Adam Zagajewski (21 June 1945 – 21 March 2021) was a Polish
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
,
novelist
A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...
,
translator
Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
, and
essayist
An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...
. He was awarded the 2004
Neustadt International Prize for Literature
The Neustadt International Prize for Literature is a biennial award for literature sponsored by the University of Oklahoma and its international literary publication, ''World Literature Today''. It is considered one of the more prestigious inte ...
, the 2016
Griffin Poetry Prize
The Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin.
Before 2022, the awards went to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language. ...
Lifetime Recognition Award, the 2017
Princess of Asturias Award
The Princess of Asturias Awards ( es, Premios Princesa de Asturias, links=no, ast, Premios Princesa d'Asturies, links=no), formerly the Prince of Asturias Awards from 1981 to 2014 ( es, Premios Príncipe de Asturias, links=no), are a series of a ...
for Literature and the 2018 Golden Wreath of Poetry at the
Struga Poetry Evenings
Struga Poetry Evenings (SPE) ( mk, Струшки вечери на поезијата, СВП; tr. ''Struški večeri na poezijata'', ''SVP'') is an international poetry festival held annually in Struga, North Macedonia. During the several dec ...
. He was considered a leading poet of the Generation of '68, or Polish New Wave (Polish: ''Nowa fala''), and one of Poland's most prominent
contemporary poets.
Biography
Adam Zagajewski was born in 1945 in
Lwów
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...
(now Lviv, Ukraine). His father was
Tadeusz Zagajewski and his mother was Ludwika Zagajewska, ''née'' Turska. The Zagajewski family was
expelled from Lwów to central Poland the same year as part of Soviet post-World War II policy. They moved to the city of
Gliwice
Gliwice (; german: Gleiwitz) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. The city is located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Kłodnica river (a tributary of the Oder). It lies approximately 25 km west from Katowice, the regional cap ...
where he graduated from Andrzej Strug V High School (''V Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. Andrzeja Struga''). Subsequently, he studied
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...
and
philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
at the
Jagiellonian University
The Jagiellonian University (Polish: ''Uniwersytet Jagielloński'', UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and the 13th oldest university in ...
in
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
. He later taught philosophy at the
AGH University of Science and Technology
AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, (abbreviated as ''AGH UST'') is a public university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1913, its inauguration took place in 1919. The university focuses on innovation, innovative technologies, its ...
. In 1967, he made his poetic debut with ''Music'', a poem published in ''Życie Literackie'' magazine. He published his works as well as reviews in such magazines as ''Odra'' (1969–1976) and ''Twórczość'' (1969, 1971–1973).
During this time, he became involved in the ''New Wave'' (''Nowa fala'') literary movement also known as the Generation of '68'. The aim of the group was "standing up against the falsifications of reality and the appropriation of language by communist ideology and propaganda". After signing the
Letter of 59 The Letter of 59 (also known as the ''Memorial'' or ''Memorandum of 59'') was an open letter signed by 66 (or 59 at first, hence the name) Polish intellectuals who protested against the changes of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Poland ...
his works were banned by
communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
authorities in Poland. In 1978, he was one of the founders and first lecturers of the Scientific Training Association. In 1982, he emigrated to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, but in 2002 he returned to Poland together with his wife Maja Wodecka, and resided in
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
. He was a member of the
Polish Writers' Association
The Polish Writers Association (Polish: ''Stowarzyszenie Pisarzy Polskich'') is an organization of Polish writers, poets, playwrights, critics and translators. SPP, established in 1989 is a continuation of the Professional Union of Polish Writer ...
.
His literary works have received international recognition and have been translated into many languages.
[ Joachim T. Baer, a reviewer from '']World Literature Today
''World Literature Today'' is an American magazine of international literature and culture, published at the University of Oklahoma. The stated goal of the magazine is to publish international essays, poetry, fiction, interviews, and book review ...
'' pointed out that the recurring themes in Zagajewski's poetry include "the night, dreams, history and time, infinity and eternity, silence and death." Colm Tóibín
Colm Tóibín (, approximately ; born 30 May 1955) is an Irish novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist, critic, playwright and poet.
His first novel, '' The South'', was published in 1990. '' The Blackwater Lightship'' was shortlis ...
notes that in his best poems "he has succeeded in making the space of the imagination connect with experience; things seen and heard and remembered in all their limits and sorrow and relished joy have the same power for him as things conjured." American poet Robert Pinsky
Robert Pinsky (born October 20, 1940) is an American poet, essayist, literary critic, and translator. From 1997 to 2000, he served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. Pinsky is the author of nineteen books, most of ...
observes that Zagajewski's poems are "about the presence of the past in ordinary life: history not as a chronicle of the dead … but as an immense, sometimes subtle force inhering in what people see and feel every day – and in the ways we see and feel". His poem ''"Try To Praise The Mutilated World"'' became famous when it was printed in ''The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' shortly after the September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
.
Zagajewski used to teach poetry workshops as a visiting lecturer at the School of Literature and Arts at the Jagiellonian University
The Jagiellonian University (Polish: ''Uniwersytet Jagielloński'', UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and the 13th oldest university in ...
in Kraków as well as a creative writing
Creative writing is any writing that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on narrative craft, character development, and the use of literary ...
course at the University of Houston
The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...
in the United States. He was a faculty member at the University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
and a member of its Committee on Social Thought
The John U. Nef Committee on Social Thought is one of several PhD-granting committees at the University of Chicago. It was started in 1941 by historian John Ulric Nef along with economist Frank Knight, anthropologist Robert Redfield, and Univers ...
. He taught two classes, one of which is on fellow Polish poet Czeslaw Milosz. Commenting on the occasion of his death, Olga Tokarczuk
Olga Nawoja Tokarczuk (; born 29 January 1962) is a Polish writer, activist, and public intellectual. She is one of the most critically acclaimed and successful authors of her generation in Poland; in 2019, she was awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize ...
remarked that he was an appreciated teacher of poetry.[
Zagajewski died on 21 March 2021 at the age of 75 in Krakow.]
Awards
He was awarded the Bronze Cross of Merit, and twice received the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta
The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on al ...
. In 1992, he received a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...
. He won the 2004 Neustadt International Prize for Literature
The Neustadt International Prize for Literature is a biennial award for literature sponsored by the University of Oklahoma and its international literary publication, ''World Literature Today''. It is considered one of the more prestigious inte ...
, considered a forerunner to the Nobel Prize in Literature, and is the second Polish writer to be awarded, after Czeslaw Milosz.
In 2015 he received the Heinrich Mann Prize
The Heinrich Mann Prize () is an essay prize that has been awarded since 1953, first by the East German Academy of Arts, then by the Academy of Arts, Berlin. The prize, which comes with a €10,000 purse, is given annually on 27 March, Heinrich Ma ...
. In May 2016 he was awarded the Dr. Leopold Lucas Prize of the University of Tübingen
The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Wü ...
. In the same year he received the Order of Legion d'Honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...
and the (award of the Hungarian PEN Club) as well. In 2017 he was awarded The Princess of Asturias Award, "one of the most important awards in the Spanish-speaking world." In 2018 his collection of essays, ''Poezja dla początkujących'' (''Poetry for Beginners''), was nominated for the Nike Award
The Nike Literary Award ( pl, Nagroda Literacka „Nike") is a literary prize awarded each year for the best book of a single living author writing in Polish and published the previous year. It is widely considered the most important award for ...
, Poland's top literary honor. In 2019, Zagajewski was awarded Pour le Mérite for Sciences and Arts
Pour may refer to these people:
* Kour Pour (born 1987), British artist of part-Iranian descent
* Mehdi Niyayesh Pour (born 1992), Iranian footballer
* Mojtaba Mobini Pour (born 1991), Iranian footballer
* Pouya Jalili Pour (born 1976), Iranian si ...
. In his lifetime, he was frequently mentioned as a potential Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
laureate.[
]
Bibliography
Collections
Poetry
*''Komunikat''. Kraków, 1972.
*''Sklepy mięsne''. Kraków, 1975.
*''List. Oda do wielkości''. Paris, 1983.
*''Jechać do Lwowa''. London, 1985.
*''Plótno''. Paris, 1990.
*''Ziemia ognista''. Poznan, 1994.
*''Trzej aniołowie / Three Angels''. Kraków, 1998 (bilingual edition of selected poems).
*''Pragnienie''. Kraków, 1999.
*''Powrót''. Kraków, 2003.
*''Anteny''. Kraków, 2005.
*'' Unseen Hand'' (''Niewidzialna reka''). Kraków, 2009.
*''Wiersze wybrane''. Kraków, 2010.
*''Asymetria''. Kraków, 2014.
*''Lotnisko w Amsterdamie / Airport in Amsterdam''. Kraków, 2016 (bilingual edition of selected poems).
*''Prawdziwe życie''. Kraków, 2019.
Prose
*''Ciepło, zimno''. Warszawa, 1975.
*''Słuch absolutny''. Kraków, 1979.
*''Cienka kreska''. Kraków, 1983.
Essays
*''Świat nieprzedstawiony''. Kraków, 1974.
*''Drugi oddech''. Kraków, 1978.
*''Solidarność i samotność''. "Zeszyty literackie", 1986.
*''Dwa miasta''. Paryż-Kraków, 1991.
*'' Another Beauty'' (''W cudzym pięknie''). Poznań, 1998.
*''Obrona żarliwosci''. Kraków, 2002.
*''Poeta rozmawia z filozofem''. Warszawa, 2007.
*''Lekka przesada''. Kraków, 2011.
*''Poezja dla początkujących''. Warszawa, 2017.
*''Substancja nieuporządkowana''. Kraków, 2019.
Books in English translation
Poetry
*''Tremor'' Translator Renata Gorczynski, Collins Harvill, 1987
*''Canvas'' Translators Renata Gorczynski, Benjamin Ivry, C. K. Williams, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1994,
*
*
*''Selected Poems'', Translator Clare Cavanagh, Faber & Faber, 2004,
*
*''Unseen Hand: Poems'' (2011)
*
Asymmetry: Poems
'. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 20 November 2018. .
Essays
*''Solidarity, Solitude'', Ecco Press, 1990,
*
*
*
*
Slight Exaggeration: An Essay
'' Trans. Clare Cavanagh. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 4 April 2017. .
Edited
*''Polish Writers on Writing'' (Trinity University Press
Trinity University Press is a university press affiliated with Trinity University, which is located in San Antonio, Texas. Trinity University Press was officially founded in 1967 after the university acquired the Illinois-based Principia Press. T ...
, 2007)
Critical studies and reviews
*
*
*
*
*.
*
See also
* List of Polish poets
*Polish literature
Polish literature is the literary tradition of Poland. Most Polish literature has been written in the Polish language, though other languages used in Poland over the centuries have also contributed to Polish literary traditions, including Latin, ...
References
External links
Profile and poems by Adam Zagajewski at PoetryFoundation.org
at ''Samizdat
Samizdat (russian: самиздат, lit=self-publishing, links=no) was a form of dissident activity across the Eastern Bloc in which individuals reproduced censored and underground makeshift publications, often by hand, and passed the document ...
''
Profile and poems by Adam Zagjewski at Poets.org
Adam Zagajewski
at culture.pl
Kannada translations of 5 Adam Zagajewski poems by S. Jayasrinivasa Rao at https://avadhimag.in
Profile at Poetry International
Interview with Adam Zagagjewski
in '' Barcelona Metropolis Magazine'', Autumn, 2009
Recorded at the Lensic Theater in Santa Fe, New Mexico on 1 May 2002.
(Audio, 70 mins)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zagajewski, Adam
1945 births
2021 deaths
20th-century essayists
20th-century Polish male writers
20th-century Polish novelists
20th-century Polish poets
21st-century essayists
21st-century Polish male writers
21st-century Polish novelists
21st-century Polish poets
Artist authors
Heinrich Mann Prize winners
Male essayists
The New Yorker people
Officers of the Order of Polonia Restituta
Polish essayists
Polish male novelists
Polish male poets
Polish translators
Recipients of the Bronze Cross of Merit (Poland)
Recipients of the Legion of Honour
Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class)
Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath laureates
University of Chicago faculty
University of Houston faculty
Writers from Lviv
People associated with the magazine "Kultura"