Dear Reader (and listener),
This week a poem from the summer of 1924 about self-alienation.
Hannah Arendt’s life spanned continents and worlds, stretching between Germany and the United States. She described herself as “das Mädchen aus der Fremden”, quoting the German romantic poet Friedrich Schiller, to capture her sense of being caught between worlds.
In this early poem Arendt reflects on being caught between youth and adulthood, between her romantic affair with Martin Heidegger and moving on to Heidelberg to write her dissertation with Karl Jaspers. Written during the same time period she wrote her only auto-biographical text, “The Shadows”, this poem titled “Absorbed in Oneself” gives us a deeper understanding of her own self-reflectiveness, and alienation.
Enjoy!
Sam
Reflections