Ode to Andreas Burnier | Don't whine, take action!

Dear Andreas, 

 

For me, you are someone who should definitely be present in the story of Amsterdam. Hence this tribute. You have inspired me since my student days and still do today. More than 20 years after your death, I re-read your work for this ode and enjoyed it again.
 

I am writing this ode primarily because you are a fantastic writer whom I think many more people should get to know. Your anger at the disadvantaged position of women, your idea that you were born in the wrong body, the way you write about women's love and your quest for spirituality are still important themes in this day and age. At the time you wrote them, they were downright revolutionary. On re-reading, I still find the way you write about them beautiful, surprising, often humorous and full of guts.
 

At the time I was introduced to your work, I didn't feel I was in the wrong body like you, but I did regret not having been born a man because I felt I started out at a disadvantag as a woman. That you wrote about that so bravely, with humour and without being pathetic was a relief to me. In addition, I share your (critical) love for Amsterdam. The city is present in all your books so that alone makes you contribute to the story of Amsterdam and deserves an ode.
 

That besides being a writer, you were also an activist, essayist and professor makes you a great role model for women. Especially because in all those roles you were completely independent and expressed opinions that sometimes went against the spirit of the times. I don't agree with all your ideas but find your non-conformism and daring typically Amsterdam and exemplary.
 

Given the way your work was received upon publication, its quality and your role in the public debate, I would expect to see you high up on all kinds of reading and canonical lists alongside your male contemporaries. Unfortunately, this is (still) far too rarely the case. I want to change that because lists like this help keep your work and the memory of your life alive.
 

Fortunately, there is already a revival of interest in you and your work. This makes it easy to get acquainted with it. For instance, many of your books are still for sale 1st hand, the library lends your books and a wonderful biography was published in 2022. There is also the Andreas Burnier Foundation, which maintains a website where you can delve into all the aspects of your work and life. The Fixdit podcast episode ‘Een tevredeb lach Andreas Burnier’ is also a good start to begin an introduction.
 

Fully in your spirit of don't whine but take action, I therefore call on everyone to read your work and to recommend it to others. That way, we can jointly ensure that you get the place in the literary canon you deserve!