Böcker av Rainer Maria Rilke

Brand new English translations of this classic cycle of poems by Rilke dedicated to Orpheus

Romano Guardini described Rainer Maria Rilke as the "poet who had things of such importance to say about the end of our own age [and] was also a prophet of things to come." The complexity of Rilke is, then, "highly relevant to modern Man." Decades after Guardini's assessment, the reader who rediscovers Rilke will find a depth of mind and soul that display a profundity the post-modern reader only thinks he possesses. In an expanded collection of Rilke's sonnets, Rick Anthony Furtak not only makes this lyrical masterpiece accessible to the English reader, but he proves himself a master of sorts as well. His introduction that elaborates on Rilke's marriage of vision and voice, intention and enigma, haunted companionship and abandonment is a stand-alone marvel for the reader. Furtak's praised translation of Sonnets to Orpheus (University of Chicago Press, 2008) is surpassed in this much broader collection of verse that also includes the original German text. It is Furtak's great achievement that Rilke resonates with the contemporary reader, who uncertain and searching wants to believe that the vision of existence can mirror much more than his own consciousness. In his feat of rendering Rilke in English, contextualizing the philosophical meanings of verse, and presenting literary romanticism, Furtak provides a formidable contribution to the vindication of true poetic voice.

This new selection, drawing primarily on Rilke's extremely rich middle period, the first decade of the 20th century, and concluding with a selection from his late Sonnets to Orpheus, offers a clear, powerful, and contemporary Rilke.

Art Beck''s introduction notes that "translating poetry is writing poetry, only harder." But he also views it as an art akin to musical performance. Returning to these pieces by Rilke many times over the years, Beck came to realize that "it wasn''t so much to perfect or polish the English renditions as to listen more closely to the ''original score.''" In addition to selections from The Book of Images and New Poems, this volume includes the complete Sonnets to Orpheus, which the translator contends are best experienced as a cycle akin to "a wandering piece of music with various crescendos, diminuendos, pauses, and arias." Those who appreciate Rilke''s lyrical style and mystical underpinnings will find much to admire in these new translations. Those interested in approaches to poetry translation will benefit from the translator''s accompanying commentary, discussing how Rilke''s "broad range and multiple personalities" almost require multiple translators and voices.

Essential reading for scholars, poetry lovers, and anyone with an interest in Rainer Maria Rilke, German poetry, or the creative impulse, these ten letters between Rilke and a young aspiring poet reveal elements from the inner workings of his own poetic identity.

Een jongeman staat op het kruispunt naar volwassenheid en twijfelt aan de keuze die hij moet maken: gaan voor een carrière in het leger of toch de stem van zijn hart volgen en de weg naar het dichterschap inslaan? Aangespoord door jeugdige overmoed besluit hij een brief te schrijven aan de jonge dichter, Rainer Maria Rilke, in de hoop dat hij hem zou kunnen helpen in het overwinnen van zijn besluiteloosheid...

One of the literary masterpieces of the century, this translation is now presented with facing-page German.

Now substantially revised by Edward Snow, whom Denise Levertov once called "e;far and away Rilke's best translator,"e; this bilingual edition of The Book of Images contains a number of the great poet's previously untranslated pieces. Also included are several of Rilke's best-loved lyrics, such as "e;Autumn,"e; "e;Childhood,"e; "e;Lament,"e; "e;Evening,"e; and "e;Entrance."e;