Rilke’s Duino Elegies

Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926) is frequently acclaimed as the greatest poet writing in German in the twentieth century, and the ‘Duino Elegies’ are regarded as his crowning poetic achievement as a poet. — The ten contributions that make up this book, all close readings, deal with Rilke’s language and imagery as a means of highlighting the poetic qualities of these poems. The interpretations also confront the reader with the great themes of Rilke’s oeuvre, presented in a cycle that moves gradually to an acceptance of the limitations of human life and death.