"Fighting Oppression with Poetry"
"A dossier filled with heartbreaking stories of prisoners of conscience inspired literature laureate Seamus Heaney to write one his best-known poems, From the Republic of Conscience. His verses suggest that we should be lifetime ambassadors for a principled country and speak up on its behalf if its virtuous values are threatened. Heaney reportedly believed that art is driven by empathy and it is the role of the artist to give a voice to those who were oppressed and ignored. Poems, such as North, often explore Irish culture, history and identity. He is one of several literature laureates to explore the impact of colonialism in verse."
viaTHE NOBEL PRIZE |
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What Sparks Poetry:
Peter Cole on Translation
"The Hebrew word tikkun means, simply, 'repair,' but it is best known beyond spoken Hebrew as a kabbalistic term that has seeped into the popular imagination. In that context it alludes to course corrections of consciousness that lead to tikkun olam—repair, mending, or even healing of a broken world. Rooted in the tradition of the biblical prophets, and critical to classic rabbinic considerations of social viability and harmony, tikkun has, arguably, become a core Jewish concept that calls for working toward a more compassionate social fabric, in part by identifying and combatting injustice." |
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