At Your Feet

Ana Cristina Cesar, Brenda Hillman

Description

Ana Cristina Cesar (1952-1983) has posthumously become one of Brazil’s best known avant-garde poets. After her suicide in 1983, her innovative, mythic, and dreamlike poetry has greatly influenced subsequent generations of writers. At Your Feet was originally published as a poetic sequence and later became part of a longer hybrid work— sometimes prose, sometimes verse—documenting the life and mind of a forcefully active literary woman. Cesar, who also worked internationally as a journalist and translator, often found inspiration in the writings of other poets, among them Emily Dickinson, Armando Freitas Filho, and Gertrude Stein. Her innovative writing has been featured in Sun and Moon’s classic anthology Nothing the Sun Could Not Explain—20 Contemporary Brazilian Poets (2000). Poet Brenda Hillman and her mother Helen Hillman (a native speaker of Portuguese) worked with Brazilian poet Sebastião Edson Macedo and translator/editor Katrina Dodson to render as faithfully as possible the intricately layered poems of this legendary writer. At Your Feet includes both the English translation and original Portuguese.

Informations

• Publié par: Parlor Press, LLC
• Date de parution: 19 février 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 4
• EAN13: 9781602354869
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

ANA CRISTINA CESAR ATYOURFEET Ransaed y BRenda HiLman and Heen HiLman, wi Seasião Edson Macedo Edied y KaRina Dodson

Free Verse Edîtîons Edîted by Jon Tompson

At Your Feet A teus pés

Ana Cristina Cesar

Translated by Brenda Hillman and Helen Hillman, with Sebastião Edson Macedo Edited by Katrina Dodson

Parlor Press Anderson, South Carolina www.parlorpress.com

Paror Press LLC, Anderson, Sout Caroîna, 29621

© 2013, 2018 by te Heîrs o Ana Crîstîna Cesar Pubîsed în Brazî by Companîa das Letras, São Pauo

Transatîon © 2018 by Brenda Hîman A rîgts reserved. Prînted în te Unîted States o Amerîca S A N: 2 5 4 - 8 8 7 9

Lîbrary o Congress Cataogîng-în-Pubîcatîon Data on Fîe

978-1-60235-485-2 (paperback) 978-1-60235-486-9 (PDF) 978-1-60235-494-4 (ePub)

1 2 3 4 5

Cover desîgn by Davîd Bakesey. Cover poto o Ana Crîstîna Cesar by João Amîno. Used by permîssîon. Prînted on acîd-ree paper. Paror Press, LLC îs an îndependent pubîser o scoary and trade tîtes în prînt and mutîmedîa ormats. hîs book îs avaîabe în paperback and ebook ormats rom Paror Press on te Word Wîde Web at ttp://www.parorpress.com or troug onîne and brîck-and-mortar bookstores. For submîssîon înormatîon or to Ind out about Paror Press pubîcatîons, wrîte to Paror Press, 3015 Brackenberry Drîve, Anderson, Sout Caroîna, 29621, or emaî edîtor@parorpress.com.

Contents

Preace vii [Soundtrack în te background] 3 [A storm coses în] 7 [Second quîck story about appîness] 9 Lock and Key 11 European Wînter 13 Carîoca Nîgt 15 ïvory 17 ïndependent Yout 19 [EXTERïOR. DAY] 21 Prîmer or a Cure 23 [ï need to go back and take anoter ook] 25 Ladîes’ Tak 27 Summary 29 [he story îs compete:wide sargasso sea] 31 [Wîtout you ï’m reay a ake, a mountaîn] 33 Beînd te Eyes o Serîous Gîrs 35 Beînd te Eyes o Serîous Gîrs 37 Hauntîng Encounter at te Catedra 39 hîs Book 41 Two Od Ones ï 43 ïï 45 Vacîatîon o Vocatîon 47 [My mout îs] 49 [settîng you ree] 51 [se oved] 53 [ît’s very cear] 55 [Wen between us tere was ony] 57 [Used to reappear suddeny] 59 Bedsîde 61 Adventure în te Stocky House 63

Contents

Pubîc Man #1 (Antoogy) 65 Pour Mémoîre 67 Good Frîday 69 Wat Sîdes 71 Samba Song 73 Travelling 75 Out here 77 [Now and ten ï dîg troug tîs back bag] 79 [ï wanted to speak o deat] 81 Hoy Saturday 83 [Ever sînce ï came back ï jump] 85 [Everytîng ï never tod you, însîde tese margîns] 87 Fîna Fîre 89 Onomastîc ïndex 93

Acknowedgments 95 Notes 97 Free Verse Edîtîons 101 About te Edîtor and Transators 103

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Preface

Ana Crîstîna Cesar was born în Copacabana, Rîo de Janeîro în 1952. Daug- ter o academîc and reîgîous parents, se worked as a transator and was known în avant-garde îterary and artîstîc cîrces în te 1970s. Se traveed extensîvey în Europe and Engand untî er tragîc, untîmey deat by suî- cîde în 1983 at te age o tîrty-one. ï became encanted by Cesar’s poetry wen ï read a ew o er poems în Nothing the Sun Could Not Explain(2000), a marveous antoogy o Brazî- îan poetry edîted by Mîcae Pamer, Régîs Bonvîcîno, and Neson Ascer; te voume întroduced Engîs speakers to some contemporary Brazîîan ex- perîmenta poets. Poet and transator Crîs Danîes suggested Cesar wen ï tod îm ï was ookîng or a Brazîîan poet to transate wît my moter, Heen Hîman, wo was at te tîme în er ate eîgtîes, and wo as maîn- taîned command o er natîve Portuguese (se was born to Amerîcan par- ents în São Pauo în 1924, raîsed în Porto Aegre, and came to te U.S. în te 1940s). ï was drawn to Ana Crîstîna Cesar or oter reasons as we. Se and ï were approxîmatey te same age wen ï aso îved as a cîd wît my amîy în 1950s Rîo, în Copacabana. ï maîntaîned a bît o my cîd- ood Portuguese. Cesar’s best-known work,A teus pés,At Your Feet(1982), darîngy co- ages emotîona yrîcîsm wît materîas o înguîstîc înventîon în bod y- brîd and oter experîmenta orms. Te work îs îmagîstîc, but er metapors oten evade and îndîrecty tease te reader suggestîvey. Te book-engt work as eatures în common wît Teresa Hak Kyung Ca’sDictée,în îts mutîîngua quaîtîes, and în îts emînîst caenges to receîved tradîtîons. Cesar’s prasîng îs o-kîter and at tîmes seems unînged; te poygrammat- îca unîts ît togeter îke a jîgsaw puzze (“quebracabeça” în Portuguese—to smas your ead). Just as te poems oten reer to sîgty reckess drîvîng and trave, tey careen between dîrect meanîng and înnuendo. Cesar seems to sare some o Syvîa Pat’s wîd yrîc atmospere but wît an entîrey dî- erent aestetîc experîence, one more akîn to te montages o Gertrude Steîn. ïn er subject matter and în te “Onomastîc ïndex” tat coses tîs co- ectîon, Cesar cannes and reerences oter wrîters and events în modern- îst asîon, încudîng Cares Baudeaîre, Eîzabet Bîsop, Octavîo Paz, Edgar Aan Poe, Jean Rys and oters. Se ods în great Brazîîan modern- îst and contemporary avant-garde wrîters as we—Caros Drummond de Andrade, Manue Bandeîra, Armando Freîtas Fîo, and Francîsco Avîm among tem—gîves nods to popuar cuture as we as to “îg” cuture.

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Se wrîtes o îe and conscîousness and trave and te agonîes and joys o ove, spîrîtua and sensua, or bot men and women. As poet and scoar Sebastîão Edson Macedo as noted, “ïn Cesar’s work, te reader wî înd a body o poems tat as înspîred dîstînctîve ways o voîcîng înnovatîve yrîc experîence în contemporary poetry în Brazî, especîay în suc eadîng women poets as Maríîa Garcîa, Júîa de Carvao Hansen, Tatîana Pequeno and Aîce Sant’Anna.” Cesar, oten known as Ana C. în Brazî, îs a ascînatîng poet wose work maîntaîns îts power and mystery troug mutîpe readîngs. Te process o transatîng Cesar’s work was cîrcuîtous. My moter and ï worked on pîeces oAt Your Feetover a perîod o îve years and dîd a roug transatîon o two o er oter works as we. We spoke weeky on te pone, usuay on Frîdays. Wen ï trav- eed to Tucson were se îved, we worked togeter on te couc, odîng te book between us wît my aptop to te sîde. Oten my ater (ten în îs eary nînetîes) woud sue în to ceck on us; e oved te act tat we were workîng on sometîng tat gave my moter suc peasure. Ater we competed te îrst drats, ï reaîzed te drat dîd not address many current îdîomatîc expressîons în Ana C.’s work, and sougt out Sebastîão Edson Macedo rom te Unî- versîty o Caîornîa at Berkeey to reîne te work. Wît te ep o Sebastîão’s terrîîc precîsîon and knowedge o current Brazîîan îdîoms, tese transatîons took urter sape. ït as been a seer joy to work wît Sebastîão în Caé Roya Grounds, were we ave met oten. We wanted to capture not ony te orîgîna ormattîng o tîs work, but aso te spîrît o Cesar’s energy and some o er rater obscure reerences. Oakand poet and transator o Brazîîan poetry Tîany Hîggîns oered many suggestîons trougout te process. Te buk o te îna edîts and correctîons were made wît te exaustîve and toroug ep o Katrîna Dodson, a brîîant scoar and te transator o Carîce Lîspector’sComplete Stories, aso rom UC Berkeey, wo suggested most o te revîsîons tat ave brougt te project to îts îna orm. Furter assîstance în decîperîng te most mysterîous prases came rom our Brazîîan coeagues: trans- atîon studîes scoar Rîcardo Ferreîra Fîo, transator and edîtor Juîa Sances, te great contemporary poet and transator Pauo Henrîques Brîtto, and Cesar’s own dear rîend, te aorementîoned poet Armando Freîtas Fîo. Anoter taented transator o Brazîîan

poetry, Hîary Kapan, connected us wît Companîa das Letras, te current Brazîîan pubîser o Cesar’s work. Tank you to tose at Companîa das Letras—Fernanda Dîas, Marîano Marovatto, Rîta Mattar, Fernando Rînadî, and Aîce Sant’anna—wo eped tremendousy to acîîtate tîs transatîon and to estabîs te cor- rect îneatîon o te poems, wîc coud be quîte compîcated! ï am grateu to a o tese abe scoars and wrîters, as we as to Saînt Mary’s Coege or a grant tat enabed tîs project. Jon Tompson and Dave Bakesey o Free Verse Edîtîons and Paror Press ave pro- vîded patîent ard work în te pubîsîng process. Fînay, ï am extremey grateu and send mutîpe tanks to te amîy o Ana Crîstîna Cesar or supportîng tîs pubîcatîon. As aways, ï owe a arge debt to my usband, Robert Hass, and to our cîdren and grandcîdren or teîr encouragement, and to my broters Brad and Brent Hîman or teîr constant support, and most o a, to our beoved moter Heen Hîman, wo oves Brazî, Brazîîan poets and wo îs a dîîgent reader o Amerîcan poetry as we. ï am ucky to ave suc an amazîng moter, and am very îm- pressed tat se as command o two beautîu anguages, Engîs and Portuguese, ater nînety-two years. Toug transatîon îs an înexact art, we ope troug tîs group eort to ave maîntaîned a sense o Ana Crîstîna Cesar’s dar- îng ove o îe and anguage, er emînîsm, er contînuousy radîca orms, and te tîmeîness and tîmeessness o er experîments wît înner and pubîc voîces.

Brenda Hîman Oîvîa C. Fîîppî Proessor Saînt Mary’s Coege o Caîornîa