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Love Poems
This expansive volume presents a selection of Erich Fried's previously unpublished poems in English. Fried's poetry holds some of the most tender lines of poetry in any language. The universal theme of humanity and the various issues that perplex the human race are all presented in these works. A stoic who could find humor and an optimistic message in every aspect of human life, Fried's depth of vision and humility is both refreshing and consoling.
336 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1979
21 people are currently reading
239 people want to read
About the author
Erich Fried
162 books61 followersErich Fried was an Austrian-born poet, writer and translator of Jewish descent. He initially became known to a broader public in both Germany and Austria for his political poetry, and later for his love poems. As a writer he mostly wrote plays and short novels. He also translated works by different English writers from English into German, most notably works by William Shakespeare.
He was born in Vienna, Austria but fled to England after the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany in 1938. He settled in London and adopted British Nationality in 1949. His first official visit back to Vienna was in 1962.
During the war, he did casual work as a librarian and a factory hand. He arranged also for his mother to leave Nazi occupied Austria, as well as helping many other Jews to come to the UK. He joined Young Austria, a left-wing emigrant youth movement, but left in 1943 in protest at its growing Stalinist tendencies.
From 1952 to 1968 he worked as a political commentator for the BBC German Service. He translated works by Shakespeare, T. S. Eliot and Dylan Thomas, and Sylvia Plath.
He published several volumes of poetry as well as radio plays and a novel. His work was sometimes controversial, including attacks on the Zionist movement and support for left-wing causes. His work was mainly published in the West, but in 1969, a selection of his poetry was published in the GDR poetry series Poesiealbum, and his Dylan Thomas translations were published in that same series in 1974. The composer Hans Werner Henze set two of Fried's poems for his song-cycle Voices (1973).
In 1982 he regained his Austrian nationality, though he also retained the British nationality he had adopted in 1949. He died of intestinal cancer in Baden-Baden, West Germany, in 1988 and is buried in Kensal Green cemetery, London.
An Austrian literary prize is named after him - the Erich Fried Prize.
Source: wikipedia.com
He was born in Vienna, Austria but fled to England after the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany in 1938. He settled in London and adopted British Nationality in 1949. His first official visit back to Vienna was in 1962.
During the war, he did casual work as a librarian and a factory hand. He arranged also for his mother to leave Nazi occupied Austria, as well as helping many other Jews to come to the UK. He joined Young Austria, a left-wing emigrant youth movement, but left in 1943 in protest at its growing Stalinist tendencies.
From 1952 to 1968 he worked as a political commentator for the BBC German Service. He translated works by Shakespeare, T. S. Eliot and Dylan Thomas, and Sylvia Plath.
He published several volumes of poetry as well as radio plays and a novel. His work was sometimes controversial, including attacks on the Zionist movement and support for left-wing causes. His work was mainly published in the West, but in 1969, a selection of his poetry was published in the GDR poetry series Poesiealbum, and his Dylan Thomas translations were published in that same series in 1974. The composer Hans Werner Henze set two of Fried's poems for his song-cycle Voices (1973).
In 1982 he regained his Austrian nationality, though he also retained the British nationality he had adopted in 1949. He died of intestinal cancer in Baden-Baden, West Germany, in 1988 and is buried in Kensal Green cemetery, London.
An Austrian literary prize is named after him - the Erich Fried Prize.
Source: wikipedia.com
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
October 17, 2020
Die politischen Gedichte von Erich Fried gefallen mir grundsätzlich besser, als seine Liebesgedichte. Dennoch sind auch in diesem Band einige schöne Texte zu finden, die zwischen 1974 und 1979 entstanden sind. Mein Favorit aus dieser Sammlung:
Freiheit ist unteilbar
Wenn ich einen Teil der Freiheit preisgebe,
schlage ich eine Bresche für die Unfreiheit.
Wenn ich einen Teil meiner Freiheit preisgebe,
gebe ich meine ganze Freiheit preis.
Wenn ich einen Teil meiner Freiheit preisgebe
um nicht meine ganze Freiheit preisgeben zu müssen,
gebe ich meine ganze Freiheit preis.
Freiheit ist unteilbar.
Wenn ich um meines Friedens willen
auf einen Teil meiner Freiheit verzichte,
verrate ich meinen Frieden und meine Freiheit.
Wenn ich um meines Denkens willen
auf einen Teil meiner Freiheit verzichte,
verrate ich mein Denken und meine Freiheit.
Wenn ich um meiner Liebe willen
auf einen Teil meiner Freiheit verzichte,
verrate ich meine Liebe und meine Freiheit.
Wenn ich um der Freiheit willen
auf einen Teil meiner Freiheit verzichte,
verrate ich meinen Willen und meine Freiheit.
Wenn ich um der Freiheit der anderen willen
auf meine Freiheit verzichte,
verrate ich mich und die anderen und die Freiheit.
Freiheit ist unteilbar.
Wenn ich um der Freiheit willen einen Teil der Freiheit aufschiebe,
verrate ich für immer die Freiheit.
Freiheit ist unaufschiebbar.
Wenn ich um der Freiheit willen Machtpolitik betreibe,
verrate ich mich selber und die Freiheit.
Freiheit kann nicht an die Macht kommen
ohne Unfreiheit zu werden und zu erzeugen,
aber sie kann gegen Macht kämpfen indem sie Freiheit ist,
und sie kann vielleicht Macht abschaffen.
Wenn ich die Freiheit einem Sinn unterordne,
verrate ich die Freiheit.
Es gibt keine unsinnige und keine sinnlose Freiheit.
Freiheit ist Freiheit für mich und für dich
und für ihn und für sie und für es
und für uns und für euch und für sie.
Freiheit ist unteilbar.
Freiheit, die nicht auch deine Freiheit ist, ist keine Freiheit.
February 25, 2024
Was ist für mich ein Liebesgedicht? Erich Fried brachte mich dazu darüber nachzudenken.
Denn, nein, die Liebesgedichte, die meine wunderschöne Ausgabe der Büchergilde (auberginenfarbener, crushed Kunstseide- Einband), aus drei Bänden der Werksausgabe zusammengestellt hat, sind nichts für mich.
Fried ist ein Nachkriegs-Lyrikgigant und auch hier ein stilistischer, wortgewandter Meister.
Doch bis auf wenige Texte in den letzten beiden Kapiteln "Treue" und "Was es ist" sprachen mich die Gedichte nicht an. Die Beschreibung des Intimen hat bei mir nahezu ein Gefühl des unangenehmen Voyeurismus hervorgerufen.
Drei Punkte, um nicht total subjektiv zu bleiben.
Denn, nein, die Liebesgedichte, die meine wunderschöne Ausgabe der Büchergilde (auberginenfarbener, crushed Kunstseide- Einband), aus drei Bänden der Werksausgabe zusammengestellt hat, sind nichts für mich.
Fried ist ein Nachkriegs-Lyrikgigant und auch hier ein stilistischer, wortgewandter Meister.
Doch bis auf wenige Texte in den letzten beiden Kapiteln "Treue" und "Was es ist" sprachen mich die Gedichte nicht an. Die Beschreibung des Intimen hat bei mir nahezu ein Gefühl des unangenehmen Voyeurismus hervorgerufen.
Drei Punkte, um nicht total subjektiv zu bleiben.
April 27, 2019
4,25
Schön und herzzerbrechend.
Schön und herzzerbrechend.
February 21, 2016
Fried's poetry is the work of a writer who revels and finds joy in the interplay and ambiguity of words. He stretches and breaks down language to reveal the full scope of its meaning, turning words inside-out, playing with structure, grammar and word order to create effect, rhythm and a hypnotic, mantra-like ambiance. His poems, in this collection love poems, although that title is a little too general to grasp the spectrum of tones on display, come close to their relative, songs, and really contain their own music. Fried is a master craftsman, meticulous and thoughtful without seemingly to lose any of the inherent spontaneity of poetry and song.
Reading in a second language, it is difficult and frustrating to not understand the little intricacies of Fried's word games, yet at times he seems playfully simple. He is an enjoyably open writer, emotions laid bare, and in romantic poetry it has the effect of sounding jubilant and joyful, even if the topics and situations are not always so. Fried is a serious poet who understands the beauty and the sadness of love, but at times he is so willfully heat-on-sleeve as to seem naive and innocent. That is not the case; after reading this collection it is clear that Fried understands many of love's endless faces, embraces them and celebrates them.
His techniques are simple - repetition is the key, often repetition with minute changes, slowly metamorphosing poems that reveal their meaning slowly as the words unfold and overlap on the page. His poems are often mirrored and reflected, inverted and reverted, verses echoing each other with subtle changes. 'Dich' is a perfect example of this method, a gorgeous revelation of the adoration love can bring. He also uses lists and questions to create similar effects. 'Ungewiss' is a true mirror; an opening verse that sets the scene and a second verse that throws all that on its head and jumps out at the end with a question. 'Wo immer geloescht wirt' is a simple list that begs you to dig for meaning and again hits the reader at the end with a question that seems to encapsulate the entire poem and throw it into doubt. Fried is always asking questions - 'Achtundzwanzig Fragen' is constructed of questions with two balancing perspectives in each verse (How can you be happy?/How can I see you happy?) that reflects well the two sides of love, the one you does and the one who is loved.
One of the best poems, which seems to capture Fried's style very well, is the beautifully simplistic 'Ohne Dich' (Without You), a poem of hope in the face of loss, of the vestiges of love that remain when it is taken away. Using the same repetitions and inversions, Fried has the ability to swing a poem in another direction at the last minute, of twisting the ending like a mystery novel, of pulling a surprise out of the hat. Reading in German their are certainly poems that are incredibly difficult to grasp ('Liebe bekennen' - a good example of Fried's manipulation of a single word throughout a poem to create and develop meaning) but his celebratory, playful style comes through even without fully understanding all the ins and outs of the German itself. A masterful poet who can turn joy on its head in a single word to reveal all of love's melancholy, and in the next poem do exactly the opposite to uncover all the hope love can bring.
Reading in a second language, it is difficult and frustrating to not understand the little intricacies of Fried's word games, yet at times he seems playfully simple. He is an enjoyably open writer, emotions laid bare, and in romantic poetry it has the effect of sounding jubilant and joyful, even if the topics and situations are not always so. Fried is a serious poet who understands the beauty and the sadness of love, but at times he is so willfully heat-on-sleeve as to seem naive and innocent. That is not the case; after reading this collection it is clear that Fried understands many of love's endless faces, embraces them and celebrates them.
His techniques are simple - repetition is the key, often repetition with minute changes, slowly metamorphosing poems that reveal their meaning slowly as the words unfold and overlap on the page. His poems are often mirrored and reflected, inverted and reverted, verses echoing each other with subtle changes. 'Dich' is a perfect example of this method, a gorgeous revelation of the adoration love can bring. He also uses lists and questions to create similar effects. 'Ungewiss' is a true mirror; an opening verse that sets the scene and a second verse that throws all that on its head and jumps out at the end with a question. 'Wo immer geloescht wirt' is a simple list that begs you to dig for meaning and again hits the reader at the end with a question that seems to encapsulate the entire poem and throw it into doubt. Fried is always asking questions - 'Achtundzwanzig Fragen' is constructed of questions with two balancing perspectives in each verse (How can you be happy?/How can I see you happy?) that reflects well the two sides of love, the one you does and the one who is loved.
One of the best poems, which seems to capture Fried's style very well, is the beautifully simplistic 'Ohne Dich' (Without You), a poem of hope in the face of loss, of the vestiges of love that remain when it is taken away. Using the same repetitions and inversions, Fried has the ability to swing a poem in another direction at the last minute, of twisting the ending like a mystery novel, of pulling a surprise out of the hat. Reading in German their are certainly poems that are incredibly difficult to grasp ('Liebe bekennen' - a good example of Fried's manipulation of a single word throughout a poem to create and develop meaning) but his celebratory, playful style comes through even without fully understanding all the ins and outs of the German itself. A masterful poet who can turn joy on its head in a single word to reveal all of love's melancholy, and in the next poem do exactly the opposite to uncover all the hope love can bring.
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July 21, 2013My Father read one of his own translations of one of these poems at our wedding. It is what it is says love.... I have grown very attached to it over the years.
April 27, 2022
Erwartung
Deine ferne Stimme
ganz nahe am Telefon--
und ich werde sie bald aus der Nähe
entfernter hören
weil sie dann von deinem Mund
bis zu meinen Ohren
den langen Weg nehmen muß
hindurch zwischen deinen Brüsten
Über den Nabel hin
und den kleinen Hügel
deinen ganzen Körper entlang
an dem du hinabsiehst
bis hinunter zu meinem Kopf
dessen Gesicht
vergraben ist zwischen deine gehobenen Schenkel
in deine Haare
und in deinen Schoß
Bereitsein war alles
Um mich vorzubereiten
auf die Belagerer
lernte ich
mein Herz immer kürzer halten
Das dauerte lange
Jetzt nach Jahren der Übung
versagt mein Herz
und ich sehe im Sterben das Land
als hätte nur ich
mich belagert
von innen
und hätte gesiegt:
Alles leer
Weit und breit
keine Sturmleitern
keine Feinde
Deine ferne Stimme
ganz nahe am Telefon--
und ich werde sie bald aus der Nähe
entfernter hören
weil sie dann von deinem Mund
bis zu meinen Ohren
den langen Weg nehmen muß
hindurch zwischen deinen Brüsten
Über den Nabel hin
und den kleinen Hügel
deinen ganzen Körper entlang
an dem du hinabsiehst
bis hinunter zu meinem Kopf
dessen Gesicht
vergraben ist zwischen deine gehobenen Schenkel
in deine Haare
und in deinen Schoß
Bereitsein war alles
Um mich vorzubereiten
auf die Belagerer
lernte ich
mein Herz immer kürzer halten
Das dauerte lange
Jetzt nach Jahren der Übung
versagt mein Herz
und ich sehe im Sterben das Land
als hätte nur ich
mich belagert
von innen
und hätte gesiegt:
Alles leer
Weit und breit
keine Sturmleitern
keine Feinde
October 28, 2023
5 Sterne reichen nicht!!!
Vielleicht weil ich die Kopie von meiner Mama lese, die diese Gedichte auch in meinem Alter geliebt hat….
Vielleicht auch, weil Erich Fried das gleiche Verständnis von Liebe hat wie ich.…
Es fühlt sich jedenfalls so an als hätte er sich in mein Gehirn gesetzt, Gefühle und Gedankenfetzen mitgeschrieben, und dann in diese tollen Gedichte verpackt.
Ich habe jetzt keine Post it’s, Tränen, oder Worte mehr!
Vielleicht weil ich die Kopie von meiner Mama lese, die diese Gedichte auch in meinem Alter geliebt hat….
Vielleicht auch, weil Erich Fried das gleiche Verständnis von Liebe hat wie ich.…
Es fühlt sich jedenfalls so an als hätte er sich in mein Gehirn gesetzt, Gefühle und Gedankenfetzen mitgeschrieben, und dann in diese tollen Gedichte verpackt.
Ich habe jetzt keine Post it’s, Tränen, oder Worte mehr!
October 8, 2022
Einiges schön-unterhaltsames dabei, aber auch viel ähnliches, vieles, bei dem ich die Liebe nicht finden konnte; gerade am Ende hat es mir nicht mehr gefallen, wurde m.E. nach einfach wirr und ein buntes Mischmasch aus dramatisch anklingenden worten
December 8, 2022
"Levicová milostná báseň
má být taková
že si toho nikdo
nevšimne"
má být taková
že si toho nikdo
nevšimne"
October 23, 2024
I don't think one should review poetry, it's too hard.
To review Erich Fried is - for me anyways - impossible.
It was nice to re-read some favourites and old acquaintances.
To review Erich Fried is - for me anyways - impossible.
It was nice to re-read some favourites and old acquaintances.
November 6, 2011
English:
This is the German Version of Erich Fried's Lovepoems which is a constant inspiration for my own poetry writing. A teacher once told me that Erich Fried is more known for his anti-war poems but one of his most famous poems "Es ist was es ist /it is what it is" describes love in such clear and poignant words I could read it again and again. Well I actually DO read it again and again.
I just love his way of playing with words as well as inventing words which is I think is more possible in German as you can stick nouns together as you wish to. Some just do not make any sense but it makes your fantasy work and gives you a lot of inspiration.
"It is nonsense
says logic
It is what it is
says love".... Does that not say everything?
German:
Offensichtlich ist Erich Fried nicht so sehr fuer Liebesgedichte bekannt. Das zu mindest sagte mir ein Deutsch-Lehrer, der auf die Anti-Kriegs Gedichte von Erich Fried verwies. Aber seine gesammelten Liebesgedichte in diesem Band sind eine einfache aber wunderbar poetische Liebeserklaerung and die Liebe. Ich gebe zu, das hoert sich daemlich an aber es ist das einzige, das sie mir hinreichend zu beschreiben scheint.
Ich lese das Buch immer wieder, da es mir Inspiration und Vergnuegen bietet und jeder, der Lyrik mag sollte es einmal gelesen haben.
Es ist Unsinn
sagt die Vernunft.
Es ist was es ist
sagt die Liebe Erich Fried/Es ist was es ist
Sagt das nicht alles?
This is the German Version of Erich Fried's Lovepoems which is a constant inspiration for my own poetry writing. A teacher once told me that Erich Fried is more known for his anti-war poems but one of his most famous poems "Es ist was es ist /it is what it is" describes love in such clear and poignant words I could read it again and again. Well I actually DO read it again and again.
I just love his way of playing with words as well as inventing words which is I think is more possible in German as you can stick nouns together as you wish to. Some just do not make any sense but it makes your fantasy work and gives you a lot of inspiration.
"It is nonsense
says logic
It is what it is
says love".... Does that not say everything?
German:
Offensichtlich ist Erich Fried nicht so sehr fuer Liebesgedichte bekannt. Das zu mindest sagte mir ein Deutsch-Lehrer, der auf die Anti-Kriegs Gedichte von Erich Fried verwies. Aber seine gesammelten Liebesgedichte in diesem Band sind eine einfache aber wunderbar poetische Liebeserklaerung and die Liebe. Ich gebe zu, das hoert sich daemlich an aber es ist das einzige, das sie mir hinreichend zu beschreiben scheint.
Ich lese das Buch immer wieder, da es mir Inspiration und Vergnuegen bietet und jeder, der Lyrik mag sollte es einmal gelesen haben.
Es ist Unsinn
sagt die Vernunft.
Es ist was es ist
sagt die Liebe Erich Fried/Es ist was es ist
Sagt das nicht alles?
August 28, 2009
The simplicity of his words reveal a blank honesty; he's probably a German e.e. cummings of some sort, a poet for the people, and such a rich one at that. Probably my favourite poet, my major inspiration, the reason why I fell in love with the German language, and do it again and again.
July 25, 2007
Beautiful, beautiful love poems!
April 14, 2008
Erich Fried is a contemporary German poet. I love his poetry because it's simple, beautiful and witty.
May 23, 2010
If I could give this 10 stars, I would. Simply astonishing. And perhaps now my most prized possession.
May 11, 2013
a book i want to read in, again and again...what beautiful german poetry!!
September 21, 2023
will always come back when I just need some heart-wrenching/breaking/healing poetry
May 9, 2024
„Das Bekannte nur denen
die es kennen
bekannt machen können“
die es kennen
bekannt machen können“
August 12, 2012
best. love. poems. ever.
October 3, 2013
Probably my most cherished book of poetry
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews