Paula Diehl

Born in 1970 in Porto Alegre/Brazil

She studied communication and social sciences in São Paulo and social studies at the Freie Universität (FU) Berlin. In 2002 she completed her doctorate degree at the Humboldt University in Berlin (political science) on the theme of »Power – Myth – Utopia: Body Images of SS-Men (1933-1938)« (»Macht – Mythos – Utopie: Die Körperbilder der SS-Männer (1933-1938)«) which was published in 2005.

Diehl is researcher at the Centre Marc Bloch since October 2005. Since 2002 she teaches at the Institute of Cultural Studies at the Humboldt University and previously was a scientific associate for several projects, including »Psychological Contributions to Research on National Socialism» (»Psychologische Beiträge der Nationalsozialismus-Forschung«) at the Ludwig-Maximilian University Munich.

From 2003 until 2005 she was a post-doctorate and coordinator of the post-graduate program »Body Performances« (»Körper-Inszenierungen«) at the FU Berlin and in 2003 post-doctorate of the Berlin program for the advancement of equal opportunities for women in research and teaching. In 2006 Diehl was a visiting professor of the post-graduate program of the faculties for communication sciences and political studies at the Universidade Nacional de Brazil (UNB) in Brasilia.

From 1997 to 2000 Diehl also worked as freelance correspondent in Germany for the Brazilian newspaper Folha de São Paulo. Since 2002 she regularly publishes articles and was the co-editor of numerous publications on themes of body performance, especially during National Socialism and in contemporary politics. In 2007 the study »Performance of policy – the body as medium« (»Inszenierung der Politik – der Körper als Medium«) will be published in cooperation with Gertrud Koch with the Fink Verlag.

Paula Diehl has received numerous grants, e. g. a post-doctorate grant of the Centre Marc Bloch in Berlin in 2007, a lecture qualification grant of the Humboldt University Berlin, and a post-doctorate grant of the DFG (German Research Foundation)-postgraduate-program »Body Performances« (»Körper-Inszenierungen«) at the FU Berlin in 2005.