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Article: Poetry today.(Selected Poems by Giuseppe Ungaretti)(The Earth's Wall: Selected Poems 1932-1986)(Book Review)
- Article from:
- The Antioch Review
- Article date:
- March 22, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Antioch Review, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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For American lovers of modern Italian poetry, this is an exciting time. After recent, and sometimes brilliant, translations of Eugenio Montale (1896-1981), Umberto Saba (1883-1954), and Cesare Pavese (1908-1950), here come Giorgio Caproni (1912-1990) and Giuseppe Ungaretti (1888-1970). Reading their work is invigorating. Please forgive me if I am inclined to argue that, in comparison to many American poets, Caproni and Ungaretti often attain an admirable, intense equilibrium between various poetic intentions and tendencies. They can be sensual and metaphysical at the same time. They seek out vivid detail from the outside world, but also retire into secrecy, obliqueness, ...