Ruth Feldman (1911 Liverpool, Ohio – January 11, 2003) was an American

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and translator.

Life

Her father died when she was young and her mother when she was just 17. She lived with her brother, Milton, who was attending

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

, while attending

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a Private university, private Women's colleges in the United States, historically women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henr ...

. She lived half the year in her condo overlooking the Charles River; the other half she lived in the Hotel de la Ville,

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

at the top of the

Spanish Steps The Spanish Steps () in Rome, Italy, climb a steep slope between Piazza di Spagna at the base and Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church, at the top. The monumental stairway of 135 steps is linked with the Trinit� ...

. She is the author of five books of poetry and fifteen books of Italian translations, all poetry except

Primo Levi Primo Michele Levi (; 31 July 1919 – 11 April 1987) was a Jewish Italian chemist, partisan, Holocaust survivor and writer. He was the author of several books, collections of short stories, essays, poems and one novel. His best-known works i ...

's concentration camp stories. Her poetry has been translated into Italian, French, and Spanish. Her work appeared in ''

AGNI Agni ( ) is the Deva (Hinduism), Hindu god of fire. As the Guardians of the directions#Aṣṭa-Dikpāla ("Guardians of Eight Directions"), guardian deity of the southeast direction, he is typically found in southeast corners of Hindu temples. ...

'', and ''New York Review of Books''.

Awards

* 1999 Feldman and John P. Welle Raiziss/de Palchi Book Prize *

John Florio Prize The John Florio Prize for Italian translation is awarded by the Society of Authors, with the co-sponsorship of the Italian Cultural Institute and Arts Council England. Named after the Tudor Anglo-Italian writer-translator John Florio Giovann ...

in England * Circe-Sabaudia in Italy *

Italo Calvino Italo Calvino (, ; ;. RAI (circa 1970), retrieved 25 October 2012. 15 October 1923 – 19 September 1985) was an Italian novelist and short story writer. His best-known works include the ''Our Ancestors'' trilogy (1952–1959), the '' Cosm ...

Prize in the United States * Literary Translator's Fellowship from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

. * Raymond E. Baldwin Award

Work

Poetry

* * * *

Translations

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Editor

References

1911 births 2003 deaths People from East Liverpool, Ohio Italian–English translators Wellesley College alumni American women poets 20th-century American poets 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American translators 21st-century American women {{US-translator-stub