Poetry

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám (Whinfield Translation)

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Poetry
Chapter: 6 | Listen: 2

Omar Khayyám (1048–1131) was a Persian poet, mathematician and astronomer. In the Western world he is most famous for his many rubáiyát (quatrains), a four line rhyming stanza, which were popularized in an extensively reworked collection in English by Edward Fitzgerald, the first edition of which appeared in 1859. However, Fitzgerald was neither the first nor the most scholarly of the translators of Omar Khayyam’s rubáiyát. As well as translating the poems of Hafez and Rumi, Edward Henry Whinfield (1836-1922) also produced a much more extensive English version of the rubáiyát. In 1883 he published a bilingual edition of 500 quatrains, in which the Persian original is presented side by side with the English translation. This is a bilingual recording. Each quatrain will be read first in Persian and then in English translation. While listeners unfamiliar with the Persian language will not able to appreciate the meaning of the quatrains in their original form, everyone can at least enjoy the musicality of Omar’s verse, which Whinfield often succeeds in capturing. [chương_files]

Die göttliche Komödie – Die Hölle

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Poetry
Chapter: 34 | Listen: 3

Inhalt: Die Hölle Das Fegefeuer Das Paradies Die Commedia, in späterer Zeit auch Divina Commedia (“Göttliche Komödie”) genannt, ist das Hauptwerk des italienischen Dichters Dante Alighieri. Sie gilt als bedeutendste Dichtung der italienischen Literatur und als eines der größten Werke der Weltliteratur. [chương_files]

The Rape of the Lock

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Poetry, Satire
Chapter: 6 | Listen: 4

The Rape of the Lock is a mock-heroic narrative poem written by Alexander Pope, first published anonymously in Lintot’s Miscellany in May 1712 in two cantos (334 lines), but then revised, expanded and reissued under Pope’s name on March 2, 1714, in a much-expanded 5-canto version (794 lines). The final form was available in 1717 with the addition of Clarissa’s speech on good humour. The poem satirizes a petty squabble by comparing it to the epic world of the gods. It was based on an incident recounted by Pope’s friend, John Caryll. Arabella Fermor and her suitor, Lord Petre, were both from aristocratic recusant Catholic families at a period in England when under such laws as the Test Act, all denominations except Anglicanism suffered legal restrictions and penalties (for example Petre could not take up his place in the House of Lords as a Catholic). Petre, lusting after Arabella, had cut off a lock of her hair without permission, and the consequent argument had created a breach between the two families. Pope, also a Catholic, wrote the poem at the request of friends in an attempt to “comically merge the two.” He utilized the character Belinda to represent Arabella and introduced an entire system of “sylphs,” or guardian spirits of virgins, a parodized version of the gods and goddesses of conventional epic. [chương_files]

LibriVox 17th Anniversary Collection

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Essays & Short Works, Poetry, Short Stories
Chapter: 30 | Listen: 6

“LibriVox is a hope, an experiment, and a question: can the net harness a bunch of volunteers to bring books in the public domain to life…” Hugh McGuire, LibriVox’s founder, August 9, 2005 In celebration of LibriVox’s seventeenth anniversary, here is collection of short works of various kinds and from varied authors which include in their title the words ‘seventeen’ or ‘seventeenth’ or the number ’17.’ Each piece is selected and read by a LibriVox volunteer. [chương_files]

Hymnen an die Nacht

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Poetry
Chapter: 6 | Listen: 2

Hymnen an die Nacht ist der Titel eines Gedichtzyklus von Novalis (Friedrich von Hardenberg). Der Zyklus wurde zuerst 1800 in der Zeitschrift Athenäum veröffentlicht. Die Hymnen an die Nacht ist das einzige größere Werk, das zu Novalis’ Lebzeiten veröffentlicht und auch von ihm fertiggestellt wurde. Die Hymnen werden als Höhepunkt seiner Lyrik angesehen und können wohl zurecht als die bedeutendste Dichtung der Frühromantik bezeichnet werden. Der Text besteht aus sechs Hymnen. Diese können in drei Teile zu je zwei Hymnen gegliedert werden. In jedem dieser Teile kann das gleiche Grundmuster gefunden werden. Die jeweils ersten Hymnen beschreiben in einem für Novalis typischen dreistufigen Modell die Entwicklung vom Leben im glücklichen, irdischen Reich des Lichts über eine Phase der schmerzhaften Entfremdung zur Befreiung in der ewigen Nacht. Die jeweils zweiten Hymnen schildern das ernüchternde Aufwachen aus der Vision und die Sehnsucht nach der Rückkehr zu dieser Vision. Die drei Zyklen sind als Steigerung angelegt; in jeder dieser Stufen wird eine höhere Ebene der Erfahrung und des Wissens erreicht. (Wikipedia) English Description: In August 1800, eight months after completion, the revised edition of the Hymnen an die Nacht was published in the Athenaeum. They are often considered to be the climax of Novalis’ lyrical works and the most important poetry of the German early Romanticism. The six hymns contain many elements which can be understood as autobiographical. Even though a lyrical “I”, rather than Novalis himself, is the speaker, there are many relationships between the hymns and Hardenberg’s experiences from 1797-1800. The […]

Les Chants de Maldoror

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Poetry
Chapter: 60 | Listen: 2

Les Chants de Maldoror is a poetic novel (or a long prose poem) consisting of six cantos. It was written between 1868 and 1869 by the Comte de Lautreamont, the pseudonym of Isidore Lucien Ducasse. Many of the surrealists in the early 1900s cited the novel as a major inspiration to their own works and Les Chants de Maldoror, and its protagonist Maldoror, have continued to fascinate people since its publication. The work revolves around the misanthropic character of Maldoror, a figure of absolute evil who is opposed to God and humanity, and has renounced all ties to conventional morality and decency. The iconoclastic imagery and tone is typically violent and macabre, and ostensibly nihilistic. Les Chants de Maldoror is considered to have been a major influence upon French Symbolism, Dada and Surrealism. From Wikipedia [chương_files]

The Wanderings of Oisín

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Poetry
Chapter: 3 | Listen: 2

This narrative poem is composed in three parts, and consists of a dialogue between the aged Irish hero Oisín and St. Patrick. Oisín relates his three-hundred year sojourn in the immortal isles of Faerie. In the isles, Oisín married the beautiful Sidhe Niamh: together they traveled, feasted, and quested. At last Oisín succumbs to the temptation to return and visit the lands of mortal men: inadvertently slipping from his faerie horse, his body touches the ground and instantly puts on the flesh of a decrepit old man. Oisín describes various islands and what he did there: contrasting his noble deeds with the degenerate weakness of the present generation. [chương_files]

Vintage Verse Rhapsody A Poetry Collection

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Poetry
Chapter: 33 | Listen: 5

A collection of poetry selected and performed by Bob Gonzalez, rhapsode. Rhapsodes of Ancient Greece were “song-stitchers,” performing selections from the epics of Homer and Hesiod. The contemporary rhapsode performs the classical poetry of his or her language, culture, and tradition. Any particular collection and arrangement of poems for performance I term a “rhapsody.” In general terms, a rhapsody is an ecstatic expression of feeling and enthusiasm. In music, a rhapsody is an instrumental composition irregular in form and suggestive of improvisation. The poems in this rhapsody comprise a number of poems that I have performed in public and known for much of my life as well as several recent additions to my repertory. They are arranged in chronological order from the 16th century to the early 20th century. Some of the poets represented here are Edmund Spenser, William Shakespeare, John Donne, John Milton, Alexander Pope, William Blake, William Wordsworth. John Keats, Alfred Tennyson, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Lewis Carroll, and Robert Frost. [chương_files]

Sammlung deutscher Gedichte

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Poetry, Short Stories
Chapter: 20 | Listen: 1

Auszug aus Das Lied von der Glocke Friedrich Schiller Fest gemauert in der Erden Steht die Form, aus Lehm gebrannt. Heute muß die Glocke werden. Frisch Gesellen, seid zur Hand. Von der Stirne heiß Rinnen muß der Schweiß, Soll das Werk den Meister loben, Doch der Segen kommt von oben. Zum Werke, das wir ernst bereiten, Geziemt sich wohl ein ernstes Wort; Wenn gute Reden sie begleiten, Dann ﬂießt die Arbeit munter fort. So laßt uns jetzt mit Fleiß betrachten, Was durch die schwache Kraft entspringt, Den schlechten Mann muß man verachten, Der nie bedacht, was er vollbringt. Das ist’s ja, was den Menschen zieret, Und dazu ward ihm der Verstand, Daß er im innern Herzen spüret, Was er erschafft mit seiner Hand. Nehmet Holz vom Fichtenstamme, Doch recht trocken laßt es sein, Daß die eingepreßte Flamme Schlage zu dem Schwalch hinein. Kocht des Kupfers Brei, Schnell das Zinn herbei, Daß die zähe Glockenspeise Fließe nach der rechten Weise. Was in des Dammes tiefer Grube Die Hand mit Feuers Hülfe baut, Hoch auf des Turmes Glockenstube Da wird es von uns zeugen laut. Noch dauern wird’s in späten Tagen Und rühren vieler Menschen Ohr Und wird mit dem Betrübten klagen Und stimmen zu der Andacht Chor. Was unten tief dem Erdensohne Das wechselnde Verhängnis bringt, Das schlägt an die metallne Krone, ¨ Die es erbaulich weiterklingt. [chương_files]

Don Juan: Canto I

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Poetry
Chapter: 7 | Listen: 4

The legend of Don Juan is one that’s been told and retold over the centuries by poets and novelists. His life has been the subject of operas, musicals and film. The earliest reference was in a fourteenth century Spanish play and compiled in book form in the seventeenth century. His life continued to fascinate writers like Moliere, Byron, Bernard Shaw, Pushkin, Shakespeare, Jose Saramago and musicians like Mozart, whose Don Giovanni is a brilliant work that still charms audiences and music lovers all over the world. The legend of Don Juan in Spain portrays him as a wealthy and amoral character, who prides himself on his marvelous power to attract women of all ages. He also spends the rest of his time gambling and drinking. Occasionally, he indulges in crimes like murder when thwarted in fulfilling his desires. Don Juan’s name has become synonymous in English and many other languages with being a flirt and a womanizer. However, in Don Juan by George Gordon Byron, the serial heartbreaker is portrayed as a much wronged innocent who is instead easily taken in by women. This epic, satirical poem which runs into more than 16,000 lines remains unfinished as Byron continued to add verses till his death. It is interesting to note that the English pronunciation of Juan is used throughout the poem, to rhyme with words like “ruin” and “true one.” In Don Juan: Canto I, Byron describes the rake’s early years in Seville. The young Juan begins his infamous career […]

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Poetry

The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám (Whinfield Translation)

Die göttliche Komödie – Die Hölle

The Rape of the Lock

LibriVox 17th Anniversary Collection

Hymnen an die Nacht

Les Chants de Maldoror

The Wanderings of Oisín

Vintage Verse Rhapsody A Poetry Collection

Sammlung deutscher Gedichte

Don Juan: Canto I