clippings of articles by and about his literary activities, and about a case of alleged attempted poisoning at which he was the plaintiff.