“One of the greatest world poets of the nineteenth century.” —Roman Jakobson
Poems
by Cyprian Norwid
translated from the Polish by Danuta Borchardt
$16 trade paperback original • 144 pages • poetry
ISBN 978-1-935744-07-8 • e-ISBN 978-1-935744-53-5
distributed to the trade by Consortium Book Sales & Distribution: www.cbsd.com
Considered a “Chrisitna Socrates” by one critic and a “hieroglyph stylist” by another, Cyprian Norwid was more unanimously recognized, however, as one of the most vital figures in Polish letters whose verse is as idiosyncratic as it is profound. Traveling agains the currents of the philosophy of his day, Norwid was a historicist with deep insight into the codes and ripples in the society around him. This engaging collection, selected and translated by Danuta Borchardt, includes many of Norwid’s revered poems, including “Vade-mecum.” True to its Latin summons, “go with me,” the epic poem invites the reader to accompany Norwid on a journey through many lands and timeless questions, seeking truth. We witness Norwid decrying the tight-fisted city folk of London, befriending Frédéric Chopin—whom he meets during his travels—and lamenting the death of a friend. Lyrical, moving, and often biting, this collection gives an evocative glimpse into the world of an extraordinary poet.
“Of the two things of this world only two will remain, Two only: poetry and goodness . . . and nothing else . . .” —Cyprian Norwid
“The English language and imagination . . . evidently have a place for Cyprian Kamil Norwid.”
—The Times Literary Supplement
—The Times Literary Supplement
"A labour of love, a painstakingly crafted instrument that resonates with melody and mystery."
—Andrei Navrozov, The Guardian
“One of Europe’s greatest poets and thinkers. We are all deeply indebted to this poet, the fourth bard. . . . Cyprian Norwid left an opus from which shines the light that lets us more deeply penetrate the truth of our being as human persons. . . . He insistently reminds us that without heroism humanity, ‘humiliated in its brow, hunched over itself’ ceases to be itself. Cyprian Norwid was the man of hope.” —Pope John Paul II
"[Norwid] was a versatile and surprising poet. He wrote quasi-epic, narrative poems sometimes conceived as letters, and tackled autobiographical themes in a charming, mocking tone."
—Lesley Chamberlain, Times Literary Supplement
“He ventures to describe what is indescribable, and . . . he succeeds.”
—Joanna Janecka
—Joanna Janecka
“He carried his soul around with him as if it were some kind of numismatic rarity, unknown to anyone, unwanted, useless . . . He resembled a stone salvaged from some marvelous edifice, which somewhere, sometime had burnt down completely.”
—Józef Tokarzewicz
Cyprian Norwid (1821-1883), poet, playwright, novelist, thinker, and visual artist, was virtually unknown during his lifetime. His poetry, filled with aphorisms and multi-layered metaphor, is largely free of the melodic tone typical of Romantic poetry. When the occupying powers censored all writing in the Polish language, Norwid went into exile, moving through Europe and America. He died in a hostel in Ivry.
Following a career in clinical psychiatry, Danuta Borchardt began translating the novels of Witold Gombrowicz. Her Ferdydurke received the National Translation Award in 2001, her Cosmos was awarded a NEA fellowship, and her Pornografia won the prestigious Found-in-Translation Award in 2010. Borchardt’s short fiction has regularly appeared in Exquisite Corpse.
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1 komentarz:
Wielkie serdeczne dzięki tłumaczkom i wydawcy. Bardzo potrzebowaliśmy waszej pracy, bo jako Zespół Szkół im. Rzeczpospolitej Norwidowskiej szukamy przyjaciół za granicą i jak wtedy mamy im wytłumaczyć kim jesteśmy i jakie są nasze ideały wychowawcze! Od razu namiary na waszą publikację wysyłam do Lincoln, Ne, USA.
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