No poetry after Auschwitz

Starting with Theodor Adorno’s much-quoted proposition that ‘After Auschwitz it is barbaric to write poetry’, this talk will explore the tension between confronting the reality of the Holocaust and responding artistically through the medium of poetry to human experience. By focusing on individual poems by survivors such as Paul Celan and Primo Levi and English-language poets such as Anthony Hecht, Michael Longley and Carol Ann Duffy, the talk will tentatively consider how necessary poetry remains in the modern world. Examples of poems will be provided and can be found in the anthology, “Holocaust Poetry”, edited by Hilda Schiff.

Philip Lyons is a teacher and poet who lives in Bristol. He has taught creative writing and literary studies in a variety of settings, including universities, prisons and psychiatric hospitals. Since completing a PhD on Literary and Theological Responses to the Holocaust at the University of Bristol in 1988, he has also worked in the fields of advice and guidance, mental health, and adult education. He is the author of one full-length collection, “Like It Is” (Poetry Space, 2011), and he has given readings throughout the South West, including the Wells Festival of Literature and the Thornbury Arts Festival.