Poetry Without Borders, an intimate poetry reading, will break boundaries by featuring works in a variety of languages ranging from Thai to German today at the Karl Anatol Center at 6:30 p.m.
Students, staff, faculty and alumni will read poems from all over the world in the pieces’ original languages. A translation of the poem in English will be projected behind the speaker. All poems share the encompassing theme “love and other ailments,” which is expressed in different ways ranging from times of happiness to heartache.
Roughly 120 to 150 people are expected to attend the event, sponsored by the Romance, German and Russian languages and literatures (RGRLL) department, according to event organizer Enrico Vettore. There will be 20 to 28 readers in eight to 10 different languages.
“[Poetry Without Borders] has become a much loved event in our department; it allows us (students, faculty and staff) to come together and enjoy poetry in many different languages,” Vettore said via email.
An open call for poetry was issued to encourage students from any major to participate in the event.
“We never turn anyone away,” event organizer Rita Palacios said. “Since we’ve started, we’ve had such a great response. People really like reading poetry.”
In addition to the reading, Poetry Without Borders also held a poetry competition in which RGRLL students submitted original work in French, German, Italian, Spanish or Russian. The entries were evaluated for accuracy, style and originality.
Jose Martinez won first place for his poem, which is untitled. German and Spanish studies senior Lauren Greenwood’s poem “Echos Liebesqual” received an honorary mention.
Greenwood’s poem, written in German, tells the story of Echo and Narcissus, through Echo’s eyes.
“I’ve always loved the story of Echo and Narcissus,” Greenwood said. “I liked the theme [of the event] and came up with the idea pretty quickly, focusing on the metaphor of love as a sickness.”
Greenwood and Martinez will be reading their original poems tonight, along with a number of other staff and students who will read poems in various languages other than English.
The program will conclude with a small reception.
Disclaimer: The Daily 49er is not responsible for Postings made on www.daily49er.wpengine.com. Persons commenting are solely responsible for Postings made on this website. Persons commenting agree to the Terms of Use of the website. If Postings do not abide by the Rules of Conduct or Posting Regulations as listed in the Postings Policy, the Daily 49er has all rights to delete Postings as it deems necessary. The Daily 49er strongly advises individuals to not abuse their First Amendment rights, and to avoid language suggestive of hate speech. This site also encourages users to make Postings relevant to the article or other Postings.