Stanisław Barańczak (, November 13, 1946December 26, 2014) 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 (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

, literary critic, scholar, editor, translator and lecturer. He is perhaps most well known for his English-to- Polish translations of the dramas of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

and of the poetry of E.E. Cummings, Elizabeth Bishop, Emily Dickinson, Wystan Hugh Auden, Seamus Heaney, Thomas Hardy,

Gerard Manley Hopkins Gerard Manley Hopkins (28 July 1844 – 8 June 1889) was an English poet and Society of Jesus, Jesuit priest, whose posthumous fame places him among the leading English poets. His Prosody (linguistics), prosody – notably his concept of sprung ...

, Thomas Stearns Eliot, John Keats, Robert Frost, Edward Lear and others.

Personal life

Born in

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

, Poland on November 13, 1946, Barańczak was raised by his father Jan and mother Zofia, both doctors. He was the brother of the novelist Małgorzata Musierowicz. He studied

philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

at Poznań's Adam Mickiewicz University, where he obtained an M.A. and Ph.D. His doctoral dissertation concerned the poetic language of Miron Białoszewski. In 1968, he married Anna Brylka, with whom he had two children, Michael and Anna.

Career

Barańczak became a lecturer at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. He broke into print as a poet and critic in 1965. Barańczak was on the staff of the Poznań magazine ''Nurt'' from 1967 to 1971. After the political events of June 1976, he became a co-founder of the Workers' Defence Committee (KOR) and of the clandestine quarterly ''Zapis''. In 1981, the year Poland declared

martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

, he left the country and accepted a three-year contract to work as a lecturer at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. He stayed at Harvard for almost two decades, leaving in 1999 due to complications with

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

. He was a co-founder of the Paris ''Zeszyty Literackie'' (''Literary Textbooks'') in 1983, and a regular contributor to the periodical ''Teksty Drugie''. He also served as editor of '' The Polish Review'' from 1986 to 1990. Barańczak was a prominent representative of the Polish ''New Wave'' and is generally regarded as one of the greatest translators of English poetry into Polish and Polish poetry into English. He received the PEN Translation Prize with Clare Cavanagh in 1996. His book, ''Surgical Precision'' (''Chirurgiczna precyzja''), won the 1999 Nike Award - Poland's top literary prize. The language he employed in his works is highly evocative of the poetry of Emily Dickinson,

John Donne John Donne ( ; 1571 or 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under Royal Patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's, D ...

and Robert Frost, with whom he felt strongest connection and whose literary legacy he helped popularize in Poland. Barańczak's own poetry deals with three major themes: the

ethical Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied e ...

, the

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

, and the

literary Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, plays, and poems. It includes both print and digital writing. In recent centuries, ...

. His language can be characterized as outstandingly fluent and flexible and the subject-matter of his poems seems to confirm his commitment to social issues. He started his literary career as "a poetic critic of language and the

social order The term social order can be used in two senses: In the first sense, it refers to a particular system of social structures and institutions. Examples are the ancient, the feudal, and the capitalist social order. In the second sense, social orde ...

" but his greatest achievements came from his works as a late-20th-century Parnassist, a master of poetic form. Barańczak introduced the concept of semantic dominant (Polish: ''dominanta semantyczna'') in translations of poetry. The semantic dominant is a "key to the content" of the poem. It is a semantic or formal element that is most crucial and irreplaceable. It can take the form of rhyme, versification, syntax, or the other stylistic elements that prevail. The translator's task is to find the dominant feature of a given work and make it the most important translation element. This approach to poetry translations is based on heuristic model, which Barańczak described in his essay entitled: ''Mały, lecz maksymalistyczny manifest translatologiczny'' (''Small but Maximalistic Translatological Manifest''), included in his book: Saved in Translation: ''Sketches on the Craft of Translating Poetry''. Some of his poems were set to music by Jan Krzysztof Kelus.

Death

Stanisław Barańczak died at the age of 68 after "a long debilitating disease" in Newtonville, Massachusetts on December 26, 2014. He was buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery.

Bibliography

Each year below links to its corresponding " earin poetry" article: Poetry: * 1968, ''Korekta twarzy'' ("Facial Corrections"), Poznan: Wydawnictwo Poznanskie * 1968, ''Dziennik poranny'' ("Morning Journal"), Poznan: Wydawnictwo Poznanskie * 1970, ''Jednym tchem'' ("Without Stopping for Breath"), Warsaw: Orientacja * 1977, ''Ja wiem, że to niesłuszne'' ("I Know It's Not Right"), Paris: Instytut Literacki *

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

, ''Sztuczne oddychanie'' ("Artificial Respiration"), London: Aneks - English edition: ''Artificial Respiration'' (translated Chris Zielinski), ''Poetry World'' 2, March 1989. *

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, ''Tryptyk z betonu, zmęczenia i śniegu'' ("Triptych with Concrete, Fatigue and Snow"), Kraków: KOS * 1986, ''Atlantyda i inne wiersze z lat 1981-85'' ("Atlantis and Other Poems"), London: Puls * 1988, ''Widokówka z tego świata'' ("A Postcard from the Other World"), Paris: Zeszyty Literackie * 1990, ''159 wierszy 1968-88'' ("159 Poems"), Kraków: Znak *

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

, ''Podróż zimowa'' ("Journey in Winter"), Poznan: a5 * 1997, ''Zimy i podroże'' ("Winter and Journeys"), Kraków: WL * 1998, ''Chirurgiczna precyzja'' ("Surgical Precision"), Kraków: a5 * 2006, ''Wiersze zebrane'', Kraków: a5, 2006 Light verse: * 1991, ''Biografioly: poczet 56 jednostek sławnych, sławetnych i osławionych'' ("Biographies of 56 Celebrated, Famous or Notorious Individuals"), Poznan: a5 * 1991, ''Zwierzęca zajadłość: z zapisków zniechęconego zoologa'' ("Animal Ferocity: From the Notes of a Discouraged Zoologist"), Poznan: a5 * 1995, ''Słoń, trąba i ojczyzna'' ("The Elephant, the Trunk, and the Polish Question"), Kraków: Znak *''Pegaz zdębiał. Poezja nonsensu a życie codzienne: Wprowadzenie w prywatną teorię gatunków'' (''Pegasus fell dumb. Nonsense poetry and everyday life: introduction to a private theory of genres''), Puls, London 1995. Literary criticism: *

1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

, ''Ironia i harmonia'' ("Irony and Harmony"), Warsaw: Czytelnik * 1974, ''Język poetycki Mirona Białoszewskiego'' ("Miron Bialoszewski's Poetic Language"),

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

: Ossolineum *

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

, ''Etyka i poetyka'' ("Ethics and Poetics"), Paris: Instytut Literacki * 1981, ''Książki najgorsze 1975-1980'' ("The Worst Books"), Kraków: KOS * 1984, ''Uciekinier z utopii. O poezji Zbigniewa Herberta'' ("Fugitive from Utopia: On the Poetry of Zbigniew Herbert"), London: Polonia * 1990, ''Tablica z Macondo. Osiemnaście prób wytłumaczenia, po co i dlaczego się pisze'' ("A License Plate from Macondo: Eighteen Attempts at Explaining Why One Writes"), London: Aneks *

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

, ''Ocalone w tłumaczeniu. Szkice o warsztacie tłumaczenia poezji'' ("Saved in Translation: Sketches on the Craft of Translating Poetry"), Poznan: a5 * 1996, ''Poezja i duch uogólnienia. Wybór esejów 1970-1995'' ("Poetry and the Spirit of Generalization: Selected Essays"), Kraków: Znak Translations into Polish: * E.E. Cummings ** ''150 wierszy'' (1983) *

** ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' (1990) ** '' Romeo i Julia'' (1990) ** '' Jak wam się podoba'' (1990) ** '' Król Lear'' (1991) ** '' Burza'' (1991) ** '' Kupiec wenecki'' (1991) ** '' Sen nocy letniej'' (1991) ** '' Zimowa opowieść'' (1991) ** '' Makbet'' (1992) ** '' Dwaj panowie z Werony'' (1992) ** '' Poskromienie złośnicy'' (1992) ** ''

Otello ''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on William Shakespeare, Shakespeare's play ''Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the La Scala, Teatro alla Scala, M ...

'' (1993) ** '' Juliusz Cezar'' (1993) ** '' Komedia omyłek'' (1994) ** '' Stracone zachody miłości'' (1994) ** '' Wieczór Trzech Króli'' (1994) ** '' Wiele hałasu o nic'' (1994) ** '' Koriolan'' (1995) ** '' Król Ryszard III'' (1996) ** '' Tymon Ateńczyk'' (1996) ** '' Wesołe kumoszki z Windsoru'' (1998) ** '' Król Henryk IV część 1'' (1998) ** '' Król Henryk IV część 2'' (1998) ** '' Król Henryk V'' (1999) ** '' Wszystko dobre, co się dobrze kończy'' (2001) * Elizabeth Bishop, ''33 wiersze'' (1995) * Emily Dickinson ** ''100 wierszy'' ** ''Drugie 100 wierszy'' (1995) * Wystan Hugh Auden, ** ''44 wiersze'' (1994) ** ''Morze i zwierciadło. Komentarz do "Burzy" Szekspira'' (published by Wydawnictwo a5, Kraków 2003) * Seamus Heaney, ** ''44 wiersze'' (1994) ** ''Ciągnąc dalej. Nowe wiersze 1991-1996'' (1996) ** ''Światło elektryczne'' (published by Wydawnictwo Znak, Kraków 2003) * Thomas Hardy, ''55 wierszy'' (1993) *

, ''33 wiersze''. * Ursula K. Le Guin, '' Czarnoksiężnik z Archipelagu'' (published by Wydawnictwo Literackie 1983) * Thomas Stearns Eliot, ''Koty'' (1995) * Iosif Brodski ( Joseph Brodsky), ''Znak Wodny'' (1993) * Charles Simic, ''Madonny z dorysowaną szpicbródką oraz inne wiersze, prozy poetyckie i eseje'' (1992) *

Thomas Campion Thomas Campion (sometimes spelled Campian; 12 February 1567 – 1 March 1620) was an English composer, poet, and physician. He was born in London, educated at Cambridge, and studied law in Gray's Inn. He wrote over a hundred lute songs, masque ...

, ''33 pieśni'' (1995) * Andrew Marvell, ''24 wiersze'' (1993) * John Keats, ''33 wiersze'' (1997) * Robert Herrick, ''77 wierszy'' (1992) * Robert Frost, ''55 wierszy'' (1992) *

George Herbert George Herbert (3 April 1593 – 1 March 1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognised as "one of the foremost British devotio ...

, ''66 wierszy'' (1997) * Edward Lear, ''44 opowiastki'' (1998) * Philip Larkin, ''44 wiersze'' (1991) *

, ''77 wierszy'' (1997) * Paul Celan, ''Utwory wybrane'' (1998) * Vladimir Bukowsky ( Vladimir Bukovsky), ''I powraca wiatr ...'' (1999) * Alexandr Galytch ( Alexander Galich), ''Pytajcie, synkowie. Wiersze i piosenki'' (1995) * James Merrill, ''Wybór poezji'' (1990) * Natalia Gorbaniewska ( Natalya Gorbanevskaya), ''Drewniany anioł. Wiersze'' * Edward Lear,

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...

, W. S. Gilbert, A. E. Housman, Hilaire Belloc, ''44 opowiastki wierszem'' (published by Wydawnictwo Znak 1998) * Henry Vaughan, ''33 wiersze'' (published by Wydawnictwo Znak 2000) * ''Z Tobą więc ze Wszystkim: 222 arcydzieła angielskiej i amerykańskiej liryki religijnej'' (published by Wydawnictwo Znak 1992) * ''Ocalone w tłumaczeniu: szkice o warsztacie tłumacza poezji z dodatkiem małej antologii przekładów-problemów'' (published by Wydawnictwo a5 Kraków 2004) * ''Fioletowa krowa: antologia angielskiej i amerykańskiej poezji niepoważnej'' (published by Wydawnictwo a5 Kraków 2007) * Ogden Nash, ''W świecie mułów nie ma regułów'' (published by Media Rodzina 2007) * Peter Barnes, ''Czerwone nosy'' (published in ''Dialog'', 1993, number 1-2, p. 35-101) * ''Antologia angielskiej poezji metafizycznej XVII stulecia'' (published by PIW 1991) Translations into English (anthologies): ** 1989: ''The Weight of the Body: Selected Poems'', Chicago: Another Chicago Press/TriQuarterly **

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

: ''A Fugitive From Utopia: The Poetry of Zbigniew Herbert'', Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press ** 1995: Jan Kochanowski, ''

Laments A lament or lamentation is a passionate expression of grief, often in music, poetry, or song form. The grief is most often born of regret, or mourning. Laments can also be expressed in a verbal manner in which participants lament about someth ...

'' (with Seamus Heaney) Translations into German (anthologies): ** 1997: ''Panorama der Polnischen literatur des 20 Jahrhunderts'', Zürich: Ammann ** 1997: ''Polnische Lyrik Aus 100 Jahren'', Gifkendorf: Merlin

References

External links

Barańczak's profile at the Harvard University Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baranczak, Stanislaw 1946 births 2014 deaths 20th-century Polish poets 20th-century Polish translators Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Harvard University faculty Members of the Workers' Defence Committee Nike Award winners Academic staff of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań Polish–English translators Polish dissidents Polish emigrants to the United States Solidarity (Polish trade union) activists The New Yorker people Polish translation scholars English–Polish translators Writers from Poznań The Polish Review editors