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Dubbed "a Columbus of new poetic continents" because of his search for a poetics as diverse as the universe itself, Velimir Khlebnikov is the creator of some of the most extraordinary poems in the Russian language. Sometimes surreal, sometimes esoteric, but always dazzlingly innovative, the 192 poems in this volume range broadly from the lyrical to the epic.
One of the founders of Russian Futurism, Khlebnikov spent his entire brief life searching for a new poetic language to express his convictions about the rhythm of history and the connection between the truth of a poet's language and the cosmic truth about the universe. His poetry is characterized by often radical experimentation with language and words, a forceful utopian vision, complex theories of time and history, and multiple poetic personae: from an infantry commander to a Carthaginian war hero, from Cleopatra's paramour to the letters of the alphabet. Completing the Collected Works of Velimir Khlebnikov, Selected Poems gives us insight into the imagination of a remarkable artist.
About the author
Schmidt Paul:
Paul Schmidt is the winner of the Max Hayward Prize for his translation of Velimir Khlebnikov, The King of Time: Selected Writings of the Russian Futurian (Harvard).Vroon Ronald:
Ronald Vroon is Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures at UCLA.
Report
He was surely one of the most remarkable practitioners in language who has ever written. He seems to inhabit the very heart of his language, exploring its roots, making it send up new and wondeful growths...What of those who approach him through translation? Can they come to see the importance and beauty of his work? This is the challenge taken up by Paul Schmidt...A fine achievement.At times, [Khlebnikov's] verse sounds like what birds presumably heard from Saint Francis. Under his pen, nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions undergo mutations as mind-boggling as those of a cell hit by immense radiation. Beautiful or grotesque, the results are often memorable...diamonds of an unparalleled splendor.
Khlebnikov was a poet ahead of his time. He is full of rock 'n' roll, fire, and cosmic fantasy that outdo any sci-fi feature. Paul Schmidt is even wilder and more tender than the poet he translates. Together they make you spin.
