SHAKSPER 1999: Re: 20th Century Poetry

From: Hardy M. Cook (editor@ws.bowiestate.edu)
Date: 11/09/99 

The Shakespeare Conference: SHK 10.1918  Tuesday, 9 November 1999.

[1]     From:   Robert Peters <RobertPeters@t-online.de>
        Date:   Friday, 05 Nov 1999 20:25:25 +0100
        Subj:   Re: SHK 10.1894 20th Century Poetry

[2]     From:   Gabriel Egan <gabriel@dmu-english.freeserve.co.uk>
        Date:   Saturday, 6 Nov 1999 18:01:53 -0000
        Subj:   Re: SHK 10.1902 Re: 20th Century Poetry

[3]     From:   Heidi Webb Arnold <hswebb@midway.uchicago.edu>
        Date:   Monday, 8 Nov 1999 11:45:01 -0600 (CST)
        Subj:   Re: SHK 10.1894 20th Century Poetry


[1]-----------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Robert Peters <RobertPeters@t-online.de>
Date:           Friday, 05 Nov 1999 20:25:25 +0100
Subject: 10.1894 20th Century Poetry
Comment:        Re: SHK 10.1894 20th Century Poetry

No, Günter Grass is no American poet, but he´s the new Nobel Prize
Winner, and so - to whom it may concern - it may not be uninteresting
that he actually once wrote a poem on King Lear. Its title is "König
Lear" and it is to be found in his collection "Ausgefragt" (ambigious
title: can mean either 'Interrogated´ or 'Having no more questions´).
The poem is a homage to the great German Shakespeare actor and director
Fritz Kortner who is best known for a moving German "Merchant of
Venice"-production, the first after WWII.

Another German "Lear"-poem known to me is by the East German author
Peter Huchel (1903 - 1981). The title again is simply "König Lear" and
Lear is portrayed as a kind of solitary impoverished figure in a
comfortless landscape, but still a man of dignity. (This poem can be
found in the volume "Die neunte Stunde" [The ninth hour]).  I don´t
think there are English translations of these poems so I could give out
the German texts and English prose translations in this forum or via
mail if anyone is interested.

By the way, there is, especially in 20th century and postwar (East, West
and United) German poetry, a constant line of poems using Shakespearean
motives and characters by the most important poets. "Hamlet" seems to be
favourite, with lots of poems about Ophelia drifting on the water (among
others by Brecht). How about other literatures´ poets, e.g. Italian,
French, Spanish?

Robert Peters

[2]-------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Gabriel Egan <gabriel@dmu-english.freeserve.co.uk>
Date:           Saturday, 6 Nov 1999 18:01:53 -0000
Subject: 10.1902 Re: 20th Century Poetry
Comment:        Re: SHK 10.1902 Re: 20th Century Poetry

Syd Kasten writes

>I don't  remember Allen Ginsberg acknowledging debt to
>or offering homage to Shakespeare....

I must have missed the original thread, but Sam Schoenbaum himself is a
link. In an essay in KM80, a birthday gift to Kenneth Muir, Schoenbaum
recalls his New York adolescence in the company of Ginsberg and confirms
some of the incidents in "Howl", including the public food throwing.

Gabriel Egan

[3]-------------------------------------------------------------
From:           Heidi Webb Arnold <hswebb@midway.uchicago.edu>
Date:           Monday, 8 Nov 1999 11:45:01 -0600 (CST)
Subject: 10.1894 20th Century Poetry
Comment:        Re: SHK 10.1894 20th Century Poetry

This isn't a reference to Lear specifically, but Robert Lowell has a
poem in his book titled Lord Weary's Castle about a king and a peasant.
I think the poem is about 'contrition,' hence the peasant, but I wanted
to pass this reference along as there may be a tradition of poems by
contemporary poets on the topic of king and fool, as in Lear.  Hope this
tangential reference is useful.

-heidi


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