‘A Word’

A word, a sentence – out of ciphers
climb life untangled, sudden sense,
the sun stands still, the spheres quieten,
all things about that point condense.

A word – a flash, a fire, flamethrower,
flight, a shooting star of pain –
then dark inexorably taking over
in space, the world and self again.

Gottfried Benn ranks among the most significant German poets of the twentieth century. His early work, with its shockingly graphic depictions of human suffering and degradation, was associated with the Expressionist movement; the overriding theme of his later work was the isolation and fragmentation of the human being adrift in a nihilistic world.

David Paisey here presents two selections, of verse and prose respectively, from Benn’s large oeuvre, ordered chronologically to enable readers to perceive the developments of Benn’s art and thought. In an important biographical introduction, Paisey tackles the difficult question of Benn’s compliance with the Nazi regime and its impact on his life and work.