Product Description
At the pinnacle of a grand and prolific career, W. S. Merwin has given us a shimmering new verse translation of the central section of Dante's Divine Comedy -- the Purgatorio.

Led by Virgil, inspired by his love for Beatrice, Dante makes the arduous journey up the Mountain of Purgatory, where souls are cleansed to prepare them for the ultimate ascent to heaven.Presented with the original Italian text, and with Merwin's notes and commentary, this luminous new interpretation of Dante's great poem of sin, repentance, and salvation is a profoundly moving work of art and the definitive translation for our time.
Amazon.com Review
In the foreword to his version of the Purgatorio, W.S. Merwin dwellson the quasi-insuperable hurdles that any translator of Dante must face.Choosing just a single line from the first canticle, he asks: "How couldthat, then, really be translated? It could not, of course." Thismakes Dante's masterpiece sound like the literary equivalent of Mission:Impossible ("Your mission, Mr. Merwin, should you choose to acceptit...") Happily, however, the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet decided to give ita try. He spent several years wrestling with Dante's inexhaustible tercets,and rather than applying himself to the fire-and-brimstone-scented thrillsof the Inferno, Merwin turned to the middle and most humane portionof the entire work: Purgatorio. It's here, in a kind of spiritualhalfway house between heaven and hell, that the poem reaches a peak oftenderness and regret--and rises quite literally from the dead.

Merwin's version must be measured against a good many predecessors, fromJohn Ciardi's reader-friendlyapproach to Allen Mandelbaum's free-versifying to CharlesSingleton's prosaic trot.How does this Purgatorio stack up? Very decently indeed. Merwin issomething of a strict constructionist, who wants to hew as closely aspossible to the syntax and sound of the original Italian. Yet he's noNabokovian naysayer, slapping himself on the wrist every time he deviatesfrom Dante's text, and he's wisely thrown the rhymes overboard. That leaveshim with enough flexibility to echo some of the poem's loveliest effects:

A sweet air that within itself was
unvarying struck me on the forehead,
a stroke no rougher than a gentle breeze,

at which the trembling branches all together
bent at once in that direction where
the holy mountain casts its first shadow,

without ever leaning over so far from
the upright as to make the small birds stop
the practice of their art in the treetops...

Customer Reviews (3)

among the most brilliant poetry ever written
I think the reason the Inferno is the most popular canzone of Dante's Divine Comedy is just that it's where to start with Dante's amazing incredible eternal epic.Also the Inferno has more shoot-em-up sort of action than the other 2, Purgatorio & Paradiso.Purgatory is of such poetic brilliance; it's full of poetic philosophy from Dante's critical genius, & beautiful scenes, interesting spirits -- a feeling wholly different from the grimness of the Inferno.& W. S. Merwin too is brilliant & masterful enough for a repartee with the medieval guru.Merwin is a poet & translator whose verbal & syntactical decisions you can trust.He renders Purgatorio with great exciting faithfulness to Dante's original language, with mellifluous music, with merit worthy of the high praise this has gotten from Robert Pinsky, Harold Bloom, & others.The Comedy is notoriously difficult to translate, & this is one of the best translations of Purgatorio into English ever, I'm sure.

A beautiful translation of a beautiful poem.
One of the greatest literary tragedies is that so many readers believe that the Divine Comedy, or that even Dante himself, is no more than the Inferno.Such ignorance leads to a vast reading public who have never experienced the most immediately human section of the Comedy: the Purgatorio.Unlike Inferno, which is full of characters whom we either revile or pity, Purgatorio introduces us to spirits who, like most of us, try to do the right thing, but aren't always successful.If we look down upon the shades in Hell, we identify with the shades in Purgatory, and it is in this understanding that the Purgatorio gains its beauty.An absolute must read for anyone with any interest in literature, history, theology, spirituality, philosophy, psychiatry, or beauty.

As for Merwin's translation, he has managed to take a giant step in solving the problem that I mentioned above.His translation does justice to the original not only in its accuracy, but in its poetry, which is so important to Dante's works.I have read two other translations of Purgatorio (Mandelbaum and Ciardi), and this is, by far, the most readable and the most engaging of the three.Merwin captures the hopeful but unfilled tone of the poem with considerable grace while still maintaining the structural and thematic tension that are crucial to an understanding of Dante's works. As for the scholarly aspects of the work, scholastics, clearly, were not Merwin's intent.His explanatory notes are minimal (which is preferable to Mandelbaum's copious, and sometimes condescending glosses) and the foreword is more an exploration of the art of translation than of Dante's work.Not that this is a bad thing.Understanding Merwin's reservations concerning translation, and the difficulties of performing it, makes his version of Purgatorio all the more human and touching.But, any reader seeking critical commentary should look elsewhere (and by elsewhere I mean a supplemental source as passing over this translation just because it lacks scholarly material would be criminal).Whether for readers experiencing Purgatorio for the first time, or for Dante aficionados, I can't recomend this volume highly enough.First, Pinsky's Inferno, then Merwin's Purgatorio, now, if only someone would do Paradiso similar justice!

Beautiful Forward
I will confess that I haven't had a chance to read Merwin's entire translation of Dante's _Purgatorio_, though I have read about a third to this point.I will say, though, that I have read his Forward, and I foundit to be one of the more moving testaments to the emotional, spiritual, andintellectual impact that the _Commedia_ has had on readers, poets andnon-poets alike, through the ages. There isn't much new information for theDante scholar--Merwin acknowledges that his notes are largely based onSingleton's--but this is a translation written out of love, not necessarilyscholarship.This is Merwin's editon for the lover of both poets andpoetry ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

Present Company
Merwin is in touch with his state of being today and retrospect of the its that got him here & now.

To Merwin: With Awe & Gratitude
Recovering from painful surgery, I read and reread W.S. Merwin's Present Company and was rewarded with solace, total honesty, beauty, lucidity, gracefulness, pathos. This is a book of lyric masterpieces by a master poet at the peak of his visionary, humane powers. There are too many poems to quote here. Among my favorites: To My Legs, To My Mother, To My Grandfathers, To Aunt Margie, To the Old, To the Long Table, To Forgetting, To the Gods, To the Sorrow String." Read them all and be reminded of the vast, magical power of truly great poetry. Find yourself changed -- and weeping.

On Merwin: Words of Praise Fail
How does one write critically about the abundant beauty of the poetry of W.S. Merwin?Long acclaimed as one of our most poignant and important poets, his newest collection is an endless stream of homages to fleeting thoughts, ideas, and other delicacies encounter by the informed eye and heart.Merwin keeps his language simple but continues to prod our senses with challenging concepts.In these one hundred odd poems he wanders through our perceptions and imaginations and strikes chords familiar and foreign, all with the flowing beauty of his carefully molded words.

These poems seem to be odes, not so much to people as to natural matters and objects and notions.In 'To a Falling Leaf in Winter':'At sundown when a day's words/ have gathered at the feet of the trees/ lining up in silence/ to enter the long corridors/ of the roots into which they/ pass one by one thinking/ that they remember the place/ as they fell themselves climbing/ away from their only sound/ while they are being forgotten/ by their bright circumstances/ they rise through all the rings/ listening again/ afterward as they/ listened once and they come/ to where the leaves used to live/ during their lives but have gone now/ and they too take the next step/ beyond the reach of meaning.'

There are no adequate descriptives for Merwin's gifts.They are simply there for the savouring of those with quiet hearts to read and hear.Highly recommended.Grady Harp, October 05 ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

W.S. Merwin's The Book of Fables
If you read for escape and with not a lot of time to sink into a long work, then Merwin's The Book of Fables is the place to go.It's like a gated play yard for the imagination to spend its recess time.You can climb on a spinning yarn and be dazzled as the landscape whirls by, or you can go through the ups and downs of a see-saw ride, or pick up a question from a grassy expanse, roll it in your hand, and set it back down with some of W.S. Merwin's insights rubbed off to your palms.His fables run from a sentence or two, to a bare quarter page, to as long as perhaps a dozen pages.I have not read a single one so far that didn't provide the brief escape that I needed in the moment from the everyday humdrum.Merwin has a wondrous imagaination and way with the written word; I only wish he had been recommended to me earlier.

Great short prose pieces by a favorite poet..
This book is a series of fanciful fables of many moods.I ration it out as a bedtime book.When I finish it I will start over. ... Read more

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From a major American poet -- a thrilling story, in verse, of nineteenth-century Hawaii. The story of an attempt by the government to seize and constrain possible victims of leprosy and the determination of one small family not to be taken. A tale of the perils and glories of their flight into the wilds of the island of Kauai, pursued by a gunboat full of soldiers.

A brilliant capturing -- inspired by the poet's respect for the people of these islands -- of their life, their history, the gods and goddesses of their mythic past. A somber revelation of the wrecking of their culture through the exploitative incursions of Europeans and Americans. An epic narrative that enthralls with the grandeur of its language and of its vision.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

A powerful story and a fine poem.
This ambitious work tells the true story of one family's resistance to the wrong-headed efforts to quarantine victims of Hansen's disease (i.e., leprosy) on the Hawaiian islands.The narrative itself is surprisingly involving, with three-dimensional characters, beautiful scene painting, and propulsive drama.Merwin's poetry here takes a roughly anapestic form, somewhat similar in sound to Longfellow's "Evangeline" meter.(And "The Folding Cliffs" has many other interesting parallels with that 19th-century classic.)The language is at times too prosy for my taste, and Merwin's aversion to punctuation often gives the tale a breathless quality that fights against the narrative tempo.Neverthless, this is a great artistic achievement that deserves to be read and (hopefully) imitated.

Patience rewards
I agree with most of the comments in the reviews to date (five, prior to mine).Some patience is required for reading this book.At times it'ssomewhat "foreign" (and unless you're Hawaiian and/or know Hawaiiwell, you're probably entitled to feel strange), but its language isuniquely rich and its construction and thought are stunningly insightful,very rewarding.Don't be surprised if you're rather inarticulate afterreading this book.It's complicated, worth re-reading, and certainly arecommendation for adventurous readers.

Great book but a lot of typos
I have just finished reading this delightful book. I am also a book editor and publisher, and would like to offer some suggestions should the book ever be reprinted or issued in a new edition. I am very aware of how errorscreep in, and I have made a large number of bloopers myself, so no one isperfect, but I would hope a publisher with the vintage prestige of Knopfwould make every effort to employ knowledgeable proofreaders. Thebook is very inconsistent in the spelling of Hawaiian words, with a largenumber of 'okina (apostrophes) and kahako (macrons) left out. There is atleast one spelling error, the name of the newspaper Ka Leo o ka Lahuiincorrectly spelled Ka Leo o ka Lauhui ("Voice of the Nation"). The list of personal and geograpnic names at the end is very useful,butfar from complete, and it is very difficult to follow some of the text notknowing who some of thesepeople or places are, or having to look backfurther in the text to identify them. Some of these may be misspelled, Idon't know, although I am familiar with the island of Kaua'i (sometimesspelled Kauai in the book), its history and geography. I am also a friendof Frances Frazier, who very kindly recommended the book to me. Ihope you give this book wide publicity, and that you have very successfulsales. Best wishes,

A rich blend of ancient and modern devices
Here is a story about Hawaii that attempts to capture the ancient oral tradition of 'oli chants within the confines of Euro-linguistics. The vast differences between Hawaiian and English are issues which Merwin confrontedby creating a narrative poem; he drew from Western literature's ownpast--Homeric poems--for inspiration and guidance. Yet, he adds his moderntouch (the missing punctuation marks). I found this a fascinating approach,and I appreciated his effort. The story of Pi'ilani and Ko'olau expressesthe love and gentleness of the people, the communal values present in theHawaiian culture, and the complicated social and political relationshipsresponsible for the Hansen's disease mess. Merwin honored the truth withoutcompromising his creativity.There are a few sections early in the novel,and a few near the end that seem redundant and tedious. I struggled throughthese parts, though early on Iwas rewarded with a beautifully wroughtaccount of the creation of the islands and its people; it echoed theKumulipo or ancient Hawaiian creation myth. Still, the slow parts detractedfrom the novel's readability; thus,I give it four stars.

A rich blend of ancient and modern devices
Here is a story about Hawaii that attempts to capture the ancient oral tradition of 'oli chants within the confines of Euro-linguistics. The vast differences between Hawaiian and English are issues which Merwin confrontedby creating a narrative poem; he drew from Western literature's ownpast--Homeric poems--for inspiration and guidance. Yet, he adds his moderntouch (the missing punctuation marks). I found this a fascinating approach,and I appreciated his effort. The story of Pi'ilani and Ko'olau expressesthe love and gentleness of the people, the communal values present in theHawaiian culture, and the complicated social and political relationshipsresponsible for the Hansen's disease mess. Merwin honored the truth withoutcompromising his creativity.There are a few sections early in the novel,and a few near the end that seem redundant and tedious. I struggled throughthese parts, though early on Iwas rewarded with a beautifully wroughtaccount of the creation of the islands and its people; it echoed theKumulipo or ancient Hawaiian creation myth. Still, the slow parts detractedfrom the novel's readability; thus,I give it three stars. ... Read more

Product Description
A collection of stories pay tribute to the ancient land of the Lascaux caves in southwestern France, where aristocrats, shepherds, wine merchants, and innkeepers lead anachronistic lives. 10,000 first printing. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Beautiful - but bleak
This book, by one of America's great poets, contains three written pieces, which are difficult to place into any particular genre. The inside flap refers to them as "narratives", but they don't tell a story - unless one reads them in a rather oblique manner.Jane Kramer calls them "stories" in her blurb, but they seem to be somewhere between fiction and memoirs. The first and third are written in the third person; the second in the first person.

While they have extraordinarily lengthy and detailed descriptions of the physical settings, it is the characters' actions, rather than their external appearances, which are observed closely.The actions are described in a detached and impassionate manner; any character judgements are implicit in the descriptions of their behavior and depend upon the reader's sensibilities.They are further nuanced by the character's age and social status and the morés of the geographic location (which is in an area of France between Bordeaux and the Rhone river - rich in history, but poor in natural resources).

I think I would classify the pieces as meditations on the depopulation of a rural area of marginal productivity, and its peoples' resistance to the harshness and waste inherent in the efficiencies of more modern techniques being imported by the corporate interests of the cities. The overall themes would be poverty (both material and spiritual), inertia, decay and mortality.Needless to say, there are not a lot of laughs.

The pace of the writing is as slow and as nuanced as the life of the rather insular inhabitants.It is also subtle, complex and beautiful in an austere way.However, when you are finished, you feel rather drained by the bleak existence to which you have been exposed - rather similar in feeling to studying a book of the photos Dorothea Lange took during The Great Depression.

Highly recommended for those not susceptible to dark moods.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Three Liners
Finding the Islands was a followup to Merwin's collection Asian Figures.It contains variations on Japanese haiku, but while traditional haiku have a clear structure and a particular perspective, Merwin's versions are mixtures of more random or transparent imagery.As such, they don't convey the same kind of identifiable wisdom as traditional haikus.In fact, they come across often as glittering fragments and bursts of imagistic language with no referential background.The traditional or convention reader who reads them looking for any kind of metaphor or signification beyond the fragments will be disappointed.Those who give up all expectation going into them will enjoy them immensely.

love poems
This book has the most beautiful love poems I have read in a long time. The lyrical style of trisects lay layer after layer of image down to create a deeply felt sense of place and relationship.My breath was taken away with these lines that end the poem Turning to You, "I want to be buried / under your heart / where I was born" The poet trusts the reader to experience the poems and does not feel the need to lead the reader by the hand with spelled out narrative.I deeply appreciate this book; it will be placed on my shelf of most treasured books.

Refrigerator Poetry
There are poems by Merwin that I like, really like, but they aren't in this book.

His style here is hard to get inside.He writes three lines then a dash then three lines through the whole book, and his diction soundslike refrigerator poetry -- very imagistic, very noun-heavy.

Each poemfeels difficult to put together into a real poem, not just a list of imagesand sparse ideas.Too difficult.I didn't like it much. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

A Fine Sampling of Some of Our Best Poets
W.S. Merwin curated single poems from the works of poets who had lived and died during his lifetime and published them under the title LAMENT FOR THE MAKERS: A Memorial Anthology.Himself a Pulitzer Prize winner in 1971, Merwin begins this tasty anthology with an extended poem in which he memorializes (or rather crystallizes) each of the twenty-three poets he has selected.Though not his best poem, it is an apt introduction to works by TS Eliot, WH Auden, James Merrill, Ezra Pound, Sylvia Plath, Robert Graves, Elizabeth Bishop, William Carlos Williams, etc.Reading poems selected by a poet is a lesson in itself.This small anthology will encourage readers, new to some of the poets here, to pursue more complete anthologies (the isolated works are not among the poets' best).A nice bedside book for ending the day in beauty. ... Read more

Product Description
In The Lost Upland, award-winning poet W. S. Merwin explores his intimate knowledge of the people and the countryside in what is the home of the Lascaux caves, an ancient part of southwestern France. In three narratives of small-town life, Merwin shows with unmatched poetic and narrative power how the past is still palpably present. These stories offer the reader a brilliantly evocative and loving portrayal of the French country people and their way of life. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Beautiful - but bleak
This book, by one of America's great poets, contains three written pieces, which are difficult to place into any particular genre. The inside flap refers to them as "narratives", but they don't tell a story - unless one reads them in a rather oblique manner.Jane Kramer calls them "stories" in her blurb, but they seem to be somewhere between fiction and memoirs. The first and third are written in the third person; the second in the first person.

While they have extraordinarily lengthy and detailed descriptions of the physical settings, it is the characters' actions, rather than their external appearances, which are observed closely.The actions are described in a detached and impassionate manner; any character judgements are implicit in the descriptions of their behavior and depend upon the reader's sensibilities.They are further nuanced by the character's age and social status and the morés of the geographic location (which is in an area of France between Bordeaux and the Rhone river - rich in history, but poor in natural resources).

I think I would classify the pieces as meditations on the depopulation of a rural area of marginal productivity, and its peoples' resistance to the harshness and waste inherent in the efficiencies of more modern techniques being imported by the corporate interests of the cities. The overall themes would be poverty (both material and spiritual), inertia, decay and mortality.Needless to say, there are not a lot of laughs.

The pace of the writing is as slow and as nuanced as the life of the rather insular inhabitants.It is also subtle, complex and beautiful in an austere way.However, when you are finished, you feel rather drained by the bleak existence to which you have been exposed - rather similar in feeling to studying a book of the photos Dorothea Lange took during The Great Depression.

Highly recommended for those not susceptible to dark moods.

a great, unknown work
I don't know why no one seems to have heard of this book; it is one of my top ten.It's a little slow starting, but that's part of its pleasure; it's quirky,and sometimes seems to wander, but it's not, really; the narrative seems to stroll off in new and sometimes disconcerting directions, but it always comes home to this fascinating place Merwin is writing about... when I finished this book, I felt like I knew this part of France in a way that's possible only through great literature.

I would recommend this book to anyone willing to "listen" to its unusual style and subject.A great book! ... Read more

Product Description
A contemporary prose rendering of the great medieval French epic, The Song of Roland is as canonical and significant as the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf. It extols the chivalric ideals in the France of Charlemagne through the exploits of Charlemagne's nephew, the warrior Roland, who fights bravely to his death in a legendary battle. Against the bloody backdrop of the struggle between Christianity and Islam, The Song of Roland remains a vivid portrayal of medieval life, knightly adventure, and feudal politics.The first great literary works of a culture are its epic chronicles, those that create simple hero-figures about whom the imagination of a nation can crystallize, observed V. S. Pritchett.

The Song of Roland is animated by the crusading spirit and fortified by national and religious propaganda.This edition features W. S. Merwin's glowing, lyrical translation.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A tribute to the knights
This song, translated into prose by Merwin, is a testament to love and respect given to knights. For some reason, this song's composer felt that Roland must be immortalized in poetry. Influenced by the Andalusian "qasida", the anonymous poet crafted a tribute to Catholic hero Roland and his companions. The story is very gory, filled with a STRONG Christian bias. (Not only do the Muslims get slammed, so do the Hungarians, Bulgarians, Romans, etc.) The Muslims are "pagans".

This story deals with a knight's honor, chilvarly, loyalty to the Catholic church, and one's relationship with GOD. I loved the references to obscure saints and Catholic practices. The introduction and afterword were also helpful in understanding this beautiful song.

This is intelligent Christian literature! Read it along with a study guide or notes and you won't be disappointed.

Beware the oliphant
I agree with the previous (and, at this point, only other) review of this product in that the Song of Roland is (sadly) an often overlooked piece of medieval literature.I have taken several classes on the topic and I had never even heard of the poem until it was reccommended to me by my brother.After reading it, I too urge anyone interested in this style of literature to pick it up.It's a quick and easy read, yet for all that it embodies all the ideals and heroic qualities of France (and much of Christian western Europe) during the 8th and 9th centuries (and probably beyond as well).The Song of Roland exists as one of the dominant and most influential pieces of the period, and should not be neglected by any student of the era.Plus, you have to love a hero that is such a beast in battle that his death is not a result of any fighting wounds, but rather just a mighty blast of his own.

The slaughter and glory of battle
The Song of Roland is the most famous of the "chansons de geste" (songs of deeds) of the Middle Ages. It provides a fascinating view into the spirit of warriors of that time and their motivation. The Song of Roland gives an idealized picture, of course, and if we can believe the historians, the medieval knights never lived up to their chivalric ideal.

The Song of Roland is not commonly included in the canon of must-read classics. Except in France, maybe. I assume the reason is that people in our time do not trace back their roots to the feudalism of the Middle Ages, and that they consider the chapter of chivalry closed after Cervantes's satirical portrait of knighthood in "Don Quixote". In one respect, however, this gory tale of slaughter, martyrdom and revenge is very contemporary. It illustrates the mindset of crusaders who see the world in terms of Good and Evil, and the language they use to incite contempt of the other party.

Apart from its historical value, the Song of Roland is also worth reading as literature - as an outstanding example for the heroic epic and as a piece of art whose "simple yet elevated style and tone of high moral purpose" (R. Harrison) is reminiscent of the Old Testament.

The three most easily available translations of the Song of Roland in the market are:

W.S. Merwin's 1963 prose translation with introduction, re-published in paperback by Random House's "Modern Library" in 2001 (ISBN 0375757112). His nine-page introduction is a succinct but sufficient overview of the historical events of AD 778 that became the basis of the Song of Roland. The translation stands out for its readability, and Merwin's choice of modern English makes the descriptions of violence even more direct and graphic: "And Oliver rides through the battle, with his spear shattered to a stump, charges against Malun, a pagan, breaks his gilded shield with the flowers painted on it, knocks the eyes out of his head and brings his brains tumbling down to his feet." (page 43).

Robert Harrison's 1970 translation for Penguin Book's budget line "Mentor Books" (ISBN 0451528573) captures the throbbing, urgent rhythm of the verse form best: "Olivier now gallops through the fray - / his lance has snapped, he only has a stump - / and goes to strike a pagan, Malsaron. / He breaks his gilt, fleuron-emblazoned shield, / bursting both his eyeball from his head - / his brain comes tumbling downward to his feet - " (page 93). "Fleuron-emblazoned" is quite enigmatic compared to Merwin's clear "with the flowers painted on it", but Harrison redeems himself by choosing "bursting" to emphasize the violence of the attack. The big plus of Harrison's book is his 42-page introduction. He explains the logic of medieval chivalry, why cruelty coexisted with sensitivity, and butchery with prayer. One interesting concept is the medieval "ethos of success," or in other words the idea that the outcome justifies the means: When a knight killed another knight it was the will of God that this had happened, no matter by what means. Make the opponent trip and chop off his head - see, God is on your side. Harrison goes to quite some length to introduce the instruments of war, the armor and weapons, which is very helpful since the main body of the Song of Roland is about the glory and slaughter of battle.

Glyn Burgess's 1990 translation for Penguin Classics (ISBN 0140445323) is the most recent translation of the three. He stays closest to the form of the original, which gives his translation a certain wooden inflexibility but also a not entirely unbecoming pathos. His translation of Olivier's attack on Malun is quite telling: "Oliver rides through the thick of the fray; / His lance shaft is broken, only a stump remains. / He goes to strike a pagan, Malun; / He breaks his shield, wrought with gold and flowers, / and smites both his eyes out of his head. / His brains come spilling out over his feet;" (page 72) While the use of "wrought" and "smite" sounds a bit old-fashioned, "spilling" is an excellent choice. Burgess added a 19-page introduction to his translation. It focuses mostly on the literary qualities of the Song of Roland; for the first-time reader of the Song of Roland, Harrison's introduction is more helpful. The additional value of the Penguin Classics edition lies in an Appendix with about one third of the original version of the "Chanson de Roland" - the key passages of the work in Old French.

While all three translations have their pros and cons, I tend to recommend Harrison's book over the two others. It strikes a good balance between the clarity of Merwin's prose translation and the wooden feel of Burgess's more literal verse translation. In addition, it impresses with its useful introduction and its unbeatable value for money. ... Read more

Product Description
In their translation of Euripides' Iphigeneia at Aulis, noted American poet W.S. Merwin and eminent classicist George E. Dimock offer a compelling look at the devasting consequence of "man's inhumanity to man."A stern critique of Greek culture, Iphigeneia at Aulis condemns the Trojan War, depicting the ugly and awesome power of political ambition.Agamemnon's sacrifice of his daughter Iphigeneia to facilitate the Greek Armies advance on Troy is marvelously conveyed by Merwin, as he impressively recreates the broad array of moral and emotional tones with which Euripides has invested one of the most moving plays in the history of drama.With its insightful introduction by Dimock, notes on the text, and a glossary of mythical and geographical terms, this edition of Iphigeneia at Aulis is indispensable to an understanding of Euripides' tragic vision. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Timely thoughts on the sacrifices of war
This play contemplates the question of how many wars would be fought if the first to die were the children of the leaders themselves.The translation is quite readable but not strict, as a comparison of Greek with English line numbers quickly shows.The introductory essay and concluding notes on the play are especially helpful, placing the play in its historical context (the Peloponesian War) and explaining various allusions to mythological or historical events in the play itself.

excellent introduction to greek tragedy
Of the half dozen or so plays I've read in Oxford University Press's "Greek Tragedy in New Translations" series, this is the best.

An excellent synopsis and analysis of the play precedes a beautiful translation, smoothing the way for students. The play is one of the keys to understanding the Trojan War -- in addition to recapping the beef the Greeks have with Troy, there is much foreshadowing of what will happen ten years down the road.

After reading Iphigeneia at Aulis, it's difficult to cut any of those Greek heroes any slack. If the situation weren't so horrible and tragic, the interactions and reactions of some of the characters would be funny: Achilles, for example, extremely annoyed that Agamemnon would take his name in vain when tricking Iphigeneia into coming to Aulis -- if Agamemnon had asked him for his help first, then tricking the girl into coming to be sacrificed would have been okay. Or Menelaos, coming around to Agamemnon's way of thinking (that it would, after all, be wrong to kill Iphigeneia), and suggesting that only he, Agamemnon and Kalchas the priest know about the need for a sacrifice to get a fair wind to Troy, and that Kalchas won't tell: "Not if he's dead."

This play, and this translation, are probably one of the best introductions a student could have to Greek tragedy.

excellent introduction to greek tragedy
Of the half dozen or so plays I've read in Oxford University Press's "Greek Tragedy in New Translations" series, this is the best.

An excellent synopsis and analysis of the play precedes a beautiful translation, smoothing the way for students. The play is one of the keys to understanding the Trojan War -- in addition to recapping the beef the Greeks have with Troy, there is much foreshadowing of what will happen ten years down the road.

After reading Iphigeneia at Aulis, it's difficult to cut any of those Greek heroes any slack.If the situation weren't so horrible and tragic, the interactions and reactions of some of the characters would be funny:Achilles, for example, extremely annoyed that Agamemnon would take his name in vain when tricking Iphigeneia into coming to Aulis; if Agamemnon had asked him for his help first, then tricking the girl into coming to be sacrificed would have been okay.Or Menelaos, coming around to Agamemnon's way of thinking (that it would, after all, be wrong to kill Iphigeneia), and suggesting that only he, Agamemnon and Kalchas the priest know about the need for a sacrifice to get a fair wind to Troy, and that Kalchas won't tell:"Not if he's dead."

This play, and this translation, are probably one of the best introductions a student could have to Greek tragedy.

First rate, modern translation
Finding first rate translations can be a hit and miss affair. However, this it definitely a "hit". Merwin's translation of Euripides' tragedy is masterful and deserves the glowing reviews it has received here as elsewhere. Readers of this review might be interested to know that it is part of a series called "The Greek Tragedy in New Translations". And while it is out of print, good used copies are freely available in the Amazon marketplace -- which is where I secured mine.

Merwin has rendered a taut, readable version in modern English. And the volume is supplemented with an extremely interesting introduction by George Dimock -- with which I am not sure I entirely agree -- though he does a fine job of fitting the play within the context of the Peloponnesian War.

For me, the riveting aspect of this work is the treatment that Achilles gets (Agamemnon, of course, gets a good drubbing, which is satisfying -- but hardly unexpected!). We see him at Aulis, a young man as yet unbowed and unbloodied by the years of warfare at Troy. Dimock makes a rather startling remark when he asseverates, "The one thing that his [Achilles] speeches do not contain is simple human feeling such as Paris might entertain: it does not seem to have occurred to him that a young girl is about to die." And he is rather critical of Achilles for this (I might even say that his introduction is suffused with "pro-Trojan" sympathies). But for me, isn't this rather the whole point? Of course Achilles is like this, it took TEN years of warfare and the death of Patroclus for him to learn (and recall that he ALONE among the Greeks appears to have absorbed the lesson) how to be "human" -- on this see Bernard Knox's introduction to Robert Fagles' brilliant translation of the Iliad. I prefer the General Editor's view on this when he says, "the play enacts the heroic education of Achilles." Well, at least it enacts the very early stages of it!

Merwin is a wonderful poet -- and I would also recommend his translation of Dante's Purgatorio and Paradiso. For readers in search of other top notch modern translations, see Stanley Lombardo's truly astonishing translations of the Iliad and the Odyssey. See also Nicholas Pevear's translation of Aias.

Here is a sample of Merwin's translation (from the Chorus's reaction to a speech of Agamemnon's):

"O Cyprian,
most beautiful of the goddesses, keep
such wild flights from me.
Let me know love
within reason and desire within
marraige, and feel your presence
not your rage.
The natures of humans
are various, and human ways of acting
are different,
but everyone knows what is right,
and teaching
inclines them at last to virtue."

An Ancient Greek Anti-War Play.
This ancient Greek play by the famous playwrite Euripides is a diatribe on war and the foolishness of pride. The play is often thought to be an incomplete work, but as Dimock points out in the introduction, recent discoveries suggest that IPHIGENEIA AT AULIS isn't as incomplete as once thought. This edition includes a fine introduction, several detailed notes on the text, and a glossary of proper nouns. The book is not too difficult to read and can be useful for students of the theatre and/or ancient Greek culture. ... Read more

Product Description

Antonio Porchia (1886 - 1968) wrote one book, a slender collection of poetic aphorisms that became a classic in the Spanish-speaking world. With affinities to Taoist and Buddhist epigrams, Voices bears witness to the awe of human existence. Revised and updated with a new introduction by translator W.S. Merwin, this bilingual volume brings back into print one of Latin America's great literary treasures.

He who tells the truth says almost nothing.
*
I know what I have given you. I do not know what you have received.
*
Only a few arrive at nothing, because the way is long.
*
Out of a hundred years a few minutes were made that stayed with me, not a hundred years.
*
When I come upon some idea that is not of this world, I feel as though this world had grown wider.
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This world understands nothing but words, and you have come into it with almost none.
*
We become aware of the void as we fill it.

Antonio Porchia (1886 - 1968) was born in Italy. After his father died, he emigrated to Argentina with his mother and seven siblings, and as the eldest child, started working at the age of 14. He was self-taught, and his only book, Voices, caught the attention of a noted French critic who assumed him to be a scholar of Kafka and Buddhism, rather than the humble man who loved to tend his garden. Today, Porchia's aphorisms are published in more than a dozen Spanish-language editions as well as in German, French and Italian.

W.S. Merwin's awards include the Pulitzer Prize, the Tanning Prize, the Bollingen Award, and fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the NEA. He is the author of dozens of books of poetry and translations. He lives in Hawaii.

Customer Reviews (5)

Just Wonderful --
Emerson, Schopenhauer, Balthasar Gracian, Nietzsche, Lichtenberg, Whitman and more, --all in one.
Good translations, though, ones that say too much at times; the original spanish on the facing pages more than compensates. Intelligent introduction, in a stately printing quality befitting a writer who owned and operated a press himself. This is essential. It's amazing he's from the last century, --he sounds ancient.

Distillations
Antonio Porchia (1886 - 1968) emigrated from his native Italy to Argentina where he became somewhat of an enigmatic poet, a poet while recognized during his lifetime is growing in popularity now, much to the superb translations by W.S. Merwin.Oddly enough Porchia's output was limited to one book, so becoming an avid fan of his thoughts placed so carefully on the printed page takes only a small book (127 pages) to absorb.

But what lines of beauty he created!Some examples:

Suffering does not follow us. It goes before us.
*
More grievous than tears is the sight of them.
*
Would there be this eternal seeking if the found existed?

Porchia's pregnant lines find a home in our minds, in our hearts, and give us encouragement and those particular words to share with our own psyches as well as the agonies of loved ones.He was a gifted writer and W.S. Merwin has done a fine job in reassuring us that his words remain alive.Grady Harp, November 06

extraordinary
Porchia never ceases to amaze; on the shelf next to Thoreau and Emerson, he fits perfectly. I agree with the first reviewer; buy ten and give nine to your closest friends.

Life is incomplete without certain things; this is definitely one of them.

Savor like chocolate
Each aphorism is a statement from a knowing heart that has experienced peace and happiness from the inside.Read this and enjoy the nectar of a spare few words that say it all.Don't interpret what he says.Feel it.

unmissable
wonderful to see this book back in print again. no one has read it, and everyone should. a classic of 'wisdom literature'; porchia was right up there, in his own quiet and modest way, with cioran and lichtenberg - i.e. he's one of the few writers actually worth committing to memory. buy ten and give nine away to your most thoughtful friends. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent, but not for ev'ryone...
This is a collection of short stories from a man whose "natural" form (or at least the one in which he's most prolific) is poetry.Thus, the writing is absolutely gorgeous and poetic.However, many readers (not I!) may be turned off by his obscure stories, which, altough they often deal with seemingly prosaic subjects, are quite esoteric.(For instance,one story involves a man who has an enormous rock in his living room which he makes no attempt to move.I don't describe it well, but trust me--it's a fascinating story.)I recommend this book to the open-minded, to lovers of language, to dreamers, and to folks who enjoy pondering the ponderous but who can accept it when they don't understand. ... Read more

Product Description
The is a book of W.S. Merwin's poetry published in 1977. 80 pages. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Classics are poems that transcend the time of their creation
Classics are poems that transcend the time of their creation and continue down through the generations to impact those that hear or read them. Newly released by Copper Canyon in its classics collection, "Spanish Ballads" is a compilation of just such poetic fare. This impressive anthology of poetry truly lives up lives up the claim of 'classic' with W.S. Merwin's magnificent verse and deftly skilled writing. Containing a great many subjects and forms ranging from episodic narrative to song-styled poetry, "Spanish Ballads" is an original representation showcasing the last few centuries of the Spain's poetic literature and legacy. ... Read more

Product Description
W.S. Merwin is arguably the most influential American poet of the last half-century - an artist who has transfigured and reinvigorated the vision of poetry for our time. While he has long been viewed in the States as an essential voice in modern American literature, his poetry has been unavailable in Britain for over 35 years. This new selection covers over five decades of his poetry, from "The Dancing Bears" (1954) to "Present Company" (2005). Most of the book is drawn from his major American retrospective, "Migration", winner of the 2005 National Book Award for Poetry. Merwin's poetry has moved beyond the traditional verse of his early years to revolutionary open forms that engage a vast array of influences and possibilities. As Adrienne Rich wrote of his work: "I would be shamelessly jealous of this poetry, if I didn't take so much from it into my own life." His recent poetry is perhaps his most personal, arising from his deeply held beliefs. Merwin is not only profoundly anti-imperialist, pacifist and environmentalist, but also possessed by an intimate feeling for landscape and language and the ways in which land and language interflow.His latest poems are densely imagistic, dream-like, and full of praise for the natural world. "The intentions of Merwin's poetry are as broad as the biosphere yet as intimate as a whisper. He conveys in the sweet simplicity of grounded language a sense of the self where it belongs, floating between heaven, earth, and the underground" - Peter Davison, "Atlantic Monthly". "He has attained - more and more with every collection - a wonderfully streamlined diction that unerringly separates and recombines like quicksilver scattered upon a shifting plane, but remains as faithful to the warms and cools of the human heart as that same mercury in the pan-pipe of a thermometer" - James Merrill. ... Read more