About JirÃ Orten

Jiří Orten (1919–1941) was one of the greatest writers of Czechoslovakia’s “war generation” and arguably one of the finest European poets of the twentieth century. On his twenty-second birthday, while crossing a street in Prague, he was struck by a German ambulance. A friend took him to the General Infirmary in Prague, but as a Jew, Orten could not be treated there and had to be moved to a different hospital. Two days later, he died.

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What Are We?

Jirí Orten

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What are we but runaways from tender executioners?
Oh listen to the crowing cock of horrors!

What are we other than a well overflowing?
On the sheets of music, a gale is blowing.

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What Are We?

Jirí Orten

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