Thomas Mann (1875-1955) was a German novelist, essayist, and one of the major literary figures of the twentieth century. Born in Lübeck, Germany, Mann achieved international recognition with novels and stories that explored the tensions between intellect and instinct, bourgeois society and artistic life, and the individual and the forces of history. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1929. His major works include Buddenbrooks, Death in Venice, Joseph and His Brothers, and Doctor Faustus.