The volume analyzes writers as intellectual figures in public discourse. The first section is devoted to the origins of the term 'intellectual' and the theory of intellectualism since the late 19th century. Part two looks at the concrete roles of writers as intellectuals during the Cold War. It contains studies on the intellectual consequences of Stalinism in the GDR, the two German PEN centers, the emergence of the concept of 'commitment' (Engagement) in West and East Germany, and on prominent individual authors like Johannes R. Becher and Kasimir Edschmid.