Both weigh every word

She certifies the most important moments in a person’s life—birth, marriage, death. He explores how language and literature shape and convey on these moments. A. Tegge and S. Matuschek approach words with the same care: as a registrar, she knows that the wrong word has consequences. As a literary scholar, he knows that the right word can change the world. 

How does a day start when everything goes your way?

A. Tegge: With sunshine and plenty of good humour.

S. Matuschek: Actually, every day starts with my cat waking me up for something to eat—and that’s early in the morning. A perfect day, rather, comes through lovely encounters: if I meet or speak to someone I enjoy conversing with.

Jena is known as a city of short distances. Which place could you find your way to with your eyes closed, and what do you associate with it?

A. Tegge: I always manage to find my way to the city centre, especially to the historic city hall. That’s where I spend most of my time during the week. But I also enjoy taking a lovely stroll to Paradiespark.

S. Matuschek: The easiest place to find blind is probably the market square. It’s like a gravitational centre of this little city, an axis around which everything revolves. Some wonderful places I like to visit often are Paradiespark and, in the evenings, Wagnergasse with its pubs.

What do you think is excellent about Jena?

A. Tegge: The fact that city life and nature are so close together here. You can be in the city in no time, but you can also quickly get out into the countryside if you like.

S. Matuschek: Jena is just the right size if you want to live in and around a university. The city is small enough that the university is large enough to be the centre of the city for almost everyone who lives here. In a big city, the university would be just one small factor amongst many others. Here, it is the central factor—and so the university becomes a social hub.

Words that really count—which word would you dedicate to Jena?

A. Tegge: Jena is welcome to remain as excellent as it is.

S. Matuschek: Since every word counts, it would actually be a lot of words. If every word counts, you can’t prioritize one over the others. What sums it up best is this: Jena the university-village. It’s a blend of something very big—»universitas«, meaning »everything«—and something very small. That’s what makes it so charming.

If Jena is selected as a University of Excellence, what are your hopes for the the shared future of the city and the University?

A. Tegge: I hope that lots of people will continue to come to Jena and have the chance to get to know the city—whether to study, as tourists, or even to get married.

S. Matuschek: That it stays as good as it is. I think that’s the best wish one could have. The circumstances don’t allow us many extravagant dreams of glory. We’ve already achieved a great deal. The connection is very good, and it’s good if it stays that way.

I am part of the university city of Jena because…

A. Tegge: … through my work at the registry office, I am able to support many people in the legal aspects of their personal status throughout their lives.

S. Matuschek: … I am a professor at the University of Jena.