Adam Zagajewski Poems

Adam Zagajewski is a Polish poet born in 1945 in Lvov. He has taught at several universities in the United States and is considered part of the “Generation of ’68” or “New Wave” writers in Poland. He has dabbled in protest poetry as well as themes of night, history, and eternity. His 2002 collection was titled World Without End: New and Selected Poems. He has also written two prose collections and won the Prix de la Liberté, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and a fellowship from the Berliner Kunstleprogramm.

Try to Praise the Mutilated World

by Adam Zagajewski

‘Try to Praise the Mutilated World’ by Adam Zagajewski focuses on the most important ways that people can find happiness in their everyday lives. They can step out into nature or return to memories.

The poem is a great example of Zagajewski's writing style, which often employs unique philosophical themes and a sense of melancholy reflection. His poetry is not incredibly well-known, but it is well worth reading, and this poem, in particular, is compelling and beautiful.

Try to praise the mutilated world.

Remember June's long days,

and wild strawberries, drops of rosé wine.

The nettles that methodically overgrown