In the Presence of Absence

by Mahmoud Darwish

Sinian Antoon (Translator) and Sinan Antoon (Translator)

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Book cover for In the Presence of Absence

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One of the most transcendent poets of his generation, Darwish composed this remarkable elegy at the apex of his creativity, but with the full knowledge that his death was imminent. Thinking it might be his final work, he summoned all his poetic genius to create a luminous work that defies categorization. In stunning language, Darwish’s self-elegy inhabits a rare space where opposites bleed and blend into each other. Prose and poetry, life and death, home and exile are all sung by the poet and his other. On the threshold of im/mortality, the poet looks back at his own existence, intertwined with that of his people. Through these lyrical meditations on love, longing, Palestine, history, friendship, family, and the ongoing conversation between life and death, the poet bids himself and his readers a poignant farewell.
  • ISBN10 1935744011
  • ISBN13 9781935744016
  • Publish Date 4 November 2011
  • Publish Status Active
  • Publish Country US
  • Publisher Steerforth Press
  • Imprint Archipelago