Poems and Prose

Georg Trakl (1887-1914) was an Austrian poet, born in Salzburg. His work has, up until now, only been available in anthologies and short selections. This volume contains all his major poetic work, including the prose poetry and some prose pieces. Trakl's models were Baudelaire, Rimbaud and Verlaine. [...]
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Georg Trakl (1887-1914) was an Austrian poet, born in Salzburg. His work has, up until now, only been available in anthologies and short selections. This volume contains all his major poetic work, including the prose poetry and some prose pieces. Trakl's models were Baudelaire, Rimbaud and Verlaine. His poems are often likened to pictures by the French fauvistes or the German expressionists, for their use of colour and communication of mood. His admirers include Rilke, Kafka, Karl Kraus, and the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein who was one of his patrons. Trakl's poetry was produced in five intense years, ending in November 1914 when he died, probably from a self-administered overdose of cocaine, when serving as a medical orderly on the Eastern Front. His poetry is celebrated for its autumnal, melancholy, and often dark tone, but it is also referred to as hymnic. Its formal beauty is often in conflict with the violence and ugliness of many of its images. This gives it a tension and a modernity which has ensured its survival and resonance.