Der magnetische Norden.

Ah! Hannah Arendt

Reading and discussion with Tomas Venclova, Ellen Hinsey, and Michael Krüger; moderated by Matthias Bormuth

Vilnius and Moscow, Berkeley and New Haven are stops along the captivating life story of Tomas Venclova. The “Lithuanian Odysseus” recalls these places through poems in conversation with translator and poet Ellen Hinsey and poet and longtime publisher Michael Krüger. The fact that poetic and political freedom are interdependent is the central theme of this fascinating life spanning a century. Echoing Hannah Arendt, Venclova emphasizes the unifying power of poetic thought when he concludes in retrospect: “Poetry insists on unconditional individuality […]. When it succeeds, one finds one’s place in language and in history, which existed long before oneself and will continue after one’s own death.” Arendt championed poetic perspectives that draw on Western traditions and foster social moral courage. Words can transform political alienation into poetic closeness, according to Tomas Venclova’s autobiographical summary: “Exile creates a magnetic point to which one is drawn like a compass needle to the pole. And ultimately, this magnetic point can become one’s own.”

Supported by the Baden-Württemberg Foundation and in cooperation with the Haus der Heimat of the State of Baden-Württemberg