Essential Rilke
German poet Rainer Maria Rilke(1875-1926) enjoys ever-increasing popularity. His Duino Elegies is considered on of the greatest long poems of the twentieth century. Yet translations from his native German have always presented challenges: the elusiveness of Rilke's imagery, the playful way he both distorts and subverts his own language, and the depth and complexity of his poetry make it difficult for translators to preserve the beauty and meaning of the original text. In his...
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German poet Rainer Maria Rilke(1875-1926) enjoys ever-increasing popularity. His Duino Elegies is considered on of the greatest long poems of the twentieth century. Yet translations from his native German have always presented challenges: the elusiveness of Rilke's imagery, the playful way he both distorts and subverts his own language, and the depth and complexity of his poetry make it difficult for translators to preserve the beauty and meaning of the original text. In his stunning bilingual selection that includes the entire Duino Elegies as well as a number of favorite and less familiar shorter poems, Galway Kinnell and Hannah Liebmann manage to retain power and grace of Rilke's words. Throughout his poetry, Rilke addresses questions of how to live in and relate to a world in a voice that is simultaneoulsy prophetic and intensely personel. These translations offer new insight into this enigmatic German poet whose work will continue to be read and admired throughout the world.San Diego Union TribuneSmoothly elegant and unhurriedly paced, [these translations] seem almost effortless, yet they resonate with lyrical intensity and allusive brio.... It would be hard to come away from The Essential Rilkewithout a profound sense of who this great early modernist poet was and what he had to say (and say beautifully of the self and the world.
Autumn Day\ Lord: it is time. The summer was so immense.\ Lay your shadow on the sundials,\ and let loose the wind in the fields.\ Bid the last fruits to be full;\ give them another two more southerly days,\ press them to ripeness, and chase\ the last sweetness into the heavy wine.\ Whoever has no house now will not build one anymore.\ Whoever is alone now will remain so for a long time,\ will stay up, read, write long letters,\ and wander the avenues, up and down,\ restlessly, while the leaves are blowing.\ The Essential Rilke. Copyright © by Galway Kinnell. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.
IntroductionFrom a Childhood3Autumn Day5The Beggar's Song7Pieta11The Panther13The Swan15Going Blind17Orpheus. Eurydice. Hermes19The Bowl of Roses27Archaic Torso of Apollo33Leda35Don Juan's Childhood37The Flamingos39Requiem for a Friend43The Quieting of Mary with the Resurrected One63[Long you must suffer] (1913)67Death (1915)69[I'm not sure yet when] (1922)71[Beside the road used to sun] (1924)73The First Elegy77The Second Elegy85The Third Elegy91The Fourth Elegy99The Fifth Elegy105The Sixth Elegy113The Seventh Elegy117The Eighth Elegy125The Ninth Elegy131The Tenth Elegy137I, 2 [And almost a girl it was]149I, 3 [A god can do it]151I, 5 [Erect no memorial]153I, 19 [Though the world changes quickly]155II, 13 [Be ahead of all parting]157
\ San Diego Union TribuneSmoothly elegant and unhurriedly paced, [these translations] seem almost effortless, yet they resonate with lyrical intensity and allusive brio.... It would be hard to come away from The Essential Rilkewithout a profound sense of who this great early modernist poet was and what he had to say (and say beautifully of the self and the world.\ \ \ \ \ BooknewsPulitzer Prize winning poet Kinnell and Austrian-native editor Liebmann include the of course, the German poet's most famous work. They also include 24 shorter poems by Rilke (1875-1926), some favorites and some unfamiliar. The arrangement is chronological by collection, with a section for uncollected poems. A short introduction presents the rationale for the new translation. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)\ \
