Gorter's bright light - Following his epic debut masterpiece May in 1889, Herman Gorter continued to expand the boundaries of poetry. As Gorter let his feelings write his poems, he reshaped the rules of rhyme, rhythm, language and meaning in the process. It makes Gorter's work after May quite impossible to translate. Take for example one of Gorter’s most crisp and engrossing odes to love from Verses (Verzen, 1890): "Gij staat zoo heel, heel stil". In English, quite literally, the poem could read: "You stand there oh so very still With your hands, I have this will To tell to you such a sweet thing, But I don't know what thing. Your sweet shoulders are so beautiful, The light surrounding you thaws all, Warm, warm, warm - a still adorning Of warmth, as I make yearning. Your eyes they are as blue As clear water, if only you I could be for a wee moment, But I can't, I stay me own and I don't know what it is, that thing I want to tell to you - it was some thing." Gorter, in the original, repeatedly seeks refuge in the simple word "wat" (meaning both "what thing" and "some thing"). Through this vulnerable clumsiness he reveals his perceived inadequacy to express himself in words. To capture such subtlety, another level of translation and clarity of vision is required. Only then can the essential Gorter, a more complete insight into the journey of this magnificent poet, be shared in English. And that is what Arimei Books is proud to offer to you this autumn!