Rainer Maria Rilke  

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-'''René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke''' (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), better known as '''Rainer Maria Rilke''', was a [[Bohemia]]n–[[Austrian poet]]. He is considered one of the most significant poets in the German language. His haunting images focus on the difficulty of communion with the ineffable in an age of disbelief, solitude, and profound anxiety: themes that tend to position him as a transitional figure between the traditional and the [[modernist poets]].+'''Rainer Maria Rilke''' (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926) was a [[Bohemia]]n–[[Austrian poet]]. He is considered one of the most significant poets in the [[German language]]. His [[haunting]] images focus on the difficulty of [[communion]] with the [[ineffable]] in an age of [[disbelief]], [[solitude]], and profound [[anxiety]]: themes that tend to position him as a transitional figure between the traditional and the [[modernist poets]].
He wrote in both verse and a highly lyrical prose. Among English-language readers, his best-known work is the ''[[Duino Elegies]]''; his two most famous prose works are the ''[[Letters to a Young Poet]]'' and the semi-autobiographical ''[[The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge]]''. He also wrote more than 400 poems in French, dedicated to his homeland of choice, the [[cantons of Switzerland|canton]] of [[Valais]] in Switzerland. He wrote in both verse and a highly lyrical prose. Among English-language readers, his best-known work is the ''[[Duino Elegies]]''; his two most famous prose works are the ''[[Letters to a Young Poet]]'' and the semi-autobiographical ''[[The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge]]''. He also wrote more than 400 poems in French, dedicated to his homeland of choice, the [[cantons of Switzerland|canton]] of [[Valais]] in Switzerland.
 +His writings include one novel, several collections of poetry and several volumes of correspondence in which he invokes images that focus on the difficulty of communion with the ineffable in an age of disbelief, solitude and anxiety. These themes position him as a transitional figure between traditional and [[Modernism|modernist]] writers.
-== Rodin ==+Rilke travelled extensively throughout Europe (including Russia, Spain, Germany, France and Italy) and, in his later years, settled in Switzerland – settings that were key to the genesis and inspiration for many of his poems. While Rilke is most known for his contributions to German literature, over 400 poems were originally written in French and dedicated to the [[canton of Valais]] in Switzerland. Among English-language readers, his best-known works include the poetry collections ''[[Duino Elegies]]'' and ''[[Sonnets to Orpheus]]'', the semi-autobiographical novel ''[[The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge]]'', and a collection of ten letters that was published after his death under the title ''[[Letters to a Young Poet]]''. In the later 20th century, his work found new audiences through use by [[New Age]] theologians and [[self-help]] authors and frequent quotations by television programs, books and motion pictures. In the United States, Rilke remains among the more popular, best-selling poets.
-In the summer of 1902, Rilke left home and traveled to [[Paris]] to write a monograph on the sculptor [[Auguste Rodin]]+
-== Rilke's influence ==+
-* German philosopher [[Martin Heidegger]] cites Rilke as an example of the highest form of thinker in his essay "What Are Poets For?" The essay's theme is largely explored through the examination of an "improvised verse" (short poem) Rilke wrote in 1924. Heidegger, often considered the most influential thinker of the 20th century, ranks Rilke in the German poetic tradition as second only to [[Friedrich Hölderlin]].+
-===Literature=== 
-* Rilke is mentioned several times in the short stories of Raymond Carver's collection, Will You Please Be Quiet, Please? 
-* Rilke has also been celebrated in [[Thomas Pynchon]]'s ''[[Gravity's Rainbow]],'' [[William Gaddis]]' voluminous novel ''[[The Recognitions]]'', and [[William H. Gass]]' epic, controversial novel ''[[The Tunnel]]'', in which the main character makes repeated reference to his interest in Rilke's poetry. Rilke is also referred to in [[Julia Alvarez]]'s novel ''[[How the García Girls Lost Their Accents]]''. 
-* [[J.D. Salinger]] alludes to Rilke in various works, including the novel ''[[Franny and Zooey]]'' and the short story ''[[A Perfect Day for Bananafish]]''. 
-* [[Audrey Niffenegger]] mentions and quotes from Rilke frequently in ''[[The Time Traveler's Wife]]''. 
-* [[Douglas Coupland]] quotes Rilke's ''[[Letters to a Young Poet]]'' in ''[[Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture]]''. 
-* A Rilke translation inspired ''[[Lost in Translation (poem)|Lost in Translation]]'', a celebrated 1974 poem by [[James Merrill]]. 
-* [[Colin Wilson]] mentions Rikle's work numerous times in [[The Outsider (Colin Wilson)|The Outsider]]. 
-* [[Jo Shapcott]]'s collection of poems, ''Tender Taxes'', is based on a series of Rilke's poems written in French. 
-* Rilke's poetry highly influenced the life and writings of [[Etty Hillesum]]. 
-* The [[Iran]]ian modernist writer [[Sadegh Hedayat]] was deeply moved by Rilke's meditations on death. 
-* Chilean novelist [[Germán Marín]]'s trilogy ''Un animal mudo levanta la vista'' is named for a verse in the eighth [[Duino Elegies|Duino Elegy]]. 
-* Rilke's "Sonnets to Orpheus" was inspiration for [[W. H. Auden]]'s Journey to a War, published in 1939. 
-* Rilke was mentioned in Tennessee William's ''The Two-Character Play'' 
-* The relationship of Rilke and Clara Westhoff and her early death is the subject Adrienne Rich's poem, "Paula Becker to Clara Westhoff". As the epigraph states, "Paula Becker 1876-1907 Clara Westhoff 1878-1954 became friends at Worpswede, an artist's colony near Bremen, Germany, summer 1899. In January 1900, spent a half-year together in Paris, where Paula painted and Clara studied sculpture with Rodin. In August they returned to Worpswede, and spent the next winter together in Berlin. In 1901, Clara married the poet Rainer Maria Rilke; soon after, Paula married the painter Otto Modersohn. She died in a hemorrhage after childbirth, murmuring, What a shame!" ''Dream of a Common Language'', Norton 
-* The title of ''Laying out the Body'' by Lucien Jenkins [[Seren Books, 1989]] is taken from Rilke's 'Leichen-Wäsche', and that poem is translated within the collection, which also contains other work by Rilke. 
-* The title of ''Riding with Rilke: Reflections on Motorcycles and Books'' by Canadian author and academic [[Ted Bishop]] is in reference to Rilke, who is mentioned briefly in the book. 
-*[[Jane Fonda]] quotes Rilke numerous times in her autobiography ''My Life So Far''. 
-*In [[Milan Kundera]]'s novel ''Immortality'' Rilke is called to the Eternal Trial of [[Goethe]], relating to Goethe's treatment of Bettina, and Kundera quotes a passage from ''[[The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge]]'' as Rilke's testimony. 
-* Mexican composer, [[Sergio Cardenas]] wrote ''Un Rap para Mozart'' (''A Rap to Mozart''). A book about musical anecdotes with a deep and personal point of view on some compositions of his own as well as Bach’s, Bruckner’s, and Mozart’s of course. Rilke’s poetry is quoted in translations made by the composer himself. In a chapter called "El Aplauso" ("The Ovation"), fragments from ''[[The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge]]'' are quoted and discussed. The whole book, as the composer declared himself, is haunted by Rilke’s spiritual influence. 
-*Maxine Hong Kingston refers to Rilke several times in her book ''Tripmaster Monkey''. 
-*The novel ''[[Lost Son]]'' by M. Allen Cunningham (2007) tells the story of Rilke's life from birth to age 42. 
-*"[[A Rose for Ecclesiastes]]", a 1963 story by [[Roger Zelazny]], features the main character quoting Rilke's poem "Spanish Dancer." 
-*The title and basic idea of Predrag Matvejevic's ''The Other Venice'' (2002, English translation 2007) was taken from Rilke's ''Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge''. 
-*The Triestine main character in [[Susanna Tamaro]]'s ''Anima Mundi'' (1997, English translation 2007) refers to the fundamental influence of ''The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge'' and ''The Duino Elegies'' in his life. 
-*In [[Amitav Ghosh]]'s ''The Hungry Tide'', a major character (Nirmal) is a fan of Rilke's verses, and excerpts feature prominently in the text. 
-*[[Philip Roth]]'s 1972 novella ''[[The Breast]]'' concludes with Rilke's poem "Archaic Torso of Apollo." The main character, an English professor, believes that his story will "illuminate these great lines for those of you new to the poem." 
-*The short story ''Chac Mool'' by Mexican literary [[Carlos Fuentes]] references Rilke. 
-===Television===+==English translations==
 +As of 2020, only the Jessie Lamont appears to be in the public domain.
-* During several episodes of the TV show "Beauty and the Beast," starring Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton, Rilke's poems were quoted many times.+*[[Auguste Rodin (Rilke monograph) ]]
-* Rilke was quoted by Lex Luthor in Smallville, Season Three, in the episode "Legacy," where Lex said, "It's like the German poet Rilke said - 'a person isn't who they are during the last conversation you had with them - they're who they've been throughout your whole relationship'."+*[[Archaic Torso of Apollo]]
 +*[[Spaziergang]]
-===Film=== 
- 
-* [[Wim Wenders]] cites Rilke as the inspiration behind his angels in ''[[Wings of Desire]]''. 
-* Rilke's poem ''The Panther'' is quoted in the 1990 film ''[[Awakenings]]'' (based on the 1973 book of the same name by neurologist and author [[Oliver Sacks]]), expressing the emotional undertone of the story. 
-* In the 1993 movie ''[[Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit]]'', actress [[Whoopi Goldberg]] refers to Rilke's ''Letters to a Young Poet''. 
-* Rilke is quoted in ''[[Kissing Jessica Stein]]'' by a woman looking for a woman in a personal ad. This quote is what moves the main character, Jessica, to answer the ad, despite her presumed heterosexuality. 
-* Rilke's poem "[[Archaic Torso of Apollo]]" is quoted by Miriam, played by [[Gena Rowlands]], in [[Woody Allen]]'s 1988 film ''[[Another Woman]]''. 
-* Rilke's poem ''You Who Never Arrived'' is quoted by Faith, played by [[Marisa Tomei]], in [[Norman Jewison]]'s 1994 film ''[[Only You (1994 film)|Only You]]''. 
-*Rilke is referenced pejoratively in the film ''[[Igby Goes Down]]'' when Igby, played by [[Kieran Culkin]] says, "Every Christmas, some asshole gives me this copy of Young Poet with this patronizing note on the flap about how it's supposed to change my life." 
-*"Rain", the [[Juliette Lewis]] character in Woody Allen's ''[[Husbands and Wives]]'' is named after Rilke. 
-*"For the sake of a single poem" an animated short by Shamik Majumdar (India 1999, National Institute of Design) is based on an excerpt from Rilke's book, ''The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge''. 
-* Rilke's quote "For one human being to love another: that is perhaps the most difficult of all our tasks, [...] the work for which all other work is but preparation" is quoted before the end credits in [[Katherine Brooks]]'s OUTFEST award winning 2006 film ''[[Loving Annabelle]]''. Also, Rilke's poem "Buddha in Glory" is read in one scene. 
-*In the 2008 film "Synecdoche", Caden awakens on the first day of fall to a full reading of Stephen Mitchell's English translation of Rilke's "Autumn Day" on his clock radio. 
- 
-=== Music === 
- 
-* The [[indie rock]] band [[Rainer Maria]] takes its name from Rilke, and at least some of their merchandise bears the poet's image. 
-*The [[Cocteau Twins]] song "Rilkean Heart", on the 1996 album ''Milk and Kisses'', is an homage to [[Jeff Buckley]] who was a lifelong lover of Rilke's work. 
-*The Swiss composer [[Frank Martin (composer)|Frank Martin]] set Rilke's prose "Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke"(The lay of the love and death of cornet Christopher Rilke)to orchestral song circle in German,premiered in February 1945. [[Viktor Ullmann]],an Austrian composer,also composed this prose. 
-*The British composer [[Oliver Knussen]] has set texts of Rainer Maria Rilke to music in his unaccomapanied ''Rilke songs'' and in ''Requiem: Songs for Sue''. 
-*The [[Trieste]]-based British composer Baron [[Raffaello de Banfield]] Tripcovich set several poems of Rilke for soprano and large orchestra, including 'Serale' and 'Liebeslied' (1968), 'Der Tod des Geliebten' and 'Der Sturm' (1972), and 'Four Rilke songs' (1986). 
-*The Russian composer [[Dmitri Shostakovich]] set several of Rilke's poems to music in his [[Symphony No. 14 (Shostakovich)|Symphony No. 14]]. 
-*The American contemporary composer [[Morten Lauridsen]] set five of Rilke's French-language "Rose" poems to music in a choral piece titled ''Les Chansons des Roses''. 
-*The contemporary Danish composer [[Per Nørgård]] has set the Rilke sonnet to Orpheus "Singe die Gärten" as the second and final movement of his 3rd symphony. 
-*The contemporary Norwegian composer [[Arne Nordheim]] has set Rilke's "Todeserfahrung" in his ''Wirklicher Wald''. 
-*In 2006, Pianist [[Brad Mehldau]] wrote a cycle of [[art songs]] for soprano and piano based on seven poems from Rilke's ''The Book of Hours: Love Poems to God''. Mehldau premiered the work with [[Renée Fleming]] at [[Carnegie Hall]] in 2006, which was recorded and released on the album ''Love Sublime''. 
-*The German composer [[Paul Hindemith]] set ''Six Chansons'', 6 pieces for a cappella choir, of the French poetry by Rilke (1939), as well as the imposing German language song cycle ''Das Marienleben'' (1922, revised 1948). 
-*Composer [[Sofia Gubaidulina]], a great admirer of Rilke's work, includes the beginning of "Vom Tode Mariä I" (Derselbe große Engel, welcher einst) at the end of her piece ''Stufen''. 
-*[[Robert Hunter (lyricist)|Robert Hunter]], best known for his work with The Grateful Dead, translated ''The Duino Elegies'' and ''Sonnets to Orpheus''. The ''Sonnets'' translation is a rhymed translation. He also recorded readings of his translations, the ''Duino Elegies'' recording was made with keyboardist Tom Constanten. 
-*Indie rock group [[CocoRosie]]'s song ''Terrible Angels'' mentions Rilke. 
-* Contemporary rock group [[Sixpence None the Richer]]'s song entitled "Still Burning" was influenced by Rilke's imagery of the heart as a hand. 
-* Chicago jazz vocalist [[Kurt Elling]] combined a Rilke poem with a melody from the [[Dave Brubeck Quartet]] to form his song "Those Clouds Are Heavy, You Dig?" 
-* The American [[country music]] songwriter and vocalist, [[Ray Wylie Hubbard]], quotes Rilke in his song "The Messenger." 
-* Band [[Eyeless in Gaza]] singer [[Martyn Bates]] worked with [[Anne Clark]] set poems by Rilke to music on the album "Just After Sunset" in 2002. 
-* Composer Libby Larsen set a Rilke poem "Liebeslied" to accompany 5 other songs in her song cycle, ''Beloved, Thou Hast Brought Me Many Flowers''. 
-* American country songwriter/musician Rodney Crowell mentions "Rilke's Panther" in his song "Come On Funny Feeling," from the 2003 critically acclaimed ''Fate's Right Hand'' album: "I don't want to wind up bitter lost inside a silent rage / Or become like Rilke's panther out here locked up in a cage...." 
-* The composer [[Harrison Birtwistle]] has set some of the ''Sonnets to Orpheus'' in his piece 'Orpheus Elegies' for Oboe, Harp and Counter-tenor. 
-* The german composer [[Bertold Hummel]] wrote 1980 a song for voice and piano after the famous poem ''Autumn Day'' by Rilke. [http://www.bertoldhummel.de/english/commentaries/opus_71C.html] 
- 
-===Art=== 
- 
-*Fragments of Rilke's poetry are inscribed in certain paintings by [[Cy Twombly]]. 
- 
-*In 1968, American artist [[Ben Shahn]] illustrated a set of verses from Rilke's ''The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge'' called ''For the Sake of a Single Verse...'' 
- 
-===Religion=== 
-*Rilke's poem "[[You, Neighbour God]]" is included in the most commonly used edition of [[Liturgy of the Hours]]. 
-*Rilke's poetry is often referenced in the writings of contemporary spiritual teachers such as [[Jack Kornfield]] and Stephen Levine. 
- 
-===Other=== 
-*Rilke's "At present you need to live the question" was used as an extended essay prompt option on the [[University of Chicago]]'s [[supplement]] to the [[Common Application]] in [[2008]]. 
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"As long as you catch what you yourself have thrown"


"For beauty is nothing but the beginning of terror."--Duino Elegies (1923) by Rainer Maria Rilke

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Rainer Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926) was a BohemianAustrian poet. He is considered one of the most significant poets in the German language. His haunting images focus on the difficulty of communion with the ineffable in an age of disbelief, solitude, and profound anxiety: themes that tend to position him as a transitional figure between the traditional and the modernist poets.

He wrote in both verse and a highly lyrical prose. Among English-language readers, his best-known work is the Duino Elegies; his two most famous prose works are the Letters to a Young Poet and the semi-autobiographical The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge. He also wrote more than 400 poems in French, dedicated to his homeland of choice, the canton of Valais in Switzerland. His writings include one novel, several collections of poetry and several volumes of correspondence in which he invokes images that focus on the difficulty of communion with the ineffable in an age of disbelief, solitude and anxiety. These themes position him as a transitional figure between traditional and modernist writers.

Rilke travelled extensively throughout Europe (including Russia, Spain, Germany, France and Italy) and, in his later years, settled in Switzerland – settings that were key to the genesis and inspiration for many of his poems. While Rilke is most known for his contributions to German literature, over 400 poems were originally written in French and dedicated to the canton of Valais in Switzerland. Among English-language readers, his best-known works include the poetry collections Duino Elegies and Sonnets to Orpheus, the semi-autobiographical novel The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge, and a collection of ten letters that was published after his death under the title Letters to a Young Poet. In the later 20th century, his work found new audiences through use by New Age theologians and self-help authors and frequent quotations by television programs, books and motion pictures. In the United States, Rilke remains among the more popular, best-selling poets.


English translations

As of 2020, only the Jessie Lamont appears to be in the public domain.





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