소담스런 하얀 눈으로 덮힌 우리 집 뒤 겨울의 숲에서(2015년 겨울)....
일주일 후면 일년 중 가장 밤이 길다는 동지(Winter solstice)이다.
요즘은 낮 4시 15분에 해가 지고
아침 8시 45분에 해가 떠서,
밤의 길이가 낮의 길이보다 거의 2배에 가깝다.
그래서 안 그래도 낮이 짧은데에
날씨까지 흐린 날은 해를 보기가 힘들어서
자칫 우울해지기 십상이다.
북미에서는 이 날을 겨울의 첫날(The first day of Winter)라고 불리우지만,
실제로는 이 날부터 점점 낮 길이가 길어지기 시작하는 날이어서
개인적으로 동지는 곧 겨울의 시작이라기 보다는
끝의 시작이라고 여겨져서, 오히려 반갑고 희망적이다.
겨울의 절정인 동지를 전후해서
오랫동안 많은 사람들에게 사랑을 받아 온
겨울 영시 10편을 다시 한번 감상해 봅니다.
2010년 겨울, 얼어 붙은 루이즈 호수에서
#10: “From March 1979,” by Tomas Transtromer
Yes, March has the first day of spring, but alas,
March also has the final days of winter.
In this poem, Transtromer, a former winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature,
plays with the tug and pull of the seasons by contrasting it
with the tug and pull of the words we say and the language that we can’t.
#9: “In the bleak midwinter,” by Christina Rossetti
While the end of winter offers hope, the middle of winter
can seem as endless as winter nights.
In this poem by the author of The Goblin Market,
Rossetti searches for hope and finds religion.
This poem has frequently been set to music.
#8: “The Clocks of the Dead,” by Charles Simic
This beautiful poem about winter captures the changing of time and generations
with the assistance of the grandfather clock and snows of winter.
#7: “Horses,” by Pablo Neruda
The landscapes of winter can seem bleak and unforgiving to many people,
but Pablo Neruda latches on to an image
that blazed through a Berlin winter–an image of horses.
As the poem ends, “I have forgotten that dark Berlin winter.
//I will not forget the light of the horses.”
#6: “Not only the Eskimos,” by Lisel Mueller
From a poem based on a Berlin winter to a poet born in Hamburg, Germany,
Mueller’s “Not only the Eskimos” is a wonderful poem
about language in general and snow in particular.
As the poem begins, “We have only one noun/but as many different kinds:”
of snow, and then, Mueller proceeds to label the various kinds of snow.
#5: “The Darkling Thrush,” by Thomas Hardy
Written on the final day of the 19th century,
Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush” is one of the most popular winter poems
in the English language.
#4: “It sifts from Leaden Sieves,” by Emily Dickinson
Without once using the word “snow,”
Dickinson writes about “it” in beautiful imagery.
The snow covers things both large and small:
“Then stills its Artisans – like Ghosts -/Denying they have been -.”
#3: “The Snow Man,” by Wallace Stevens
Some lovers of poetry believe “The Snow Man” is not only the best poem of winter,
but the best poem ever written. And it is a special poem, for sure,
that binds people to the landscape of snow.
#2: “Those Winter Sundays,” by Robert Hayden
In “Those Winter Sundays,” Robert Hayden explores themes of love,
father-son relationships, and thankless work that must be done.
This poem is a perfect example of the power of what is said
and the power of what is not said.
#1: “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” by Robert Frost
Here it is: The best winter poem ever written, and surprise!
It was written on a summer morning.
Talk about distancing yourself from your subject.
But the magic of this poem is as much about the content as the music ending with,
“And miles to go before I sleep,/And miles to go before I sleep.”
우선 10위에 꼽아 본 토마스 트랜스트로머 작의 '1979년 봄에' 시를 감상해 봅니다.
From March 1979 by Tomas Tranströmer Weary of all who come with words, words but no language 말은 많이 늘어놓지만, 언어가 결여된 사람들이 버거워서 나는 하얀 눈으로 덮힌 섬으로 향했다. 길들여지지 않은 것들은 장황한 말이 쏟아내지 않는다. ............ ............ ............ |
2010년 12월 밴프 미네왕카 호수에서...
Tomas Tranströmer
1931–2015
2010년 12월 밴프에서 루이즈 호수로 가는 길에서...
