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Technicians of the Sacred: A Range of Poetries from Africa, America, Asia, Europe and Oceania (Paperback)

by Rothenberg (Author)

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Product details

Paperback: 636 pages
Publisher: University of California Press; 2nd Revised edition edition (1 Jul 1992)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0520049128
ISBN-13: 978-0520049123
Product Dimensions: 23.5 x 15.5 x 4.1 cm

Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 630,811 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Since its first publication in 1968, Jerome Rothenberg's "Technicians of the Sacred" has educated a generation of poets, artists, and readers to the multiple faces and possibilities of poetry throughout the world. Hailed by Robert Creeley as "both a deeply useful work book and an unequivocal delight," and by the "Los Angeles Times Book Review" as one of the hundred most recommended American books of the last thirty-five years, it appears here in a revised and expanded version several years in the making. Rothenberg's revision follows the structure and themes of the original version while reworking the contents to include a European section and a large number of newly gathered and translated poems that reflect the work set in motion since 1968.

About the Author

Jerome Rothenberg is a poet and one of the world's leading anthologists. His more than fifty books include Poems for the Millennium, Volumes One and Two (California 1995, 1998), co-edited with Pierre Joris. He is Professor of Visual Arts and Literature at the University of California, San Diego.

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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5.0 out of 5 stars Technicians of the Sacred, 7 Oct 2007

By	Tami Brady "Whole Health Therapist" (Calgary, Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

Technicians of the Sacred was compiled by Rothenberg after attending two 1964 readings of "Primitive and Archaic Poetry" at The Poet's Hardware Theater and the Caf� Metro in New York city. Intrigued with the deep intuition of these works, Rothenberg decided to collect poetry, songs, and chants from around the world.

Rothenberg's intention was not to focus on any one particular aspect of the sacred but merely to compile material that was available in English and the book's organization directly reflects this lack of apparent direction. Works are subdivided into nine sections: Origins & Namings; Visions & Spells; Death & Defeat; The Book of Events (I); The Book of Events (II); Africa; America; Asia; Europe & The Ancient Near East; and Oceana. Having material from the first five sections more or less focused around a specific theme while the remaining five sections reflect a geographic focus the work feeling a little thrown together and disorganized.

This disorganization is further reflected within each section, where there is everything from modern poetry and prose through traditional songs and chants to ancient pictographs and artwork. Moreover works from individual cultural groups are not placed together but dispersed throughout each section.

That the work only reflects English translations is also somewhat problematic. A Commentary section at the back of the book explains how Rothenberg came across each work offering explanations about the themes and topics within a particular piece. However, more often than not, these notes did not describe how the piece was translated. This lack of information would be particularly useful as Rothenberg states that the translations vary from literal to very free. This book does contain a number of interesting and useful pieces. Rothenberg has chosen a good mixture of poetry from a variety of different sources, not just the most accessible and he illustrates poems from the Paleolithic through to modern times. Moreover, this book contains some very interesting and intriguing transitional pieces reflecting Christian religious teaching modified into traditional forms. Thus, despite some very irritating and distracting organizational problems, this book contains some very valuable information. This information will likely be of use to those wishing to gain insight into aspects of the sacred in general or those wanting insight into the belief systems of particular cultures. Nonetheless, the apparent lack of organization of these pieces make this book an unlikely candidate as a classroom text.

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