Zbigniew Herbert
Polish writer and poet (1924–1998)
Zbigniew Herbert (29 October 1924 – 28 July 1998) was a Polish poet, playwright and essayist.
Quotes
edit- And if the City falls and one survives
he shall carry the City within on the roads of exile
he shall be the City- Report from the Besieged City.
- Jeśli tematem sztuki
będzie dzbanek rozbity
mała rozbita dusza
z wielkim żalem nad sobą
to co po nas zostanie
będzie jak płacz kochanków
w małym brudnym hotelu
kiedy świtają tapety- if the subject of art
will be a broken jug
a small broken soul
with a great self-pity
what will remain of us
will be like tears of lovers
in a small dirty hotel
when wallpapers dawn - Why the Classics.
- if the subject of art
- Go where the others have gone, to the tenebrous limit
for the golden fleece of void, your ultimate prize
go upright among those who are on their knees
among those turning their backs on and those fallen to dust.- Message of Mr. Cogito.
- And do not forgive indeed it is beyond your power
to forgive in the name of those betrayed at dawn- Message of Mr. Cogito.
- You survived not to live on
your time is short, you have to give a proof of truth- Message of Mr. Cogito.
- Go for it is the only way to be accepted to the circle of cold skulls
the circle of your forefathers: Gilgamesh Hector Roland
defenders of the kingdom of no frontiers and of the city of ashes
Be faithful Go- Message of Mr. Cogito.
- I turn to history not for lessons but to confront my experience with the experience of others and to win for myself a sense of responsibility for the state of the human conscience.
- Quoted by Michael Hamburger, in his book, The Truth of Poetry.
About Zbigniew Herbert
edit- His poems, even in English, seem to me finer than anything currently being written by any English or American poet.
