Ingeborg Bachmann's 'The Hobbler' Published in English

The New Yorker has published 'The Hobbler,' a previously untranslated fragment by Austrian writer Ingeborg Bachmann, written in the late 1950s and first published in German in 1965. The story is narrated by a telephone switchboard operator with a shortened right leg, who invents elaborate tales about his disability and past. The narrative explores themes of isolation, memory, and the construction of identity. The fragment includes a poignant encounter with a neighbor named Anna, whom he befriends and eventually kisses. The translation is by Philip Boehm and Tess Lewis, and it is drawn from the collection 'Ingeborg Bachmann: The Complete Stories.' This publication marks the first English appearance of this work, offering readers insight into Bachmann's prose and her preoccupation with physical and psychological fragmentation.