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Writer and translator DAVID CONSTANTINE talks to Meic Birtwistle about the long overdue publication of Bertolt Brecht's collected poems in English
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PLAYWRIGHT and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956) is one of the most significant Marxist literary figures of the last century and it seems appropriate that a new translation of his collected poems has just been published at a time when the centenary of the political assassination of Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht is being marked.
This massive joint undertaking by David Constantine and Tom Kuhn is a highly welcome contribution to Brecht’s study and enjoyment in English. Salford-born Constantine, a highly regarded poet in his own right, is an award-winning translator and short-story writer and here he answers questions about this major task and the pleasures and pains of translating poetry.
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A century after his death, the forgotten communist pioneer’s legacy in South Africa and beyond is celebrated in Aberystwyth with films, talks and drama, writes MEIC BIRTWHISTLE
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