Eliot Weinberger (born 6 February 1949 in New York City) is a contemporary

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

writer,

essayist An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal ...

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, or ...

, and

translator Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transl ...

. He is primarily known for his literary writings (essays) and political articles, the former characterized by their wide-ranging subjects and experimental style, verging on a kind of documentary prose poetry, and the latter highly critical of American politics and foreign policy. His work regularly appears in translation and has been published in more than thirty languages.

Life and work

Weinberger's books of literary writings include ''Works on Paper'', ''Outside Stories'', ''Written Reaction'', ''Karmic Traces'', ''The Stars'', ''Muhammad'', the "serial essay" ''An Elemental Thing'', which was selected by the Village Voice as one of the "20 Best Books of the Year," ''Oranges & Peanuts for Sale'', ''The Ghosts of Birds'', and ''Angels & Saints'', selected for the Times Literary Supplement "International Books of the Year." His political articles are collected in ''9/12'', ''What I Heard About Iraq'', and ''What Happened Here: Bush Chronicles'', a finalist for the

National Book Critics Circle The National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) is an American nonprofit organization (501(c)(3)) with more than 700 members. It is the professional association of American book review editors and critics, known primarily for the National Book Critics C ...

award for criticism and also a TLS "International Books of the Year." The Guardian (UK) said of ''What I Heard About Iraq'': "Every war has its classic antiwar book, and here is Iraq’s." It has been adapted by others into a prize-winning theater piece, two cantatas, two prize-winning radio plays, a dance performance, and various art installations; it appeared on some tens of thousands of websites, and was read or performed in nearly one hundred events throughout the world on 20 March 2006, the anniversary of the invasion. When George W. Bush visited Angela Merkel's hometown of Stralsund, Germany, in July 2006, the local residents protested with a public reading of the text. In 2021, Weinberger was awarded the Jeanette Schocken / Bremerhaven Citizens' Prize for Literature, given biannually to a writer who "sets an example against injustice and violence, against hatred and intolerance." In their citation, the jurors wrote: “In the spirit of Enlightenment, Weinberger acts in these texts as an agent provocateur for a better world, as a great warner against the loss of freedom and human dignity." Weinberger's long collaboration and friendship with the Nobel Prize–winning writer and poet

Octavio Paz Octavio Paz Lozano (March 31, 1914 – April 19, 1998) was a Mexican poet and diplomat. For his body of work, he was awarded the 1977 Jerusalem Prize, the 1981 Miguel de Cervantes Prize, the 1982 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, and ...

, which began when Weinberger was a teenager, led to many translations of Paz's work, including ''The Poems of Octavio Paz'', ''In Light of India'', and ''Sunstone''. Among his other translations of Latin American literature are Vicente Huidobro's Altazor,

Xavier Villaurrutia Xavier Villaurrutia y González (27 March 1903 – 25 December 1950) was a Mexican poet, playwright and literary critic whose most famous works are the short theatrical dramas called ''Autos profanos'', compiled in the work ''Poesía y teatro co ...

's ''Nostalgia for Death'', and

Jorge Luis Borges Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo (; ; 24 August 1899 – 14 June 1986) was an Argentine short-story writer, essayist, poet and translator, as well as a key figure in Spanish-language and international literature. His best-known b ...

' ''Seven Nights''. His edition of Borges’ ''Selected Non-Fictions'' received the

National Book Critics Circle Award The National Book Critics Circle Awards are a set of annual American literary awards by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English".Bei Dao Bei Dao (, born August 2, 1949) is the pen name of the Chinese-American writer Zhao Zhenkai (S: 赵振开, T: 趙振開, P: ''Zhào Zhènkāi''). Among the most acclaimed Chinese-language poets of his generation, he is often regarded as a candida ...

, and the editor of ''The New Directions Anthology of Classical Chinese Poetry'', also a TLS "International Book of the Year." He is the series editor of ''Calligrams: Writings from and on China'', jointly published by Chinese University of Hong Kong Press and

New York Review Books New York Review Books (NYRB) is the publishing division of ''The New York Review of Books''. Its imprints are New York Review Books Classics, New York Review Books Collections, The New York Review Children's Collection, New York Review Comics, Ne ...

. Among the other books he has edited are the anthologies '' American Poetry Since 1950: Innovators & Outsiders'' and ''World Beat: International Poetry Now from New Directions''. He is a frequent contributor to the ''

London Review of Books The ''London Review of Books'' (''LRB'') is a British literary magazine published twice monthly that features articles and essays on fiction and non-fiction subjects, which are usually structured as book reviews. History The ''London Review o ...

'' and occasional contributor to the ''

New York Review of Books New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

''. From 2015 to 2017, he was the literary editor of the Murty Classical Library of India. He serves on the Advisory Boards of the Margellos World Republic of Letters (

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Univers ...

) and the Board of Directors of

New Directions Publishing New Directions Publishing Corp. is an independent book publishing company that was founded in 1936 by James Laughlin and incorporated in 1964. Its offices are located at 80 Eighth Avenue in New York City. History New Directions was born in 19 ...

. In 2000, Weinberger became the first U.S. literary writer to be awarded the

Order of the Aztec Eagle The Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle ( es, Orden Mexicana del Águila Azteca) forms part of the Mexican Honours System and is the highest Mexican order awarded to foreigners in the country. History It was created by decree on December 29, 1933 ...

by the government of Mexico. He was chosen by the German organization Dropping Knowledge as one of a hundred "world's most innovative thinkers." At the 2005

PEN A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...

World Voices Festival, he was presented as a "Post-National Writer." He lives in New York City.

Selected bibliography

Author

* ''Works on Paper'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1986. * ''Nineteen Ways of Looking at Wang Wei'', Moyer-Bell (Wakefield, RI), 1987. * ''Outside Stories'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1992. * ''Written Reaction: Poetics, Politics, Polemics'', Marsilio Publishing, 1996. * ''Karmic Traces'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2000. * ''9/12'', Prickly Paradigm Press (Chicago, IL), 2003. * ''What I Heard About Iraq'', Verso (London), 2005. * ''The Stars'' (with Vija Celmins), Museum of Modern Art (New York, NY), 2005. * ''What Happened Here: Bush Chronicles'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2005; Verso (London), 2006. * ''Muhammad'', Verso (New York, London), 2006 * ''An Elemental Thing'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2007. * ''Oranges and Peanuts for Sale'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2009. * ''Wildlife'', Giramondo (Sydney), 2012. * ''Two American Scenes'' (with Lydia Davis), New Directions (New York, NY) 2013. * ''The Wall, the City, and the World'', Readux (Berlin), 2014. * ''The Ghosts of Birds'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2016. * ''Nineteen Ways of Looking at Wang Wei'' (expanded edition), New Directions (New York, NY), 2016. *''Angels & Saints,'' New Directions (New York, NY), 2020.

Editor

* ''Montemora'' (literary magazine), 1975-1982. * ''Una antologia de la poesia norteamericana desde 1950'', Ediciones del Equilibrista (Mexico), 1992. * '' American Poetry Since 1950: Innovators and Outsiders'', Marsilio Publishing, 1993. * ''Sulfur'' #33, (special issue: "Into the Past"), 1993. *

James Laughlin James Laughlin (October 30, 1914 – November 12, 1997) was an American poet and literary book publisher who founded New Directions Publishing. Early life He was born in Pittsburgh, the son of Henry Hughart and Marjory Rea Laughlin. Laughlin ...

, ''Ensayos fortuitos'', Ed. Vuelta (Mexico City), 1995. * ''The New Directions Anthology of Classical Chinese Poetry'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2003; Anvil (London), 2007. * ''The Crafts of Mexico'', edited by Margarita de Orellana, Alberto Ruy-Sánchez; guest editor, Eliot Weinberger. Smithsonian Books, (Washington), 2004. * ''World Beat: International Poetry Now from New Directions'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2006. *

Kenneth Rexroth Kenneth Charles Marion Rexroth (1905–1982) was an American poet, translator, and critical essayist. He is regarded as a central figure in the San Francisco Renaissance, and paved the groundwork for the movement. Although he did not consider ...

, ''Songs of Love, Moon & Wind: Poems from the Chinese'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2009. *

, ''Written on the Sky: Poems from the Japanese'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2009. * ''Elsewhere'', Open Letter (Rochester, NY), 2014.

Editor and translator

, ''Eagle or Sun?'', October House, 1970, revised edition, New Directions (New York, NY), 1976. *

, ''A Draft of Shadows'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1980. *

Homero Aridjis Homero Aridjis (born April 6, 1940) is a Mexican poet, novelist, environmental activist, journalist and diplomat known for his rich imagination, poetry of lyrical beauty, and ethical independence. Family and early life Aridjis was born in Contep ...

, ''Exaltation of Light'', Boa Editions (Brockport, NY), 1981. *

, ''Selected Poems'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1984. *

, ''Seven Nights'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1984. *

, ''The Collected Poems 1957-1987'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1987; Carcanet (Manchester, UK), 1988; revised New Directions edition, 1991. * Vicente Huidobro, ''Altazor'', Graywolf (Minneapolis, MN), 1988, revised edition, Wesleyan University Press (Middletown, CT), 2003. *

, ''A Tree Within'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1988. *

, ''Sunstone'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1991. * Cecilia Vicuña, ''Unravelling Words and the Weaving of Water'', Graywolf (Port Townsend, WA), 1992. *

, ''Nostalgia for Death'',

Copper Canyon Press Copper Canyon Press is an independent, non-profit small press, founded in 1972 specializing exclusively in the publication of poetry. It is located in Port Townsend, Washington. Copper Canyon Press publishes new collections of poetry by both ...

(Port Townsend, WA), 1993. *

, ''In Light of India'', Harcourt Brace (New York, NY), 1997. *

, ''A Tale of Two Gardens'', New Directions (New York, NY), 1997. *

, ''An Erotic Beyond: Sade'', 1998. *

, ''Selected Non-Fictions'', Viking (New York, NY), 1999. (individual selections translated by Esther Allen, Suzanne Jill Levine or Weinberger). U.K. edition: ''The Total Library'', Penguin (London), 1999. *

Bei Dao Bei Dao (, born August 2, 1949) is the pen name of the Chinese-American writer Zhao Zhenkai (S: 赵振开, T: 趙振開, P: ''Zhào Zhènkāi''). Among the most acclaimed Chinese-language poets of his generation, he is often regarded as a candida ...

, ''Unlock'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2000; Anvil (London), 2006. (translations with Iona Man-Cheong) * Octavio & Marie-Jose Paz, ''Figures & Figurations'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2002. *

, ''The Rose of Time: New & Selected Poems'', New Directions (New York, NY), 2010. (various translators) *

, ''The Poems of Octavio Paz,'' New Directions (New York, NY), 2012.

References

External links

''Aden Rolfe Interviews Eliot Weinberger''
Weinberger in ''Cordite Poetry Review'', 3 May 2016

Weinberger in the ''London Review of Books'', 3 Feb 2005

Weinberger in the ''London Review of Books'' 27 Dec 2005
The Poetry-Transfigured Essay
by Forrest Gander at ''Harriet'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Weinberger, Eliot 1949 births Living people American essayists American political writers Writers from New York City American editors American translators American male essayists Translators of Octavio Paz