Mascha Kaléko
Encyclopedia
Mascha Kaléko, born Golda Malka Aufen on June 7, 1907 in Chrzanów
, Austria (today Poland); died January 21, 1975 in Zürich
) was a Jewish German language
poet
.
In 1928 she married the Hebrew teacher Saul Aaron Kaléko. From 1929 on, she published poetry presenting the daily life of the common people in the newspapers Vossische Zeitung
and Berliner Tageblatt
. In her poetry that was positively reviewed by Thomas Mann
, Hermann Hesse
and Alfred Polgar
she captures the atmosphere of Berlin in the 1930s. She attained fame and frequented places like the "Romanisches Café", where the literary world met, among them Erich Kästner
and Kurt Tucholsky
.
In January 1933, Rowohlt
published her first book with poetry Lyrisches Stenogrammheft, which was soon subjected to Nazi censorship, and two years later her second book Das kleine Lesebuch für Grosse appeared, also with the publisher Rowohlt. In 1938, she managed to emigrate to the USA with her second husband, the composer Chemjo Vinaver, and their one year old son Steven,
who became a talented writer and theatre personality in adult life. Steven fell ill with pancreatitis while directing a play in Massachusetts, and died at the age of 31.
While in the USA, Mascha lived at several places (New York City and a few months in California) until settling on Minetta Street in New York City's Greenwich Village
in 1942. Her fifth floor walkup apartment Minetta Street was a safe haven she always remembered fondly.
Mascha became the family's breadwinner with odd jobs, including some writing copy for advertisements. The family's hope of a possible career for Chemjo in the film industry was crushed, and they returned to New York after a brief stint in Hollywood.
The Schoenhof Verlag in Cambridge, MA published Kaléko's third book "Verse fuer Zeitgenossen" in 1945 (German edition in 1958 by Rowohlt Verlag).
In 1956, Kaléko returned to Berlin for the first time. Three years later she was supposed to receive the Fontane prize, which she declined since it would have been handed over by a former Nazi official.
In 1959, she moved to Jerusalem, Israel
, since her husband, who was conducting research on Hassidic singing, had better working conditions there. Mascha lacked knowledge of Hebrew and was thus somewhat isolated.
Kaléko died in January 1975 in Zurich where she fell ill enroute back to Jerusalem from a final visit in Berlin. She is buried on the Jewish cemetery Friesenberg near Zurich.
Her work has been compared to that of Erich Kästner
and Joachim Ringelnatz
, among others, but her poetic voice is unique and memorable in different ways than those of her (mostly male) contemporaries.
Various attempts have been made to translate individual poems into English. In March 2010, for the first time, a representative number of Kaléko's poems appeared in English translation in the book "'No matter where I travel, I come to Nowhereland' - The poetry of Mascha Kaléko" (The University of Vermont, 2010, 112 pages). The author, Andreas Nolte, has selected poems from every phase of the poet's life. His translations follow the original German texts as closely as possible in order to maintain the kalékoesque content, diction, rhythm, and rhyme. Brief introductions provide additional information on Kaléko’s remarkable biography.
For more information on Mascha Kaléko and publications by/about her please visit www.maschakaleko.com
Mein schönstes Gedicht?
Ich schrieb es nicht.
Aus tiefsten Tiefen stieg es.
Ich schwieg es.
Translation:
My best poem ever?
I wrote it never.
From deepest depths uprushed it.
I hushed it.
From the poem Was man so braucht:
Man braucht nur eine Insel
allein im weiten Meer.
Man braucht nur einen Menschen,
den aber braucht man sehr.
Translation:
One only needs an island
alone and lost at sea.
One only needs one person,
but this to have is key.
(translations: Andreas Nolte)
The poem Pihi:
Vom Vogel Pihi hab ich einst gelesen,
Dem Wundertier im Lande der Chinesen.
Er hat nur einen Fittich: Stets in Paaren
Sieht man am Horizont der Pihi Scharen.
Zu zweien nur kann sich das Tier erheben;
Im Singular bleibt es am Boden kleben.
- Dem Pihi gleich, gekettet an das Nest,
Ist meine Seele, wenn du mich verläßt.
Translation:
I once read of the Pihi bird,
The mythical animal in the land of the Chinese
.
It only has one wing: always in pairs
One sees flocks of Pihi on the horizon.
Only in twos can the animal lift off;
Alone it sticks to the ground.
-Like the Pihi, chained to the nest,
Is my soul, if you leave me.
(translation: unknown)
Published posthumously:
Chrzanów
Chrzanów is a town in south Poland with 39,704 inhabitants . It is situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship and is the capital of Chrzanów County.- To 1809:...
, Austria (today Poland); died January 21, 1975 in Zürich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
) was a Jewish German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
.
Biography
Her family moved from Galicia to Germany after World War I.In 1928 she married the Hebrew teacher Saul Aaron Kaléko. From 1929 on, she published poetry presenting the daily life of the common people in the newspapers Vossische Zeitung
Vossische Zeitung
The Vossische Zeitung was the well known liberal German newspaper that was published in Berlin . Its predecessor was founded in 1704...
and Berliner Tageblatt
Berliner Tageblatt
The Berliner Tageblatt or BT was a German language newspaper published in Berlin from 1872-1939. Along with the Frankfurter Zeitung, it became one of the most important liberal German newspapers of its time.-History:...
. In her poetry that was positively reviewed by Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and 1929 Nobel Prize laureate, known for his series of highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novellas, noted for their insight into the psychology of the artist and the intellectual...
, Hermann Hesse
Hermann Hesse
Hermann Hesse was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. In 1946, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature...
and Alfred Polgar
Alfred Polgar
Alfred Polgar was an Austrian-born journalist, one of the renowned wits of the Vienna coffeehouses. He left Austria in 1938, and later worked in Hollywood.He was known as a drama critic, in Berlin 1925 to 1933, and an essayist...
she captures the atmosphere of Berlin in the 1930s. She attained fame and frequented places like the "Romanisches Café", where the literary world met, among them Erich Kästner
Erich Kästner
Emil Erich Kästner was a German author, poet, screenwriter and satirist, known for his humorous, socially astute poetry and children's literature.-Dresden 1899–1919:...
and Kurt Tucholsky
Kurt Tucholsky
Kurt Tucholsky was a German-Jewish journalist, satirist and writer. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Kaspar Hauser, Peter Panter, Theobald Tiger and Ignaz Wrobel. Born in Berlin-Moabit, he moved to Paris in 1924 and then to Sweden in 1930.Tucholsky was one of the most important journalists of...
.
In January 1933, Rowohlt
Rowohlt
Rowohlt Verlag is a publishing house based in Reinbek and also Hamburg and Berlin, part of the Georg von Holtzbrinck Group . The company was created in 1908 in Leipzig by Ernst Rowohlt.- Parts of the company :* Kindler Verlag...
published her first book with poetry Lyrisches Stenogrammheft, which was soon subjected to Nazi censorship, and two years later her second book Das kleine Lesebuch für Grosse appeared, also with the publisher Rowohlt. In 1938, she managed to emigrate to the USA with her second husband, the composer Chemjo Vinaver, and their one year old son Steven,
who became a talented writer and theatre personality in adult life. Steven fell ill with pancreatitis while directing a play in Massachusetts, and died at the age of 31.
While in the USA, Mascha lived at several places (New York City and a few months in California) until settling on Minetta Street in New York City's Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
in 1942. Her fifth floor walkup apartment Minetta Street was a safe haven she always remembered fondly.
Mascha became the family's breadwinner with odd jobs, including some writing copy for advertisements. The family's hope of a possible career for Chemjo in the film industry was crushed, and they returned to New York after a brief stint in Hollywood.
The Schoenhof Verlag in Cambridge, MA published Kaléko's third book "Verse fuer Zeitgenossen" in 1945 (German edition in 1958 by Rowohlt Verlag).
In 1956, Kaléko returned to Berlin for the first time. Three years later she was supposed to receive the Fontane prize, which she declined since it would have been handed over by a former Nazi official.
In 1959, she moved to Jerusalem, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, since her husband, who was conducting research on Hassidic singing, had better working conditions there. Mascha lacked knowledge of Hebrew and was thus somewhat isolated.
Kaléko died in January 1975 in Zurich where she fell ill enroute back to Jerusalem from a final visit in Berlin. She is buried on the Jewish cemetery Friesenberg near Zurich.
Her work has been compared to that of Erich Kästner
Erich Kästner
Emil Erich Kästner was a German author, poet, screenwriter and satirist, known for his humorous, socially astute poetry and children's literature.-Dresden 1899–1919:...
and Joachim Ringelnatz
Joachim Ringelnatz
Joachim Ringelnatz is the pen name of the German author and painter Hans Bötticher. His pen name Ringelnatz is usually explained as a dialect expression for an animal, possibly a variant of Ringelnatter, German for Grass Snake...
, among others, but her poetic voice is unique and memorable in different ways than those of her (mostly male) contemporaries.
Various attempts have been made to translate individual poems into English. In March 2010, for the first time, a representative number of Kaléko's poems appeared in English translation in the book "'No matter where I travel, I come to Nowhereland' - The poetry of Mascha Kaléko" (The University of Vermont, 2010, 112 pages). The author, Andreas Nolte, has selected poems from every phase of the poet's life. His translations follow the original German texts as closely as possible in order to maintain the kalékoesque content, diction, rhythm, and rhyme. Brief introductions provide additional information on Kaléko’s remarkable biography.
For more information on Mascha Kaléko and publications by/about her please visit www.maschakaleko.com
Quote
From the poem Mein schönstes Gedicht"Mein schönstes Gedicht?
Ich schrieb es nicht.
Aus tiefsten Tiefen stieg es.
Ich schwieg es.
Translation:
My best poem ever?
I wrote it never.
From deepest depths uprushed it.
I hushed it.
From the poem Was man so braucht:
Man braucht nur eine Insel
allein im weiten Meer.
Man braucht nur einen Menschen,
den aber braucht man sehr.
Translation:
One only needs an island
alone and lost at sea.
One only needs one person,
but this to have is key.
(translations: Andreas Nolte)
The poem Pihi:
Vom Vogel Pihi hab ich einst gelesen,
Dem Wundertier im Lande der Chinesen.
Er hat nur einen Fittich: Stets in Paaren
Sieht man am Horizont der Pihi Scharen.
Zu zweien nur kann sich das Tier erheben;
Im Singular bleibt es am Boden kleben.
- Dem Pihi gleich, gekettet an das Nest,
Ist meine Seele, wenn du mich verläßt.
Translation:
I once read of the Pihi bird,
The mythical animal in the land of the Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
It only has one wing: always in pairs
One sees flocks of Pihi on the horizon.
Only in twos can the animal lift off;
Alone it sticks to the ground.
-Like the Pihi, chained to the nest,
Is my soul, if you leave me.
(translation: unknown)
Works
- Das Lyrische Stenogrammheft. Verse vom Alltag (1933, reprint 1956)
- Das kleine Lesebuch für Große. Gereimtes und Ungereimtes, Verse (1934)
- Verse für Zeitgenossen (1945)
- Der Papagei, die Mamagei und andere komische Tiere (1961)
- Verse in Dur und Moll (1967)
- Das himmelgraue Poesiealbum der M.K (1968)
- Wie's auf dem Mond zugeht (1971)
- Hat alles seine zwei Schattenseiten (1973)
Published posthumously:
- Feine Pflänzchen. Rosen, Tulpen, Nelken und nahrhaftere Gewächse (1976)
- Der Gott der kleinen Webfehler (1977)
- In meinen Träumen lautet es Sturm. Gedichte und Epigramme aus dem Nachlaß.(1977)
- Horoskop gefällig? (1979)
- Heute ist morgen schon gestern (1980)
- Tag und Nacht Notizen (1981)
- Ich bin von anno dazumal (1984)
- Der Stern, auf dem wir leben (1984)
External links
- hagalil.com
- fembio.org
- phil-fak.uni-duesseldorf.de (german)
- kaleko.magiers.de (german)
- http://www.maschakaleko.com/
- author page at Lyrikline.orgLyrikline.orglyrikline.org hosts contemporary international poetry as audio and text , plus bibliographies and biographies for each poet.lyrikline.org was started in November 1999 as a German-language site...
, with audio and text (German).