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What Poetry Is
poetry / gedichtenThe original work was also published in 'Gedichten 1974-1983'.
- GenresPoetry
Paperback
First published August 1, 1978
8 people want to read
About the author
Harry Mulisch
137 books483 followersHarry Kurt Victor Mulisch along with W.F. Hermans and Gerard Reve, is considered one of the "Great Three" of Dutch postwar literature. He has written novels, plays, essays, poems, and philosophical reflections.
Mulisch was born in Haarlem and lived in Amsterdam since 1958, following the death of his father in 1957. Mulisch's father was from Austria-Hungary and emigrated to the Netherlands after the First World War. During the German occupation in World War II he worked for a German bank, which also dealt with confiscated Jewish assets. His mother, Alice Schwarz, was Jewish. Mulisch and his mother escaped transportation to a concentration camp thanks to Mulisch's father's collaboration with the Nazis. Due to the curious nature of his parents' positions, Mulisch has claimed that he is the Second World War.
A frequent theme in his work is the Second World War. His father had worked for the Germans during the war and went to prison for three years afterwards. As the war spanned most of Mulisch's formative phase, it had a defining influence on his life and work. In 1963, he wrote a non-fiction work about the Eichmann case: The case 40/61. Major works set against the backdrop of the Second World War are De Aanslag, Het stenen bruidsbed, and Siegfried.
Additionally, Mulisch often incorporates ancient legends or myths in his writings, drawing on Greek mythology (e.g. in De Elementen), Jewish mysticism (in De ontdekking van de Hemel and De Procedure), well-known urban legends and politics (Mulisch is politically left-wing, notably defending Fidel Castro since the Cuban revolution). Mulisch is widely read and (according to his critics) often flaunts his philosophical and even scientific knowledge.
Mulisch gained international recognition with the movie De Aanslag (The Assault), (1986) which was based on his eponymous book. It received an Oscar and a Golden Globe for best foreign movie and has been translated in more than twenty languages.
His novel De ontdekking van de Hemel (1992) was filmed in 2001 as The Discovery of Heaven by Jeroen Krabbé, starring Stephen Fry.
Amongst many awards he has received for individual works and his total body of work, the most important is the Prijs der Nederlandse Letteren (Prize of Dutch Literature, an official lifetime achievement award) in 1995.
Mulisch was born in Haarlem and lived in Amsterdam since 1958, following the death of his father in 1957. Mulisch's father was from Austria-Hungary and emigrated to the Netherlands after the First World War. During the German occupation in World War II he worked for a German bank, which also dealt with confiscated Jewish assets. His mother, Alice Schwarz, was Jewish. Mulisch and his mother escaped transportation to a concentration camp thanks to Mulisch's father's collaboration with the Nazis. Due to the curious nature of his parents' positions, Mulisch has claimed that he is the Second World War.
A frequent theme in his work is the Second World War. His father had worked for the Germans during the war and went to prison for three years afterwards. As the war spanned most of Mulisch's formative phase, it had a defining influence on his life and work. In 1963, he wrote a non-fiction work about the Eichmann case: The case 40/61. Major works set against the backdrop of the Second World War are De Aanslag, Het stenen bruidsbed, and Siegfried.
Additionally, Mulisch often incorporates ancient legends or myths in his writings, drawing on Greek mythology (e.g. in De Elementen), Jewish mysticism (in De ontdekking van de Hemel and De Procedure), well-known urban legends and politics (Mulisch is politically left-wing, notably defending Fidel Castro since the Cuban revolution). Mulisch is widely read and (according to his critics) often flaunts his philosophical and even scientific knowledge.
Mulisch gained international recognition with the movie De Aanslag (The Assault), (1986) which was based on his eponymous book. It received an Oscar and a Golden Globe for best foreign movie and has been translated in more than twenty languages.
His novel De ontdekking van de Hemel (1992) was filmed in 2001 as The Discovery of Heaven by Jeroen Krabbé, starring Stephen Fry.
Amongst many awards he has received for individual works and his total body of work, the most important is the Prijs der Nederlandse Letteren (Prize of Dutch Literature, an official lifetime achievement award) in 1995.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 5, 2021
Wat poëzie is! Je kunt poëzie ervaren, maar kun je het ook begrijpen los van die ervaring. Hier breekt de schrijver Mulisch zich als vijftigjarige het hoofd over.
Wat poëzie is
Verwondert zo de wereld
En is zo onbereikbaar
Als de regenboog
Toen Mulisch naar zijn laatste rustplaats werd gebracht, scheen boven Amsterdam een regenboog. Het paste helemaal in het mythische wereldbeeld van de man die altijd zeventien wilde zijn.
Wat poëzie is, is ongrijpbaar. Daarom kennen we Mulisch vooral van zijn romans en essays en denken we bij hem niet aan een dichter. Toch is dit een boeiend bundeltje, een verklarende voetnoot bij zijn imposante werk.
,
Wat poëzie is
Verwondert zo de wereld
En is zo onbereikbaar
Als de regenboog
Toen Mulisch naar zijn laatste rustplaats werd gebracht, scheen boven Amsterdam een regenboog. Het paste helemaal in het mythische wereldbeeld van de man die altijd zeventien wilde zijn.
Wat poëzie is, is ongrijpbaar. Daarom kennen we Mulisch vooral van zijn romans en essays en denken we bij hem niet aan een dichter. Toch is dit een boeiend bundeltje, een verklarende voetnoot bij zijn imposante werk.
,
December 31, 2023
...Wat poezie is verwondert zo de wereld. En is zo onelbreikbaat als de regenboog. Niets wordt poezie, iets is poezie...
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews