Friedrich Hölderlin studied theology at the Tübinger Stift. As a private tutor in Frankfurt he met his muse, his employer’s wife and the Diotima of his poetry. Dismissed and impoverished, he eventually suffered a breakdown and in 1805 was committed to a clinic at Tübingen. Discharged as incurable, he was taken ... read more

Michael Hamburger (1924–2007) was a poet and critic of distinction as well as the outstanding translator of German poetry. His awards include the Schlegel-Tieck Prize (1981), the German Federal Republic’s Goethe Medal (1986) and the EC’s first European Translation Prize (1990) for Poems of Paul Celan . Five collections of his ... read more