Zbigniew Herbert

[quasimodo1]

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/29/books/review/Orr-t.html In a review called "Translating Zbigniew Herbert" by David Orr (7/29/07) of the NYTimes, there is high praise for a true Pole and Poet. He comments that Herbert not winning the Nobel Prize for literature says more about the selection process than Herbert deservedness. quasimodo1

[quasimodo1]

"Of course, for most of us, discovering “the Poland that is real” means reading works translated from Polish. The most significant such translation this year — possibly in many years — is Zbigniew Herbert’s “Collected Poems, 1956-1998” (Ecco/HarperCollins, $34.95), translated by Alissa Valles, which was published in February to (almost) universal acclaim. The book is significant for two reasons. First, Herbert himself is significant — like Frost and Auden, he’s a poet whose failure to win the Nobel Prize says more about the prize committee than about the writer. Second, his poetry is relatively difficult to find. Although most of Herbert’s collections have been translated by John and Bogdana Carpenter, many of those books are now out of print. For the casual reader, then, this “Collected Poems” is the likeliest path to this poet’s achievement." .....

[Virgil]

Hey thanks Quasi. That was interesting. I didn't know that Poland has such a number of high quality poets. The article makes that comment that it says something about the Nobel Prize award process, but they never say why he didn't win. Did I miss it? Is it political? There's no question that the Nobel Prize awards in the last thirty years trends heavily to writers who are on the left, with a few exceptions of course.

[quasimodo1]

To Virgil: Yes, I'd say it is political but in the sense that the commission in my view is dismissive of certain countries, probably because whoever the Nobel people have for analysts and critics just don't have the scope or are unwilling to step a little further out of the mainstream. [ I'm stewing over a post on the Aeneid thread (think I'd rather have your translation) and it will be up later. ] Can't say I agree on the left leaning tendency except maybe that is inevitable because right-wing writers are fewer and more predictable, maybe even less imaginative. quasi

[Virgil]

To Virgil: Yes, I'd say it is political but in the sense that the commission in my view is dismissive of certain countries, probably because whoever the Nobel people have for analysts and critics just don't have the scope or are unwilling to step a little further out of the mainstream. [ I'm stewing over a post on the Aeneid thread (think I'd rather have your translation) and it will be up later. ] Can't say I agree on the left leaning tendency except maybe that is inevitable because right-wing writers are fewer and more predictable, maybe even less imaginative. quasi

I don't know what you mean by less imaginative. I wouldn't call Václav Havel of Czech Republic or Mario Vargas Llosa of Peru unimaginative. The difference is that right leaning writers don't usually bring their political ideas into their work, while one is sickened at how many pro-Marxists there are out there who put their politics right into their works.

[quasimodo1]

You know Virgil, I had second thoughts about that "less imaginative" comment as soon as I reflected a little more about it. It (the statement) arises perhaps from my prejudice about mostly extreme right wing individuals and I retract that remark. Your statement that the Nobel prize tends to be awarded to left-leaninng authors is true, statistically at least, but this is a function of the Nobel being a peace prize which by it's nature is more left than right. Didn't mean to offend and I should know better than to extrapolate information about literature to include political conclusions or even opinions. Getting back to the subject of this thread, I'll post some short samples of Herbert's work. quasimodo1

[Virgil]

Oh you didn't offend at all. I would like to see pieces of his poetry. :)

[quasimodo1]

THE ENVOY OF MR. COGITO


Go where those others went to the dark boundary
for the golden fleece of nothingness your last prize

go upright among those who are on their knees
among those with their backs turned and those toppled in the dust

you were saved not in order to live
you have little time you must give testimony

be courageous when the mind deceives you be courageous
in the final account only this is important

and let your helpless Anger be like the sea
whenever your hear the voice of the insulted and beaten

let you sister Scorn not leave you
for the informers executioners cowards - they will win
they will go to your funeral with relief will throw a lump of earth
the woodborer will write your smoothed-over biography ....

{excerpt from this poem by Zbigniew Herbert}

[stlukesguild]

quasi... I have several collection/selections by Modern/Contemporary Polish poets... and I agree they must certainly rank among the finest this century. Unfortunately, Herbert is one I have yet to read anything by... outside of a passing translation by Merwin or another. I just came across the volume of his collected poems at the bookstore tonight and I am seriously interested. Unfortunately... another book almost interests me even more. It seems we are presented with a new translation of the collected poems of Cesar Vallejo. As a great lover of the Latin-American poets I am greatly intrigued. I browsed through his bio on wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%A9sar_Vallejo

... but I've found no review yet of this new volume... and worse yet... I find myself sitting on a 30% off coupon for Border that is only good 'til Sunday. Wat to do... what to do...:confused:

[quasimodo1]

Why the Classics
by Zbigniew Herbert

1
in the fourth book of the Peloponnesian War
Thucydides tells among other things
the story of his unsuccessful expedition

among long speeches of chiefs
battles sieges plague
dense net of intrigues of diplomatic endeavours
the episode is like a pin
in a forest....

{excerpt from "Why the Classics"}

[Heteronym]

I'm going through Collected Poems now and I'm finding it hart to enjoy his style. After being spoiled by Adam Zagajewski and Wislawa Szymborska's gentle irony and humor, I'm finding Herbert's serious tone boring. I'm trying but not succeeding in finding an element of human life in his poetry. He's very abstract, whereas Szymborska, even when describing onions says something new about us.

We'll see if it gets better. I hope so.

[Heteronym]

After his first collection of poetry, Chord of Light, he gets a lot better. He leaves behind abstraction and enumeration of discordant images and sentences, and starts focusing on memories, his past, politics, and insights into the human condition. It's better, but I'm still having a lot of trouble enjoying most of it.

I hope it gets better when I reach the famous Mr. Cogito poems.