Serbia, (1922-1991)
Pig
English translation
- Only when she felt
- The savage knife in her throat
- Did the red veil
- Explain the game
- And she was sorry
- She had torn herself
- From the mud’s embrace
- And had hurried so joyfully
- From the field that evening
- Hurried to the yellow gate
Свиња
(original Serbian)
- -Васко Попа
- Тек када је чула
- Бесни нож у грлу
- Црвена завеса
- Објаснила јој игру
- И било јој је жао
- Што се истргла
- Из наручја каљуге
- И што је вечером с поља
- Тако радосно јурила
- Јурила капији жутој
About the Poet:
Vasile “Vasko” Popa, Serbia, (1922-1991), was a poet who wrote in a succinct modernist style that owed more to French surrealism and Serbian folk traditions than to the Socialist Realism that dominated Eastern European literature after World War II.
A riddling fabulist, his work, took its bearings from the songs and folklore of his native Serbia and from surrealism. Popa has a dark gnomic fatalistic humor and pathos that are like nothing else.
Popa gained steadily in stature and popularity throughout his life. His poetic achievement – eight volumes of verse written over a period of 38 years – has received extensive critical acclaim both in his native land and beyond. He is one of the most translated Serbian poets and today has become one of the most influential World poets. [DES-06/22]