Poems for Romanian Entries You can enter an English translation of any poem out of any language for the Stephen Spender Prize. Below we have gathered some suggestions for Romanian entries. Want to find more? Discover more resources and activities on our Multilingual Creativity hub. Full details about how to enter the Stephen Spender Prize can be found on our website. @StephenSpender stephenspendertrust Stephen Spender Trust Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 1 La steaua Mihai Eminescu Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889) is known as Romania’s ‘national poet’. When studying in Vienna in 1872, he met the love of his life, the poet Veronica Micle, and they began a complicated affair that would last till his death. In 1886, Mihai Eminescu suffered a nervous breakdown for which he was hospitalised, and in the same year ‘La Steaua’ (‘To the Star’) was published in a literary journal. ‘La Steaua’ uses cosmic imagery to depict unattainable love. Gazing at a star in the sky, the poetic speaker muses that because it is so far away, its light would have taken years to reach him and that the star itself might have exploded long ago. He likens this to a romantic relationship which has ended but still holds power over him. 'La Steaua' has an ABAB rhyme scheme. Listen to the poem La steaua care-a răsărit E-o cale-atât de lungă, Că mii de ani i-au trebuit Luminii să ne-ajungă. Poate de mult s-a stins în drum În depărtări albastre, Iar raza ei abia acum Luci vederii noastre, Icoana stelei ce-a murit Încet pe cer se suie: Era pe când nu s-a zărit, Azi o vedem, şi nu e. Tot astfel când al nostru dor Pieri în noapte-adâncă, Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 2 Lumina stinsului amor Ne urmăreşte încă. Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 3 Cânt Magda Isanos Magda Isanos was born in 1916 and died at the tender age of 28. She is considered to be one of the key poets of the interwar era. Isanos fell ill with polio in early childhood, yet despite suffering from poor health from then on, she lived a full, though sadly brief, life. She practiced law, wrote for various newspapers, became involved in the Spanish Civil War, and married twice. Her poems focus on nature, spirituality, and the transience of love and life. The poem 'Cânt' ('I Sing') uses rhyming couplets to convey the musical, lyrical quality of her 'song'. Listen to the poem Cint ca privighetorile oarbe. Nu stiu, eu sorb cintecul sau el ma soarbe. Atit de sus ne-naltam citeodata... Sufletu-mi arde de-o flacara infricosata. Ca rugul din care a vorbit Dumnezeu, asa arde sufletul meu. Cred in zine, in sfinti si minuni ; prieteni, nu-mi impletiti cununi. Cintecul e-n mine ca-n voi tacerea ; ii banuiesc uneori puterea, insa nu stiu nimic si ma-nchin smerit ingerului linga mine ivit. Fa-ma sa cint despre oameni si suferinti, soptesc cu buzele reci, fierbinti, despre saraci, despre copii si foame... Si-n mijlocul cerestii mele spaime, intrezaresc cuvintele de foc, cu care-ar trebui sa creez lumea, s-o pun la loc. Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 4 Apoi ramin singura. Nu stiu nici eu de ce mi-a vorbit din stufisul aprins Dumnezeu. Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 5 Ar trebui Ana Blandiana Ana Blandiana (born 1942) is one of the most important Romanian contemporary poets. Her father, an Orthodox priest, was a political prisoner during the communist era and Blandiana herself was labelled as a dissident after publishing poems criticising the corruption of the regime. After the communist party was overthrown in the Romanian revolution of 1989, Blandiana became a political activist and founded a Memorial for the Victims of Communism. The poem ‘Ar Trebui’, written in free verse, imagines a world where the ageing process is reversed, where we are born old and wise and then grow younger every year. The poem’s most distinct feature is its use of parallel phrasing, which arguably conveys the passing of time. Ar trebui să ne naştem bătrâni, Să venim înţelepţi, Să fim în stare de-a hotărî soarta noastră în lume, Să ştim din răscrucea primară ce drumuri pornesc Şi iresponsabil să fie doar dorul de-a merge. Apoi să ne facem mai tineri, mai tineri, mergând, Maturi şi puternici s-ajungem la poarta creaţiei, Să trecem de ea şi-n iubire intrând adolescenţi, Să fim copii la naşterea fiilor noştri. Oricum ei ar fi atunci mai bătrâni decât noi, Ne-ar învăţa să vorbim, ne-ar legăna să dormim, Noi am dispărea tot mai mult, devenind tot mai mici, Cât bobul de strugure, cât bobul de mazăre, cât bobul de grâu… Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 6 Balada unui greier mic George Topîrceanu George Topîrceanu (March 20, 1886 – May 7, 1937) was a poet, short story writer and humorist. ‘Balada unui greier mic’ is one of his most famous poems and it is about cricket struggling to survive during the cold autumn months. Like other ballads, this poem tells a story. It features a refrain (a line that keeps recurring throughout the poem) and many of its lines rhyme. The poet also uses onomatopoeia and consonance to convey the harshness of the weather and the fate of the poor shivering cricket. You might want to use some of these features when crafting your own translation or choose others to create similar effects. If you have not read a ballad before, it might be helpful to read ‘Annabel Lee’ by Edgar Allan Poe' or ‘The Highwayman’ by Alfred Noyes as an introduction to this genre. Note: ‘Cri-cri-cri’ is the sound the cricket makes. Peste dealuri zgribulite, Peste ţarini zdrenţuite, A venit aşa, deodată, Toamna cea întunecată. Lungă, slabă şi zăludă, Botezând natura udă C-un mănunchi de ciumafai, - Când se scutură de ciudă, Împrejurul ei departe Risipeşte-n evantai Ploi mărunte, Frunze moarte, Stropi de tină, Guturai... Şi cum vine de la munte, Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 7 Blestemând Şi lăcrimând, Toţi ciulinii de pe vale Se pitesc prin văgăuni, Iar măceşii de pe câmpuri O întâmpină în cale Cu grăbite plecăciuni... Doar pe coastă, la urcuş, Din căsuţa lui de humă A ieşit un greieruş, Negru, mic, muiat în tuş Şi pe-aripi pudrat cu brumă: - Cri-cri-cri, Toamnă gri, Nu credeam c-o să mai vii Înainte de Crăciun, Că puteam şi eu s-adun O grăunţă cât de mică, Ca să nu cer împrumut La vecina mea furnică, Fi'ndcă nu-mi dă niciodată, Şi-apoi umple lumea toată Că m-am dus şi i-am cerut... Dar de-acuş, Zise el cu glas sfârşit Ridicând un picioruş, Dar de-acuş s-a isprăvit... Cri-cri-cri, Toamnă gri, Tare-s mic şi necăjit! Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 8 Ninge ! Otilia Cazimir Otilia Cazimir (1894–1967) was a successful prose writer and translator, but she is best known for the poems she wrote for children. Her idyllic portrayal of childhood earned her the nickname ‘the poet of gentle souls’. The poem ‘Ninge!’ uses an irregular rhyme scheme to convey the excitement of a snowy day. Ssst! Micuţa gerului, Cu mânuţa îngheţată, Bate-n poarta cerului Şi întreabă supărată; – Unde-s stelele de sus? – Iaca, nu-s! Vântul rău le-a scuturat Şi le-mprăştie prin sat. Uite una: s-a desprins Dintr-o margine de nor Şi coboară-ncetişor… – Oare-a nins? E un fulg şi-i cel dintâi Şi aduce-n vânt, ninsoare, Drumuri albe peste văi, Râs curat în ochii tăi, Sănioare, Zurgălăi… Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 9 Nu-ţi Uita Numele Copil de Ţigan Luminiţa Mihai Cioabă Luminiţa Mihai Cioabă was born in 1957. She is the daughter of a bulibaşa, also known as ‘King of the Gypsies’ and in her early years Cioabă lived a semi-nomadic life. Cioabă was forced into marriage in her teens, but later divorced her husband and pursued a career as a writer. The poem ‘Nu-ţi Uita Numele Copil de Ţigan’ is addressed to a gipsy child (Ţigan) whom she urges not to forget their heritage. It could be seen as a protest poem as it highlights the discrimination faced by the Roma people living in many countries, including Romania. Much of Romani culture is based on the oral tradition and Cioabă’s use of a refrain, short lines and alliteration create sound effects and rhythms commonly found in stories and songs. Nu-ţi uita numele copil de ţigan prin ochii tăi se vede inima poporului risipit ca firul nisipului la marginea mării. Nu-ţi uita numele copil de ţigan Raza – Soarelui – Răsare se odihneşte pe faţa ta în taina focului încât mirosul pământului proaspăt locuieşte în pieptul tău. Nu-ţi uita numele copil de ţigan căci numai în părul tău luna îşi aruncă strălucirea stelelor învăţându-te Iubirea Începutului de Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 10 Dincolo de Cer. Nu-ţi uita numele copil de ţigan lacrimile tale sunt ploaia cerului din Rădăcina Pământului încât Cântul Libertăţii va fi Drumul Numelui vostru acolo. Stephen Spender Prize – Poems for Romanian Entries 11 Pământul Lucian Blaga Lucian Blaga (1895–1961) is considered to be one of the most important Romanian poets of the twentieth century. After the Second World War, the communist government censored his work as Blaga refused any connections to the Party and was deemed to be too ‘philosophical’ and subversive for his time.