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Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926)

Author of Letters to a Young Poet

1,018+ Works 27,091 Members 283 Reviews 172 Favorited

About the Author

More than any other modern German writer, Rainer Maria Rilke seems to match our romantic idea of what a poet should be, though, as with many writers, separating artistry from affectation is often difficult. Restless, sensitive, reverent, yet egotistical, Rilke often seems to hover in his poems like show more a sort of ethereal being. He was born in 1875 to a wealthy family in Prague. After a few years devoted to the study of art and literature, he spent most of his adult life wandering among the European capitals and devoting himself single-mindedly to poetry. His early poems reflect his interest in the visual and plastic arts, as he tries to lose himself in contemplation of objects such as an antique torso of Apollo.His later books of poetry, such as Duino Elegies (1923) and Sonnets to Orpheus (1923), on the contrary, focus intently on internal realms. The poetry of Rilke is noted, above all, for metaphysical and psychological nuances. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Rainer Maria Rilke

Series

Works by Rainer Maria Rilke

Letters to a Young Poet (1929) 6,471 copies
The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge (1910) — Author — 2,469 copies
Duino Elegies (1923) — Author — 1,722 copies
Rilke's Book of Hours: Love Poems to God (1899) — Author — 1,111 copies
Sonnets to Orpheus (1922) — Author — 1,052 copies
Duino Elegies / The Sonnets to Orpheus (1922) — Author — 766 copies
Stories of God (1899) — Author — 503 copies
The Book of Images (1906) 461 copies
Letters on Cézanne (1952) 364 copies
Auguste Rodin (1903) 239 copies
The Poetry of Rilke (2009) 184 copies
Diaries of a Young Poet (1989) 167 copies
Die Gedichte (1990) — Author — 160 copies
New Poems, 1907 (1984) 135 copies
In Praise of Mortality (1657) 92 copies
The Life of the Virgin Mary (1913) 53 copies
Gedichte [Reclam UB 8291] (2005) — Author — 52 copies
Briefe an eine junge Frau (1936) 47 copies
El testamento (1974) — Author — 46 copies
Ewald Tragy (1974) 45 copies
Rilke in Paris (2001) 42 copies
Worpswede (1903) 40 copies
Requiem (1909) 38 copies
Prayers of a Young Poet (2012) 36 copies
Poesie (1984) 35 copies
Florentijns dagboek (1981) 34 copies
Poesie (1907-1926) (2000) 33 copies
Die schönsten Gedichte (1997) 33 copies
Poèmes à la nuit (1976) 30 copies
Vergers (1978) 29 copies
The Unknown Rilke (1983) 29 copies
Gesammelte Gedichte (1962) 28 copies
Gedichte [Reclam UB 9623] (1997) 28 copies
Danze macabre (1994) 27 copies
Poems, 1906 to 1926 (1953) 27 copies
Poems (1943) 25 copies
Letters to a Young Painter (1996) 23 copies
Requiem e altre poesie (1935) 23 copies
Gedichte (1981) 20 copies
De mooiste gedichten (1999) 19 copies
Die Erzählungen. (1995) 18 copies
Antología poética (1982) 18 copies
Prose and poetry (1984) 18 copies
Poesie (1946) 17 copies
Turning-Point (2003) 16 copies
Gesammelte Werke (Anaconda) (2013) 16 copies
Lyrik und Prosa (1999) — Author — 16 copies
Poemas (2000) 16 copies
The Roses & The Windows (1979) 15 copies
Sämtliche Werke (1970) 14 copies
Larenopfer (1994) 14 copies
Armastusest (1987) 13 copies
Dichtungen des Michelangelo (1960) 12 copies
Oeuvres (1972) 12 copies
La princesse blanche (1987) 12 copies
Nuove poesie-Requiem (1992) 11 copies
Poesie, I (1895-1908) (1997) 11 copies
Scrisori catre Rodin (1928) 11 copies
The Voices (1977) 11 copies
Selected letters 11 copies
Letters on God and Letters to a Young Woman (2012) — Author — 11 copies
Epistolario español (1976) 10 copies
Gesammelte Werke (Eurobuch) (1998) 10 copies
Rilke: Between Roots (1986) 10 copies
Relatos de Praga (1982) 10 copies
Koning Bohoesj (2004) 10 copies
88 Gedichte (2011) 9 copies
Racconti scelti 8 copies
Dikter (1978) 8 copies
Werke in drei Bänden (1966) — Composer — 8 copies
Poesie (1908-1926) (1997) 8 copies
Unofficial Rilke (1981) 8 copies
Frühe Gedichte. (1928) 8 copies
Lettres à une musicienne (1998) 8 copies
Gedichte und Prosa (2002) 8 copies
Rilke Selected Poems (1941) 8 copies
Selected poems 8 copies
Erste Gedichte (1988) 8 copies
O carrossel (2010) 8 copies
Uren en beelden 7 copies
Die drei Liebenden (1979) 7 copies
Gesammelte Werke (2014) 7 copies
Gedichte. (1997) 7 copies
Where the Paths Do Not Go (2018) 7 copies
El amor de Magdalena (1996) 7 copies
Selected Poems 7 copies
Liebesgedichte. (2002) 6 copies
Il libro d'ore (2008) 6 copies
Poezje (1987) 6 copies
Briefe (1980) 6 copies
Lettere (2010) 6 copies
Verzamelde brieven (2022) 6 copies
Valda dikter (2020) 6 copies
Am Leben hin (1985) 6 copies
Hundert Gedichte (2000) 6 copies
Wie nu geen huis heeft (2001) 6 copies
Poupées (2013) 5 copies
Nueva antología poética (2007) 5 copies
Die Liebenden. Großdruck (1944) 5 copies
Mir zur Feier (2000) 5 copies
Het landschap 5 copies
Rilke: Selected Poems (1960) 5 copies
Chant éloigné (1990) 5 copies
Poemas Franceses (1944) 5 copies
Gedichten (2022) 5 copies
Teoría poética (1987) 5 copies
Werke (1980) 5 copies
Rilke: Selected Poems (1991) 5 copies
Herbst (2007) 4 copies
Versions de Rilke (1901) 4 copies
Del poeta 4 copies
Brieven (1991) — Author — 4 copies
I racconti (2016) 4 copies
Cuareta y nueve poemas (2010) 4 copies
Kaks Praha lugu (2020) 4 copies
The Voices & Other Poems (2021) 4 copies
Ausgewählte Gedichte (2005) 4 copies
Nine plays (1979) 4 copies
Worte, die verwandeln (1999) 4 copies
Ein Gespräch in Briefen. (1998) 4 copies
Udvalgte Digte 4 copies
Brieven over God (1987) 4 copies
Tagebcher aus der Frhzeit (1999) 3 copies
Poèmes épars (2015) 3 copies
Die Letzten (2011) 3 copies
Le magnifique René Maria (2007) 3 copies
Poemas 3 copies
Noves versions de Rilke (1901) 3 copies
Über Dichtung und Kunst (1974) 3 copies
Die Frühen Gedichte (1922) 3 copies
Selected Letters of Rainer Maria Rilke (1960) — Author — 3 copies
Über den jungen Dichter (1996) 3 copies
Gedichte (2008) 3 copies
CARTAS A JOVENS POETAS (2003) 3 copies
L'alfiere (1992) 3 copies
Verzieri (2004) 3 copies
Cuentos cortos (2004) 3 copies
Die Prosa (2016) 3 copies
L'angelo e altre poesie (2003) 3 copies
Liriche (1992) 2 copies
Obras 2 copies
Rainer Maria Rilke : Poems — Author — 2 copies
TanrIdan Öyküler (2006) 2 copies
Lirika 2 copies
O umení výber z esejí (2005) 2 copies
Rilke (1988) 2 copies
Dua Saatleri Kitabi (2015) 2 copies
Der Totengräber (2014) 2 copies
Toledo Ilustrado (2015) 2 copies
Poesía (2007) 2 copies
Poems (2015) 2 copies
50 Gedichte (2011) — Author — 2 copies
Kniha obrazů (2018) 2 copies
Genc Bir Saire Mektuplar (2000) 2 copies
Dream-Crowned (2011) 2 copies
Poésie 2 copies
Erzählungen 2 copies
De Dichter (1978) 2 copies
Poesías (2003) 2 copies
Vita di Maria (2000) 2 copies
Rainer Maria Rilke (1986) 2 copies
Poèmes et proses (1964) 2 copies
Der Drachentöter (1997) 2 copies
POEMAS 2 copies
Poesie 2 copies
Poezija 2 copies
(:)Joosepi kahtlused (2008) 2 copies
Späte Gedichte (1934) 2 copies
Rainer Maria Rilke versei (1983) 2 copies
Werke in 6 Bände (1980) 2 copies
Rodin: Nudes (1950) 2 copies
Briefe.: 3 Bände (1987) 2 copies
Liebesgeschichten. (2003) 2 copies
Advent 2 copies
Later Poems (1938) 2 copies
Selected New Poems (2002) — Author — 2 copies
Meistererzählungen (2005) 2 copies
Werke 2 copies
SELECTED POEMS (1941) 1 copy
L'amour de Madeleine (2000) 1 copy
Selected Poems Rilke: (1988) 1 copy
Ultima sera (2011) 1 copy
Les Sonnets à Orphée (2021) 1 copy
Printemps enchanté (2022) 1 copy
Poems: [1918] (2009) 1 copy
Ur-lyd (2016) 1 copy
Antología 1 copy
İmgeler Kitabı (2019) 1 copy
Poems (1918) 1 copy
Poemas II 1 copy
Poemas I 1 copy
Pesmi 1 copy
Briefe 1 copy
Poems (2021) 1 copy
Poems (2014) 1 copy
Cartas 1 copy
Valaisian Quatrains (2009) 1 copy
Liriche e prose (1967) 1 copy
Poems (1971) 1 copy
Poemes francesos (2011) 1 copy
Novos Poemas (1900) 1 copy
Der Panther (2018) 1 copy
Poeme 1 copy
Malte 1 copy
Elegieën van Duino (2022) 1 copy
As rosas (1996) 1 copy
Genc Saire Mektuplar (2016) 1 copy
Poésie 1 copy
UZAK GECE RÜZGARI (2018) 1 copy
El Corneta 1 copy
Paysages 1 copy
Sonuncular (2009) 1 copy
D Ł ten ta Đ (2005) 1 copy
Poesia 1 copy
Lodice času 1 copy
The Stranger 1 copy
Querida Lou 1 copy
The cat's meow (1961) 1 copy
Cornet Rilke neue gedichte (1952) — Author — 1 copy
Rilke : poesia-coisa (1994) 1 copy
Ősz 1 copy
Lettere a un giovane (2015) 1 copy
A los jóvenes poetas (2012) 1 copy
Ihr Madchen 1 copy
Kurze Prosa (2012) 1 copy
POÉSIE 1 copy
Poesie 1 copy
As Janelas (2009) 1 copy
Wenn Weihnachten naht (2016) 1 copy
...Poems 1 copy
Las quintaesencias (1941) 1 copy
Kalem ve kılıç (2003) 1 copy
Neunzig Gedichte (1987) 1 copy
Roses (2014) 1 copy
Die Näherin 1 copy
Skizzen 1 copy
Sancaktar 1 copy
Canet de Poche (d'un) (2004) 1 copy

Associated Works

Sonnets from the Portuguese (1850) — Translator, some editions — 2,169 copies
Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre (1956) — Contributor — 2,076 copies
Eric Carle's Dragons, Dragons (1991) — Contributor — 715 copies
The Rag and Bone Shop of the Heart: A Poetry Anthology (1992) — Contributor — 388 copies
The World's Greatest Short Stories (2006) — Contributor — 264 copies
A World of Great Stories (1947) 259 copies
Letters: Summer 1926 (1985) 222 copies
The Song of Igor's Campaign (1800) — Translator, some editions — 182 copies
Randall Jarrell's Book of Stories (1958) — Contributor — 142 copies
Deutsche Gedichte (1956) — Contributor, some editions — 135 copies
Magical Realist Fiction: An Anthology (1984) — Contributor — 111 copies
Great German Short Novels and Stories (1933) — Contributor — 104 copies
The Norton Book of Friendship (1991) — Contributor — 95 copies
Great German Short Stories (1960) — Contributor — 83 copies
The Dedalus Book of Austrian Fantasy, 1890-2000 (2003) — Contributor — 70 copies
Gods and Mortals: Modern Poems on Classical Myths (1684) — Contributor — 68 copies
The Return of the Prodigal Son (1907) — Translator, some editions — 51 copies
The Faber Book of Gardens (2007) — Contributor — 45 copies
Sonnets (1947) — Translator, some editions — 38 copies
Mitsou: Forty images (1984) — Foreword, some editions — 28 copies
The Seas of God: Great Stories of the Human Spirit (1944) — Contributor — 25 copies
Ten Poems to Say Goodbye (2012) — Contributor — 24 copies
One World of Literature (1992) — Contributor — 24 copies
Loss: An Anthology (1997) — Contributor — 18 copies
Son of Man: Great Writing About Jesus Christ (2002) — Contributor — 17 copies
"Das Tagebuch" Goethes und Rilkes "Sieben Gedichte" (1978) — Contributor — 17 copies
Voor het einde 33 Duitse verhalen uit de jaren 1900-1933 (1977) — Contributor — 13 copies
Deutsche Erzählungen 2 (1975) — Contributor — 10 copies
The Analog Sea Review: Number Three (2020) — Contributor — 8 copies
Men and Women: The Poetry of Love (1970) — Contributor — 8 copies
THE SEVENTIES. Number 1. Spring 1972 (1972) — Contributor — 4 copies
Moderne Erzahler 1 — Author — 4 copies
Estetica e paesaggio (2009) — Author — 3 copies
Wien um 1900. Literarische und graphische Kostbarkeiten (1964) — Contributor — 2 copies
Les chansons des roses : SATB/SATB and piano (1991) — Author — 2 copies
Am Borne deutscher Dichtung (1927) — Contributor — 1 copy
Cricket Magazine, Vol. 6, No. 3, November 1978 (1978) — Contributor — 1 copy
Natale raccontato da ... — Contributor — 1 copy

Tagged

19th century (81) 20th century (387) anthology (479) art (134) Austrian literature (83) bilingual (84) biography (84) classic (81) classics (150) correspondence (119) dual language (62) essays (163) existentialism (272) fairy tales (121) fantasy (98) fiction (701) German (855) German literature (920) German poetry (234) Germany (197) letters (534) literature (786) Lyrik (73) non-fiction (576) novel (94) own (90) philosophy (600) poems (172) poetry (6,370) Rainer Maria Rilke (152) read (170) religion (66) Rilke (474) short stories (296) spirituality (87) to-read (1,211) translated (79) translation (292) unread (99) writing (193)

Common Knowledge

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Rainer Maria Rilke in Someone explain it to me... (April 2015)

Reviews

Go into yourself and examine the depth. Write out of necessity. Seek solitude. Hold fast to what is difficult. Unhappiness transforms you, let it happen. School your doubts until they become constructive critics, request arguments from them.
Rilke gives wise advice like these. But more than that I enjoyed seeing his poetic mind reasoning. He sees the world differently, more sensually, more metaphorically. He trusts the world and all that is happening. There is little cliche or tradition in his thinking, he constructs everything himself.
Rilke is a brave, bright and kind soul. In this book he tries to help another soul deal with hardship and fears that so often besiege a young poet or perhaps any person of any age.
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Flagged
rubyman | 91 other reviews | Feb 21, 2024 |
This compilation of selections from Rilke's poetry and prose has been an excellent morning or evening treat for the past 365 days - at times serene and calming, and at others challenging and vibrant. At its best, his writing captures the ineffable and profound in human living in a way that is direct and metaphoric. His themes - love, solitude, death, suffering, silence, growth - are generally spiritual, natural, universal and transformative. And this book is an excellent way to discover the breadth of his writing for the newcomer, as well as providing a steady reminder of his artistry and insight for anyone who is already familiar with him.… (more)
 
Flagged
breathslow | Jan 27, 2024 |
This was pretty terrible. Rilke is repetitive. His writing is abstract, philosophical; he says a whole lot of nothing with a lot of words - and his views are just wrong.

Apparently, poets (or creative people, more generally) shouldn't try to improve their lives, but just "let life happen to them," nor should they try to make friends and form meaningful connections with other humans, but rather "embrace aloneness." Doing those things will make someone a real artist, because all real artists are angsty and no one could possibly understand them, right?

More disturbing is Rilke's view that sex and sexuality are practically the epitome of life; virgins are described as people who haven't yet accomplished anything in life. Because having sex is such a huge accomplishment? And the only one that matters, I guess.
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Flagged
RachelRachelRachel | 91 other reviews | Nov 21, 2023 |
For the lover of Rilke, this superb translation of his early diaries -- Florence, Schmargendorf and Worpswede -- will be a watershed.
 
Flagged
PendleHillLibrary | Aug 22, 2023 |

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Associated Authors

Robert Bly Editor, Translator
C. F. MacIntyre Translator
Maurice Betz Translator, Editor, Author
Georde Maurer Composer
Anselm Spring Photographer
Marcel Raval Preface
Edmond Jaloux Introduction
Isidor Marí Translator
Stephen Mitchell Translator, Editor
Liisa Enwald Translator
J. B. Leishman Translator, Translator, Introduction
Anita Barrows Translator, Editor
Joanna Macy Translator, Editor
Ulrich Baer Translator
Pim Lukkenaer Translator, Afterword
Edward Snow Translator
Babette Deutsch Translator
Beda Alleman Introduction
Walter Arndt Translator
Peter Verstegen Translator
Will Stone Translator
Reinold Kuiperds Translator
Alice Derry Translator
Ian Crockatt Translator
Ethan Hawke Narrator
Peter Fricke Narrator
Stephen Spender Translator
Daniel Pelavin Cover designer
Franz Xaver Kappus Introduction
Joan M. Burnham Translator
Kent Nerburn Foreword
Reginald Snell Translator
Edward A. Snow Translator
Bert Bouman Cover designer
Burton Pike Translator
Michael Hulse Translator
N. Brunt Translator
Edward Gorey Cover designer
Sinikka Kallio Translator
Robert Hass Introduction
Marc J. Cohen Cover designer
John Martinez Cover artist
Eduard Santiago Translator
Robert Hunter Translator
Martyn Crucefix Translator
Mary C. Crichton Translator
D. Sam Abrams Afterword
Stephen Cohn Translator
David Young Translator
Aila Meriluoto Translator
Manuel Balasch Translator
William Crichton Translator
Carin Goldberg Cover designer
Jessie Lemont Translator
John J. L. Mood Translator
Bertram Weihs Cover artist
Josep Bigordà Introduction
Jacques Ernotte Illustrator
Ernst Zinn Editor
Judith Vilar Translator
Joan Parra Translator
Carles Riba Translator
Daniel Slager Translator
Hans Trausil Translator
William H. Gass Introduction
Michael Eastman Photographer
Padraic Colum Introduction
Adam Zagajewski Introduction
Alan Spain Cover artist
Dieter Lamping Editor, Afterword
Carl Sieber Afterword
Lewis Hyde Introduction
Jo Shapcott Translator
Willy Fleckhaus Cover designer
Damion Searls Translator
Ulrich Tukur Narrator
Charlie Louth Translator
A.A.M.S. Translator
Rudo Hartman Cover designer
Jocelyn Gautama Cover designer
Rika Lesser Translator
Auguste Rodin Illustrator
Erik H. Erikson Illustrator
Joan M. Erikson Translator
Bert Schreurs Afterword
Frank Zipfel Anmerkungen

Statistics

Works
1,018
Also by
64
Members
27,091
Popularity
#762
Rating
4.1
Reviews
283
ISBNs
1,680
Languages
34
Favorited
172

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