THE MERIDIAN: FINAL VERSION/DRAFTS/MATERIALS: MERIDIAN CROSSING AESTHETICS SERIES

Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press, 2011. First Edition. First Printing.. Hardcover. Fine/No Dust Jacket, As Issued.. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press, 2011. Hardcover. Fine/None, As Issued. First Edition/First Printing. 281 pages. Definitive Edition of the author/poet's address. One of the greatest texts on the art of poetry. The First Hardcover Edition. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent editions. Published in a small and limited first print run as a hardcover original only by a University Press and as part of its Meridian Crossing Aesthetics, the legendary Series named after the present text. Without DJ, as issued. Some copies were also issued with a DJ, as is typical of this University Press. The First Edition is now scarce. Presents Paul Celan's "The Meridian: Final Version/Drafts/Materials" in a felicitous English translation. Originally delivered as his Acceptance Speech to the German Academy For Language And Poetry on the occasion of his being awarded the prestigious Georg Buchner Prize For Literature, in its definitive version. Plus illuminating and indispensable supplementary materials, a constellation of contexts. "One of, if not the most, important poetic statements of the second half of the twentieth century. Much more than a personal statement or occasional piece, it is a meditation on the state of poetry and art in general and a rigorous attempt to account for what poetry is, can, and must be after the Holocaust. This definitive historico-critical edition presents not only the first drafts, but also a vast array of notes, preparatory work, and a brief Essay on Osip Mandelstam, all of which work to expand the field of reference of Celan's Manifesto to reveal its true scope. Rich commentaries clarify Celan's notes to authors as diverse as Leibniz, Scheler, Kafka, Hofmannsthal, Husserl, Pascal, Valery, Heidegger, and others" (Publisher's blurb). "We discover that under the many surfaces of this magisterial essay is an abyss of poetic thinking struggling to emerge into the light of our encounter" (Charles Bernstein). An absolute "must-have" title for Paul Celan collectors. This title is a great book. This is one of few copies of the First Hardcover Edition/First Printing (American) still available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright. Please note: Without DJ, as issued. Other copies were also issued with a DJ by the publisher. Copies available online have serious flaws. This is surely an accessible and lovely alternative. A scarce copy thus. The greatest German poet of the 20th century. A fine copy. . ISBN 080473951X.