In Memoriam: Marion Joan Faber, 1944-2020

Marion J. Faber, the Scheuer Family Professor Emerita of Humanities and Professor Emerita of German at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, died at her home in Swarthmore on April 30 from complications of pancreatic cancer. She was 76 years old.

A Southern California native, Faber was born to second-generation Jewish parents from Russia and Romania. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Ph.D. from in German studies Harvard University. She was fluent in English, German, French, and Italian. Most of her scholarship involved the translation of works written in German. She was the co-author of the biography  Rudolf Serkin: A Life (Oxford Univerity Press, 2002).

After teaching at the University of Massachusetts, the University of Toronto, and Indiana University, Dr. Faber joined the faculty at Swarthmore College in 1979 and remained on the faculty for three decades. During her 30-year tenure at the college, Professor Faber taught German literature and culture and developed interdisciplinary courses in film & media studies, women’s studies, and comparative literature. She retired in 2009 but retained an office on the Swarthmore campus.