If Not, Winter: Fragments Of Sappho

by Anne Carson

From the critically acclaimed poet and classicist Anne Carson: a brilliant new translation of the work of Sappho, together with the original Greek.
During her life on the island of Lesbos, Sappho is said to have composed nine books of lyrics. Only one poem has survived complete. In IF NOT, WINTER, Carson presents all the extant fragments of Sappho's verse, employing brackets and white space to denote missing text - allowing the reader to imagine the poems as they were written.
Carson says of her method of translation: 'I like to think that, the more I stand out of the way, the more Sappho shows through.' And certainly her translation illuminates Sappho's reflections on love and desire, her companions and rivals, the goddess Aphrodite, her own daughter, Kleis. IF NOT, WINTER gives us an extraordinary ancient poet brought alive by a brilliantly empathetic contemporary poet. Complete with Carson's introduction and notes, it will become the standard translation of Sappho for our time.

• ISBN10: 1844080811
• ISBN13: 9781844080816
• Publish Date: 6 November 2003
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Virago Press Ltd
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 416
• Language: English

Reviews

[lyx]

"you came and I was crazy for you
and you cooled my mind that burned with longing"

Her poetry often has a level of yearning that is conveyed intensely despite of, or maybe even amplified by, its fragmented existence. Her words are chosen beautifully enough that they can remain -to a level- unaffected by their separation from their original context and lack of full poems or even lines. It is certainly something different to read poetry in such a way, but it opens doors to wonder and imagination in its own right and isn't worth any less of a read.

"stars around the beautiful moon
hide back their luminous form
whenever all full she shines
on the earth

silvery"

It is quite marvelous that the words of a person who lived over two thousand years ago, and of whom the majority of their work was destroyed, as well as the person themself -for however little we actually know of them-, can be and are still being remembered, read, and revered today.
As Sappho famously wrote herself,
“someone will remember us
I say
even in another time”.
And oh so they did, they do, and I dare say they will for time to come.