Dec 18, 2009
“Homecoming” is a free-verse poem of nineteen lines. Its title is somewhat ironic, suggesting a joyous return, a celebration of reunion. The actual “homecoming” that Paul Celan describes in the poem is a bleak return to a landscape of the dead.
The poem comes from a collection that marks the point at which Celan became renowned throughout Europe. The title of this collection, Sprachgitter (speechmesh), illustrates the increasing darkness and obscurity of his work. The title suggests the difficulty of speaking through a mesh or grid, and perhaps...
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