Arno Holz

The poet, playwright and critic Arno Holz (1863-1929) was the subject of several lengthy appreciations by Alfred Döblin (some of which are translated below). Since almost none of Holz’s poetry has been available in English, I decided to translate the first edition of his Phantasus – Holz’s experiment in making poetry from the rhythms of everyday spoken German, touching on everything from domestic moments to myth and fantasy to cosmic wonder.

Phantasus book completed

The first substantial English translation of Arno Holz’s poetry is now ready for publication. It includes the complete 100-poem first…
Read Full Post

Phantasus Selection 4

 Loss, love, longing, joy, scorn, sadness – Holz can capture moods and emotions with the condensed economy of a haiku…
Read Full Post

Phantasus Selection 3

  Fully one-third of the poems in Phantasus depict imagined fantastical scenes and behaviours, sometimes juxtaposed for satirical effect with…
Read Full Post

Phantasus selection 2

  Arno Holz was deeply interested in the scientific developments of the later 19 th century, when evolution was part…
Read Full Post

Phantasus Selection 1

  The plain uncomplicated language of the 101 poems in the first (1898-99) edition of Phantasus packs a considerable punch…
Read Full Post

Arno Holz and Phantasus

The first version of Arno Holz’s poem cycle ‘Phantasus’, published in 1898-99, contains 101 short poems, each presenting a scene…
Read Full Post

Subscribe For Updates

* indicates required

Intuit Mailchimp

Epic Worlds Podcast

Filters
Reset

Other Writers

Döblin's Life and Works, Epic Worlds Podcast

Epic Worlds Podcast Season 2

Current Views, Döblin's Epics

ADVENTUROUS READERS

Current Views

Guest Post 1: What’s missing in German Literature?